1 Egg boxes
Cardboard and plastic egg boxes can be recycled in your recycling bin at home.
Try to avoid buying eggs that come in polystyrene boxes as these cannot be recycled.
2 Electrical and electronic equipment
Electrical and electronic equipment can be recycled if you take it to your local Household Waste Recycling Site (HWRS).
Electrical and electronic equipment is also known as WEEE – this stands for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment. WEEE is anything that is powered by plugging it into the mains or by batteries. WEEE items must not be thrown away with your rubbish as they often contain substances which are hazardous and they must be disposed of in a controlled environment.
WEEE contains lots of valuable materials such as metals, plastic and glass, which can be recycled into new products.
Any electrical item, whether it’s as small as an electric toothbrush or as big as a fridge freezer, can be recycled at your local HWRS.
For computers and laptops, please note that our sites are not data safe sites and you must ensure any personal information and data is removed before disposal.
You can also recycle your batteries, so don’t forget to pop the batteries out of your waste electrical items and place them in designated containers at your local HWRS.
3 Engine oil
Your local Household Waste Recycling Site (HWRS) will accept waste engine oil. Special containers are provided for the reception of oil. Please bring any waste oil to the site in a suitable container and dispose of the empty container as directed on site. Engine oil will only be accepted if it has come from domestic households. Waste engine oil arising from the work of a business will not be accepted.
It is illegal to dispose of used oil by pouring it down the drain or into waterways. It will contaminate water, damage marine life and harm the bacteria which break down sewage. It will also contaminate drinking water.
The following substances cannot be poured into the oil container:
- petrol
- thinners
- solvents and transformer oil
- mineral and cooking oil
For details of how to dispose of these materials please speak to a member of staff at the site.
If you have a very large amount of engine oil to dispose of please phone the site beforehand or contact a private contractor.
Please contact the Environment Agency on 08708 506 506 for more advice on engine oil disposal.
4 Envelopes
You can recycle your envelopes by putting them in your recycling bin at home. Don't worry about removing the plastic windows on envelopes, these will be removed in the recycling process later.
Padded envelopes, such as Jiffy Bags, cannot be recycled due to the plastic lining inside. Please put these in your general rubbish bin.