Reducing, reusing and recycling our rubbish - why is it so important?

Mont Cuet, Guernsey’s only landfill site, is filling up quickly and it’s estimated it will be full by 2015. Over 16,000 tonnes of household waste was dumped in 2007 and we need to reduce all our waste - household and commercial - so that Mont Cuet can remain open as long as possible.

Residents have shown they’re keen to recycle – our latest recycling rate of 31.2% (December 2007) is good but to minimise the amount of rubbish going to Mont Cuet we need to think about three R’s – Reduce, Re-use and, finally, Recycle.

Reducing the amount of rubbish we generate is the best way of dealing with it and it could save you money in the process. Remembering to choose items with least packaging and refusing carrier bags when we’re out shopping is easy when we get into the habit and is the key to cutting down on our waste.

Re-use as much as possible – repair shoes, furniture and clothing, and avoid disposable ‘single-use’ items.

Recycle as often as you can and as much as you can. There are ‘bring banks’ at recycling sites throughout the Island where householders can deposit cardboard, glass bottles and jars, aluminium drinks cans, food tins, cardboard, paper, plastic bottles and clothing/household linen. The bring banks are for residential use only, so if you run a business please contact the Public Services Department for advice on how to recycle your commercial waste.