Earlier this month, reuse and recycling centres reopened across north London, offering a restricted service. Most boroughs are now also offering bulky waste collections. Contact your local borough council for more information. If you have hazardous waste at home, it can be disposed of through the City of London collection service which is open to all north London boroughs. Find out more and book a collection.
One way that we can all help ensure north London continues to provide effective waste collection and disposal services during these unusual circumstances is to use our waste services responsibly.
There are lots of things residents can do to ensure that waste collection and disposal services can run as smoothly as possible, despite the challenging circumstances that we’re all facing.
- Only put the waste and recycling out for collection that you really need to. With waste services under pressure, please don’t use this time to have a big clear out. And if you are planning a clear out please store as much of the waste as you can until reuse and recycling centres and other local facilities, like textiles banks and charity shops, reopen. Items for disposal, reuse and recycling should never be left at the entrance to a closed reuse and recycling centre or bank - this counts as illegal fly-tipping.
- Make the most of your home recycling collection and recycle everything you can. North Londoners can recycle a wide range of materials at home - find out what you can recycle here. Remember that larger items like cardboard boxes can be broken up into pieces and put with the rest of the recycling. Just make sure all recyclable material is clean and free from food residue first.
- Ease the pressure by creating less waste in the first place! We have lots of top tips, recipes and advice to help you reduce your food waste – not only will you save money but you will reduce the number of times you have to go grocery shopping, easing the pressure on food shops too. Or you could try a reusable alternative to your normal single-use product. Reusable alternatives are available for lots of things, including nappies and wipes, period products, dish cloths etc.
- Make upcycling your new hobby. Why not use any extra time at home to learn some new skills. There are lots of tutorials online and plenty of information about clothes and furniture to help you learn a new repair or upcycling skill. Who knows? You may find you want to keep that item of furniture or clothing you were planning to get rid of after all.
- Give composting a go. If you’re spending more time in the garden than usual and you have space to, why not try composting. It’s a great way to dispose of garden and food waste sustainably. You can find out how to get started at this link.
And finally, please dispose of personal waste, like tissues, face masks and disposable cleaning cloths correctly. Tissues and sanitary waste, such as face masks, should never be put in the recycling. If you have tested positive for COVID-19/coronavirus or have symptoms please make sure that contaminated tissues and other personal waste is double bagged, the bags closed, and left for 72 hours before being put out with the general household waste. This is to reduce the risk of infection to collection and disposal crews. Information from Public Health England about the correct disposal of household waste that is potentially contaminated by COVID-19 is available at this link.
More information about what can be recycled in household collection services is available on the NLWA Recycling page.
Look out for more tips and advice by following us on social media.
For more information about local waste and recycling collection services, please visit your borough’s website.