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Wandsworth revealed as one of worst boroughs for waste recycling in UK

Wandsworth is the sixth-worst borough in the UK for household waste recycling according to a report from The Solar Centre.

Four more London boroughs appear in the list, including Westminster and Hammersmith and Fulham.

Labour councillor for Bedford ward Fleur Anderson said she was not surprised about these results because the council has been rating low ‘for many years’.

Cllr Anderson said: “The council should do more to improve these rates.

“It’s not just about recycling but about using less and making things easier.”

A Wandsworth council spokesman said: “We are fully committed to working with our residents to maximise recycling levels.”

“Unfortunately comparisons with other boroughs can be misleading,” the spokesman added.

The spokesman added: “Much of our general waste is recycled to produce electricity plus metals and aggregates for the construction industry.

“We aren’t allowed to include these in the figures.”

The spokesman highlighted that Wandsworth’s carbon footprint is the second-lowest of all the 33 London Boroughs.

However, there are other boroughs who have achieved high recycling rates according to the research.

East Riding, in Yorkshire, is recycling a 65% of the household waste, followed by Rochford and South Oxforshire with a 64%.

Another issue highlighted on the stats is the connection between the Millenials and the low percentage of recycling.

Published by LocalGov, recent studies show up that Millenials tend to be apathetic when carrying out recycling, stating that they are confused about how things are recycled (16%), that the collections should be made more frequent (12%), and the fact they had either bins or bags to recycle (11%).

David Eaton, sales director of The Solar Centre said: “Improving recycling rates and wider environmental practices is imperative for the UK.

“Making these simple practices part of our day to day lives will help to protect the environment and benefit future generations.”

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