A visit to a local recycling centre was an eye-opener for Crosby’s Soroptimists.
The Recycling Discovery Centre at Veolia’s Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) at Gillmoss was the venue for this insight into the industry. This MRF handles dry mixed recycling and glass from the Liverpool City Region, together with its sister site in Wirral. That’s where the contents of our Sefton MBC brown bins end up – over 230,000 tonnes per year!
Veolia’s Education Officer gave a comprehensive introduction to the complexities of recycling. The Soroptimists then watched the facility in action from the visitors’ viewing platform. It was endlessly fascinating looking at the various processes.
The MRF’s processes convert what would otherwise be waste into secondary raw materials. Some recyclables are compressed into huge bales ready for transport. One bale containing 30,000 aluminium cans will become … more aluminium cans.
Our brown bins hold co-mingled materials. Most of the sorting – separating metals, glass, paper etc – is automated. However, sharp-eyed operatives are essential to help prevent certain items entering the system. Bulky goods such as towels and duvets can damage the machinery; batteries can cause fires. Contamination is a massive problem.
The Soroptimists were shocked by the quantity of contaminated (non-recyclable) material being loaded into lorries. It brought home the simple fact – we must only put specific recyclable items in our brown bins. The Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority’s website ‘Recycle Right’ has extensive guidance, including specific information on Sefton’s kerbside collections. Sefton MBC also offers Bins and Recycling information.
There were many questions on plastics (and products created from this secondary material), as well as on food waste, metals, and the challenge of ‘doing the right thing’. This visitor centre certainly does much to educate people – from pre-schoolers onwards – about recycling.
Meanwhile the government’s ‘Simpler Recycling’ legislation is intended to end the confusion nationally of what can and can’t be recycled. Local authorities have a deadline of 31st March 2026 to implement this for local residents. A positive move – and one that Crosby’s Soroptimists will adopt with enthusiasm.