One in eight Londoners lies about recycling to save face, poll finds

Boost: If every Londoner recycled one more plastic bottle every week for 12 months the energy saved could power Wembley Stadium for two years
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Pippa Crerar9 November 2015

One in eight Londoners exaggerate how much they recycle to save face, a poll has found as a new campaign to boost recycling rates was launched today.

However, two thirds of people wished they could do more to help the capital go greener with young Londoners the keenest to reduce waste.

The relaunched Recycle for London, backed by the Mayor and London Councils, is calling on Londoners to do ‘Just One Thing’ every day to make a difference.

Around two million plastic bottles of water are consumed in the capital every day. If all of these were recycled, it would boost London’s recycling rate by almost one per cent.

If every Londoner recycled just one more plastic bottle every week for 12 months the energy saved could power Wembley Stadium for two years.

Or if they all recycled one more glass jar a week the capital would save 10,000 tonnes of glass from being thrown away each year – the same as half the glass on The Shard.

Boris Johnson has set a target for town halls to recycle 50 per cent of collected waste by 2020 but some boroughs are lagging woefully behind. Across the capital, just 34 per cent of household waste is recycled.

“This is a great way to boost the environment and save money, so let’s not waste any time and get into the habit of recycling more of our everyday items,” the Mayor said.

Two thirds of Londoners said they would feel more pride in the city if everybody did more to be environmentally friendly, according to the Opinium survey for Resource London.

But even though young Londoners are the most enthusiastic, one in ten 18 to 34-year-olds openly admit they don’t know what or how to recycle at home.

A new campaign website – www.recycleforlondon.com – offers residents advice on what they can and cannot recycle in their postcode area as well as tips on reducing waste.

Radio One DJ Gemma Cairney, a Recycle for London ambassador, said: “As Londoners, we are at our best when we come together and the ‘Just One Thing’ campaign gives us all something that we can get behind.

“Doing something small can make such a massive difference to make our fantastic city somewhere that we can be even prouder of.

“From now on I’ll be using my food waste caddy a lot more in the kitchen making my own small change that way.”

London councils face many challenges to boost the recycling rate including many residents living in flats with communal bins and being tied into waste contracts without incentives.

All the boroughs also have different approaches to recycling, which can be confusing for residents.

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