RECYCLE the right way

MAKE SURE YOU’RE GETTING RID OF WASTE PROPERLY

Most of us have good intentions when it comes to recycling, but many aren’t doing it quite right – with hopeful attempts doing more harm than good to the earth. Jacky Nordsvan, Head of Packaging at Nestlé, describes this as “wishcycling”.

“Wishcycling is when people place their waste in the recycling bin in the hope that it will be recycled, even if they’re not 100 per cent sure that it’s recyclable,” she says.

According to research from Nestlé, over half of us are guilty of doing this. And it turns out there are some alarming consequences.

“While wishcycling is done with the best of intentions, it can lead to genuinely recyclable materials being so contaminated that they end up being sent to landfill, resulting in a lost opportunity for the waste to be turned into a resource,” Jacky explains.

Part of the problem lies in our overconfidence when it comes to recycling. Studies have shown that over two thirds of Aussies claim to be very confident they are recycling right, yet 87 per cent are accidentally putting one (or more) non-recyclable items into their recycling bin.

Jacky’s advice (while it may seem counter-intuitive) is to chuck it out if in doubt.

“If you’re unsure if something is recyclable, put it in the rubbish bin to ensure it doesn’t contaminate genuinely recyclable materials,” she says.

She also advises to check it before you chuck it.

“Always look for the Australasian Recycling Label to know which bin to put it in,” Jacky adds.

The Australasian Recycling Label also provides any additional instructions to be followed to ensure the packaging can be recycled. This includes scrunching, rinsing, flattening or dropping it in-store.

This last instruction refers to the in-store collection program Redcycle, where you can drop any soft plastics to be recycled – including Kitkat wrappers!