Waste and Recycling
[screen 1]
First read through the list of household waste items below. Then, as you
listen, put each item of waste into the correct container shown.
cardboard containers
cardboard and plastic stuck together
chicken bones
coke cans
coloured wrapping paper
fruit juice cartons made of cardboard
grass cuttings
jam jars
lightbulbs
old flowers
old mobile phones
orange peel
paper envelopes
plastic food trays
plastic milk bottles
plastic shopping bag
wine bottles
[screen 2]
Now listen again and complete the information given in the table below
[missing words shown in red]
Use
the…
for…
grey bag
metal
pink bag
plastic
green
bag
cardboard
yellow
bag
paper
blue bag
glass
green
wheelie
bin
black
plastic
sack
Call the
Council
if…
kitchen
and
garden
waste
nonrecyclable
items
Yes √
… but not...X
cans, foil
and old
pipes, etc
bottles, pots,
tubs,
food trays,
packaging
items which
contain other
substances
bags, film,
black plastic,
plastic which is
not for
packaging
cardboard
which is stuck
to other
substances,
empty drinks
cartons
packaging,
toilet rolls,
boxes,
brown paper
newspaper,
magazines,
brochures
jars and
bottles
orange peel,
grass
cuttings
brown paper
lightbulbs
bones and
meat
recyclable
items. Look for
on the label.
the item you wish to dispose of is too large to fit
into you black sack
[Can you allow these alternatives?:
pots = yoghurt pots
bags = shopping bags
drinks = drink
bones = bone
large = big
but show the word given in the correct answer screen]
Nowadays most of your household waste should go into the five recycling bags that we
provide and the green wheelie bin which is for organic waste. The Council are committed
to recycling and reducing our rubbish and we have set ourselves a long term goal of zero
waste. We are currently recycling almost 60% of our waste and are on target to
achieve even higher levels of recycling this year.
So how can you help? We’re supplying every household with five different coloured
recycling bags and we think that this will make life easier for us all. If you finish a box of
cereals at breakfast-time, then put the box into your green bag. All cardboard should go
here. That includes egg boxes, toilet rolls and brown paper too, but not empty drinks
cartons such as orange juice cartons. They still need to go into your plastic black sacks.
The only other thing to remember is if there is plastic attached to the cardboard, please
try to remove it. If you can’t, it will have to go into your black plastic sack.
All other paper should go into the yellow bag. Any newspapers, magazines, brochures,
wrapping paper - it doesn’t matter if the paper is glossy. We can recycle it. But remember
to put brown paper in with the cardboard.
All your kitchen waste from fruit and vegetables should now go into a green wheelie bin.
Even old tea-bags can go into the bin. This is also where garden waste, such as grass
cuttings, weeds and so on, should go. All of this can be composted. You can even put
wood in here too. But please no bones or meat. Any left-over meat or dairy will have to
go to landfill – into your black plastic sacks. And if you put your kitchen waste into plastic
bags, remember to empty it out. We can’t use the plastic bags
If you have a yoghurt, then put the pot into the pink bag. Most plastic items can be
recycled nowadays – plastic bottles, plastic pots and tubs (like margarine tubs and icecream tubs), and the plastic trays in packaging for food, but check to see that it carries
the recycling label. Unfortunately we can’t recycle plastic bags, such as plastic shopping
bags. We can’t take black plastic and we can’t take plastic film either. They all have to go
into your black sacks too.
All glass bottles and jars should go into the blue bag. It doesn’t matter whether it is clear
or coloured glass. But please no small pieces of broken glass and no lightbulbs. They
need to go into your black plastic sacks.
All metal cans – both steel and aluminium – go into the grey recycling bag, as well as the
lids of jars. You can also put metal foil in here, and things like metal piping. But not things
which simply contain metal. Unless it is completely made of metal it needs to go into the
black plastic sack. And don’t put empty spray canisters into the grey bag – they need to
go into the black plastic sack too.
Don’t put old electrical items into bags for recycling. If it is small enough, you can put it
into your black sack. If you have something large that needs collecting – a fridge, a bike,
or even a car, then contact us by email or by phone. We can come and collect, but there
will normally be a charge. The same goes for furniture that you no longer need. Don’t
leave it out on the street. Give us a call and we can advise you what to do, or collect it for
you.
So what things can’t you recycle? Well there are still some plastic items that can’t be
recycled. Basically, if it isn’t packaging, it probably can’t be recycled. So no old plastic
toys, or plant pots, or washing up bowls. All of these will have to go into the black plastic
sacks for landfill.