Resource Use

Scotland launches six-month can recycling trial

(L-R) Jayne Scaife (member of public from Dunblane), Ashley Kelly (Thistles Shopping Centre) & Andrew McFarlan (Every Can Counts Project manager, Scotland)

Zero Waste Scotland, the Scottish Government-funded body responsible for delivering Scotland’s Zero Waste Plan, and Every Can Counts – a partnership between the European and UK drinks can manufacturers, the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) and the aluminium and steel packaging and recycling industries – have announced that they are funding a six-month trial ‘to help make it easier for the public to recycle their drinks cans on the go’ around Scotland.

Can crushers branded with the Every Can Counts logo, have been implemented at seven sites at Stirling’s Thistles Shopping Centre, Falkirk Bus Station, Queen Margaret University, Dundee College and Elgin Academy.

Designed to crush and hold up to 700 aluminium and steel drinks cans at a time (five times more than a conventional recycling container), it is hoped the crushers will not only remind people to recycle their metal cans whilst away from home, but also increase the amount of metal collected.

Operated manually rather than by electricity, the ‘compact and user-friendly’ design of the crushers reportedly encourages consumers to ‘take a more hands-on approach to recycling.’

“An exciting new phase”

Andrew McFarlan of Every Can Counts said: “Our new initiative marks an exciting new phase in the Every Can Counts programme, which launched 12 months ago. . .  We’re here to help each organisation taking part in their own sustainability drives.

“We all know that recycling drinks cans makes sense – it cuts down waste, saves energy and natural resources. By recycling more, shoppers, commuters and staff around Scotland can significantly reduce their impact on the environment and the country can take a major step towards achieving its zero waste ambitions.”

Steven Nicholls, Facilities Manager at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, added: “Sustainability is at the very core of our vision and is in line with our commitment to the environment, so the can crusher initiative is the ideal opportunity to complement the waste separation programme that we already have in place.

“The new initiative is a great fun way of engaging students and staff, as well as helping us all separate aluminium cans from general waste. It helps to further strengthen our total commitment to developing QMU as a sustainable university.” 

The can crushers come 12 weeks ahead of the implementation of the new Waste (Scotland) Regulations, which require Scottish businesses to separate all of their waste – including metals – for recycling from 1 January 2014.

It follows on from the ‘Recycle and Reward’ reverse vending trial, which offered monetary incentives to people who recycled glass, aluminium and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) drinks containers.

The scheme, which offered recyclers rewards such as money back, discount vouchers or vouchers for donations to charities, was piloted at 14 locations across Scotland, and ran until September 2013. The Scottish Government has said it will use the results of the trial to evaluate the possible impacts of introducing such schemes nationally.

Read more about Zero Waste Scotland and the Scottish Government’s recent recycling initiatives.