New Eto shop opens its doors in town centre
A NEW shop selling repaired and reusable items donated by the pub- lic has opened its doors in Llanelli town centre. It is part of a joint project between Carmarthenshire Council and Cwm Environmental Ltd following Welsh Government Circular Economy funding.
The Stepney Street store, called Eto, is stacked with a wide range of goods that were destined for the tip before being brought back to life through the county’s recycling centres’ donation stations.
As well as household items, children’s toys and bicycles up for grabs, there will be an in-house paint reuse facility which customers can purchase from the shop at a significantly lower cost than traditionally bought paint.
Remnants of wood donated at the recycling centres have also been transformed into items such as garden furniture and planters.
The Llanelli town centre store will be open every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday between 10am and 4pm.
Residents can donate items of a reasonable quality that they no longer want at any of the donation stations across all of Carmarthenshire’s household waste recycling centres (HWRCs).
Donations will not be accepted at the reuse shop as they need to pass initial checks before being sold on.
Repairs and required checks are undertaken at the Nantycaws recycling centre on the outskirts of Carmarthen, where the repair facility is situated.
The project, which is funded by the Welsh Government’s Circular Economy Fund, is part of a wider joint initiative, Canolfan Eto, and will help close the loop on waste by helping people reuse, repurpose and refurbish items that would otherwise have been thrown away.
A further phase is the development of a reuse village at Nantycaws, which is due to open later this year. It will provide a unique sustainable shopping experience, bringing life to a range of used items including furniture, bicycles, small electricals, paint and much more. An education centre, café and toilets are also planned for the site.
Carmarthenshire Council cabinet member for environment Hazel Evans says that Eto – which means “again” in Welsh – will symbolise one of the council’s main ambitions of delivering a circular economy, as well as supporting Carmarthenshire to become a leader of recycling and reuse within Wales while reducing its carbon footprint.
She said: “I am delighted that we have been able to open this store and offer these low-cost items for reuse, which will not only benefit local communities and residents but reduce the amount of waste.
“Recycling saves money, prevents unnecessary waste, creates jobs and, best of all, it’s easy.”
Plans for future circular economy projects are also under consideration and will include similar approaches in other locations throughout the county.
Carmarthenshire Council leader Emlyn Dole said: “This is an ideal opportunity where shoppers can buy previously unwanted items at bargain prices. Recycling and reusing is good for the environment and we should all be doing it.”
This is an ideal opportunity where shoppers can buy previously unwanted items at bargain prices. Recycling and reusing is good for the environment and we should all be doing it
Carmarthenshire Council leader Emlyn Dole