Recycling myths

Recycle for London busts some of the myths that put people off recycling.

“Recycling costs more than sending rubbish to landfill...”

Actually, recycling saves serious money.  Every penny spent on landfilling rubbish is a waste of public money.

Check out the Recycling Saves Money section for information on how recycling is cheaper than sending waste to landfill.

“Recycling is too difficult…”

It’s easier to recycle than ever before, as councils introduce better collection systems and collect a wider range of materials.  Not only is it good for the environment, but it also saves money.  If you’re confused about what you can recycle where you live, check out our postcode locator.

“Recycling is a waste of time. It all ends up in the same place as the rubbish…”

In London last year, a whopping 97% of material sent for recycling actually got recycled.  The remaining 3% is material that is rejected as it was wrongly placed in the recycling in the first place, either because it can’t be recycled or because it is in very bad condition.

“Recycling uses more energy than it saves…”

Using recycled materials to make new products consumes considerably less energy than using raw materials – even when comparing all associated costs, such as transport.

Plus there are extra energy savings because more energy is required to extract, refine, transport and process raw materials ready for industry compared with providing industry-ready materials.