How to do your bit to make Birmingham a greener city

One of the biggest problems facing every city in the UK is how much waste they are producing. Not only does it litter the floor and make the place untidy, but it can also damage the environment around you. Here is a look at some of the things you can do to make Birmingham a greener city.

Organise your recycling

Many people claim that reason they do not recycle as much as they possibly could be doing is that it is often more difficult to recycle something than it is to throw it in landfill. In 2021, that simply is not the case if you are organised. There are more and more recycling bins popping up in the city centre and in lots of businesses around Birmingham. To make recycling easier when you are at home, make sure you have a separate container for recyclable waste next to your general waste bin. That way you do not have to walk outside to your big wheelie bin every time you want to recycle something. If you are working in a factory or a business that makes a lot of waste materials, make sure you have a designated room or space in the business in which you can store these materials until they are ready to be collected. Things like cardboard boxes can take up a lot of room whilst waiting to be collected, but by investing in compactor recycling equipment you can reduce the amount of space and problems this waste can cause.

Check what can be recycled where

Whilst you might want to recycle as many products as possible, the sad reality is there will always be some objects that simply cannot be recycled. If you do put these items in your recycling bin, they could even contaminate the rest of the recyclable waste in there – which will result in even more waste being sent to landfill. It can often be hard to decide whether something is recyclable or not. The rules on what you can put in your recycling bin even differ depending on where you live in the country, so make sure you visit the Birmingham City Council website to check exactly what needs to go in which of your bins. That way you know you are doing as much as possible to recycle as much of your waste as possible.

Visit your local recycling centre rather than hiring a skip

When people need to dispose of a large amount of waste, one of the most popular ways to do this is to hire a skip. As it is delivered straight to your door and collected as soon as its full, many people see this as the easiest way of getting rid of a lot of waste. Unfortunately, if recyclable waste is mixed in with non-recyclable waste it is highly likely that all of that waste will simply end up in landfill. Instead, try and separate your waste into different categories and then book an appointment at your local recycling centre to dispose of it instead. These centres take a large range of materials, including soil, rubble, metal and wood, and work hard to recycle as much of it as possible.