Record amount of waste from Doncaster rejected from recycling centres

The Local Government Association said households and councils have worked hard to increase the amount of waste recycled, but are held back by manufacturers using unrecyclable packaging.

Rejected waste material can be turned away from recycling due to contamination by water, dirt, or chemical treatments such as preservatives or paint.

Figures from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs show an estimated 2,595 tonnes of household waste were rejected from being recycled after being placed in the wrong bin in the year to April 2022 – the highest level on record.

It is up from 2,100 tonnes the year before and up from 0 tonnes in 2014-15 when local records of rejects began.

Across England, 6.4 per cent of rubbish sent to be recycled in 2021-22 was rejected.

Last year's rejects in Doncaster accounted for 3.9% of the 66,139 tonnes of household waste sent for recycling.

An LGA spokesperson said households have made a "real shift" to ensure they are recycling as much as possible while councils work hard to share information on what can be recycled.

They said: “However, the manufacturers of plastic packaging products are still continuing to create and sell packaging that cannot be recycled and will be put in the recycling bin by people in good faith.

"The burden then falls on councils to not only collect it and dispose of it, but to pay the extra cost of disposing of it."

They added councils are trying to achieve net zero with “one hand tied behind their back" as manufacturers continue to produce plastic that cannot be disposed of sustainably.

The national increase in rejected material reported across England is also likely due to China's ban on all solid waste imports and effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The figures show 44.1 per cent of household waste in England was recycled in 2021-22 – up slightly from 43.8 per cent the year before.

In Doncaster, 63,544 tonnes of household waste were recycled – 44.8 per cent of all rubbish. It was up from a recycling rate of 43.4 per cent in 2020-21.