RECYCLE Week 2018 takes place this week (24-30 September) and is a great opportunity to show what a difference recycling can make to the environment by reducing pollution and ocean plastics.

Essex is becoming a county of recyclers, but with the 2016-17 recycle rate across the Essex Waste Partnership at 53.3%, there’s still work to be done.

Cabinet member for Waste and Environment, Cllr Simon Walsh said: “Each of us can make a real difference with something that is so simple. If everyone in the UK recycled one more bathroom cleaner bottle, enough energy could be saved to vacuum around 82,460 homes. So this Recycle Week, why not see what more you can recycle from your bathroom? ”

Did you know, for example, that items from bathroom cleaners to shampoo and shower gel bottles, cardboard toilet roll tubes and toothpaste boxes, and aluminum deodorant and shaving foam canisters can all be recycled and turned into new products?

For plastics all you need to do is rinse, squash and pop the lids back on then place in your recycling receptacle. It’s that easy.

Kirsty Tavakoly, a new WasteBuster volunteer, who lives in Colchester said: “Recycling is so easy to do, there really is no excuse. It is satisfying knowing you are doing your bit to help the environment.”

Kirsty added: “I volunteer to encourage others to recycle by sharing my experiences of using waste free products and recycled items, as well as sharing educational posts on social media.”

For more information about your local recycling scheme, including details of what can and can’t be recycled from around the house, visit www.loveessex.org.