York ranks 144th in the national recycling league table

York will have to up its recycling rates if it is to become a leading green city.

New figures show that City of York Council ranks 144th among local authorities for how much waste is recycled, out of a total of 353.

The percentage of household waste sent for recycling in York is 44.9%.

East Riding of Yorkshire have the best recycling rate in England, setting a prime example with a figure of 65%.

It is the only council in Yorkshire & Humber exceeding the current UK target of 50% for recycling rates.

A new recycling rate map, produced by waste experts Insinkerator with data from DEFRA, shows the huge differences across Yorkshire and the UK.

Top half score

A City of York Council spokesperson said they were always looking at ways to improve recycling in the city.

They told YorkMix:

• The figures for 2017/18 show our recycling rate is the top half both regionally and nationally.

  We continue to look at how recycling rates can be driven higher and wait for the validation of this year’s figures to see what impacts our campaigns have had.

  But just as important as the rate of recycling is what happens to the recycling collected. As residents separate their recycling we have high value recyclates which are in demand.

  None of our waste is sent to landfill, all non recyclable waste is sent to Allerton Waste Recovery Park.

  Any remaining organic waste or recyclable waste that has not been put out to be recycled is separated at Allerton Waste Recovery Park and this recovery plant powers approx 40,000 homes in the local area.
  

Last year one York councillor called for the mixed boxes used for York’s roadside recycling collections to be replaced with a single bin.

The full data is below, and you can read a full report on the Insinkerator website.