Plumpton Plastics Challenge

Plumpton Plastics Challenge is a an initiative led by Carole and Paul Nicholson, supported by the Parish Council. The aim of the challenge is to reduce the amount of plastic we use in the village and to recycle any plastics if possible.  Initially, the focus is on single-use plastics.

The message is Refuse-Reduce-Reuse-Recycle.

 Notes from meeting on how to reduce the use of plastic in Plumpton

Calling all Contact Lenses Wearers

If you wear soft disposable lenses have you ever wondered what happens to the little plastic pieces – if you throw them down the loo?Great news:  You can now take both the lenses and the blister packs to participating opticians and they will be recycled. So far we have found Boots in Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill are in the scheme. So go to Boots or ask your own optician if they are going to participate too!

Plastic – watch the post!

Have you ever looked at what drops through your letter box and how it’s wrapped. If you receive lots of magazines, periodicals and newspapers, take a look at what they arrive in. Very rapidly we have seen a rush to replace plastic wrapping with alternatives such as starch, plant or paper based wrapping. This is good news, but make sure you know where to dispose of them. The plant and starch based wraps aren’t designed to be recycled in your kerbside collections. Instead, place them in your compost heap. The paper wrappers can go into the recycling box.

The RSPB and The National Trust have recently moved to starch based wrapping for their magazines and the RHS has moved to paper. If your mail still arrives in plastic – ask the sender why. An e-mail takes just seconds.

Plastics – Recycle or Not?

Plastics aren’t so great for the environment or our health. Unfortunately, a lot of consumer goods are enclosed in the stuff. On the plus side, many plastics are recyclable, which is helpful because some plastics might take up to 1,000 years to decompose in a landfill.

To help you figure out whether or not you’ve got a recyclable item, most plastics contain a recycling symbol, often placed at the bottom of the item. The symbol is a triangle formed from arrows – but they are very confusing.  We found the following guide useful – it seems that only numbers 1 – 4 are definitely recyclable at present – so play safe!

Does Lewes collect these items in your recycling bin?

Please note that plastic plant pots are not recyclable – a future feature will look at what we can do with those.