Families in North Yorkshire are being urged to get behind the nation’s biggest annual celebration of recycling by hunting for missed recyclables that make their way into rubbish bins.
During Recycle Week (October 16 to 22), North Yorkshire Council and Recycle Now are launching a mission for primary school children with the Big Recycling Hunt.
This year’s hunt aims to engage children and families in the quest to find lost recyclables that often find their way into the rubbish. This includes empty aerosols, plastic cleaning product bottles, plastic toiletry bottles and food tins.
Lesson plans have been designed for all schools across the county to get involved in the hunt. Pupils are being encouraged to create a poster or leaflet which they can share with Recycle Now.
The winner will get £250 to put towards a sustainability-themed trip, experience or resources, and runners up will receive packs of eco-themed books for the school library.
A family challenge is also being launched where people can share photos of lost recyclables in the wrong place. All photos will be entered into a monthly draw to win eco-friendly prizes.
North Yorkshire Rotters will also be attending libraries throughout the week to demonstrate which items are missed.
North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for waste services, Cllr Greg White, said: “By improving the recycling habits of school-age people and library visitors, we can see a bright future for the health of our environment.
“We know that most people go out of their way to recycle, so the next step is to make sure we hunt down commonly missed items from shampoo bottles to takeaway trays. Recycle Week offers a great opportunity to educate the public and avoid confusion.”
North Yorkshire Rotters will be sharing recycling tips on the following dates and locations:
- Monday, October 16, from 10.30am to 12.30pm at Stokesley Globe Community Library.
- Monday, October 16, from 1.45pm to 3.45pm at Northallerton Library.
- Tuesday, October 17, from 10.30am to 1.30pm at Scarborough Library.
- Tuesday, October 17, from 2.30pm to 4pm at Pickering Library.
- Friday, October 20, from 10.30am to 12.30pm at Selby Library.
- Friday, October 20, from 2pm to 4pm at Barlby Library and Community Hub.
To find out what you can recycle in your area, visit the North Yorkshire Council website.