Cat Fronts Hounslow Borough Recycling Campaign | ||||||
HypnoCat wants to stop unwanted electrical items ending up in landfill
A campaign to persuade residents of Hounslow borough to recycle more electrical products is being fronted by a fluffy pink cat. HypnoCat is the mascot for the Recycle Your Electricals campaign, which is run by not-for-profit organisation Material Focus and is supported by Hounslow Council. The campaign has been running UK-wide and Hounslow is one of a growing number of over 80 local authorities to participate in the mission to encourage residents to empty their cupboards and drawers of unwanted electrical items and recycle them. On average, each person in the UK buys 3 new electrical items each year – that’s about 170 million items across the UK – and only a small number of electrical items already in the home, whether they’re broken or just unwanted, end up being recycled. Over 155,000 tonnes of electrical waste is being lost to landfills, and up to 527 million small electrical items are being hoarded in UK homes, which could be reused to create life-saving medical equipment, new gadgets and more. On scheduled recycling collection days in Hounslow, e-waste can be put into a carrier bag and presented alongside their recycling containers for collection. E-waste can include irons, cameras, kettles, toasters, hair dryers and more. If the item, plus its wire, can fit in a standard carrier bag, it can be collected. If the item won’t fit in a standard carrier bag, it can be taken to a local Household Reuse and Recycling Centre. Partnering with TRAID, all residents in flats or houses can book a convenient home collection of unwanted small electrical items. You can make a booking online here or by calling 0208 733 2595. Cllr Guy Lambert, Member for Highways, Recycling and Companies, said, “Participating in the Recycle Your Electricals campaign is more important now than ever for Hounslow. The Council already provides a weekly recycling collection of small electricals for kerbside properties and our partnership with TRAID has meant this service is now available for all Hounslow residents. We’ve joined this campaign to make sure more residents know that these options are available to them.” Scott Butler, Executive Director at Material Focus, said, “Small, old electricals are one of the fastest growing waste streams, and we are throwing away valuable materials that are lost forever. These small, old, unwanted electricals contain 75% of materials that can be recycled or reused such as precious materials like gold, silver and copper. “HypnoCat, our messenger for the campaign, will be providing step-by-step information on how to reuse and recycle old electricals. We want everyone to know that all old electricals - that’s everything with a plug, battery or cable - can be recycled. We are delighted to be working with Hounslow and are calling on residents to stop throwing away their old electricals, and instead recycle them.”
October 1, 2021 |