Dreaming of a green Christmas? Residents are being given some simple tips by Oxfordshire County Council to help reduce the environmental impact of festive waste.
Christmas is a busy time for Oxfordshire’s bins – residents generate nearly 2,500 extra tonnes of waste over the festive period – that’s the same weight as 400 elephants... or around 25,000 reindeers!
Oxfordshire County Council provides services that enhance quality of life in the community and protects the local environment.
Its Waste Recycling team works on initiatives to reduce waste and encourages recycling. It manages the treatment and processing of household waste collected by district councils. Oxfordshire has seven Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs):
Alkerton household waste recycling centre
Stratford Road, Alkerton, Near Banbury, OX15 6HZ
Ardley Fields household waste recycling centre
Brackley Road, Ardley, OX27 7PH
Dix Pit household waste recycling centre
Linch Hill, Stanton Harcourt, OX29 5BB (Postcode for Sat Nav - OX29 5UX)
Drayton household waste recycling centre
Steventon Road, Drayton, Near Abingdon, OX14 4LA
Oakley Wood household waste recycling centre
Old Icknield Way, Crowmarsh, Near Wallingford, OX10 6PW
Redbridge household waste recycling centre
Old Abingdon Road, Oxford, OX1 4XG
Stanford in the Vale household waste recycling centre
Faringdon Road, Stanford in the Vale, Faringdon, SN7 8L
From turkey to sprouts, the county council encourages residents to put anything that can’t be eaten into their food caddy for recycling.
Bones, dairy products, vegetable peelings and all other cooked and uncooked food can be recycled; used to generate electricity for 9,000 homes and fertiliser for local farms.
Unwanted presents can also be given a new home through the county council’s Reuse scheme at all the Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRC). This includes the newly launched scheme at Dix Pit, near Witney. Before placing reusable items into the skips, speak to a member of staff for advice.
Oxfordshire County Council’s top-tips, to help reduce waste and recycle more during the festive period, are part of its Thriving Communities initiative. They include:
Buying charity gifts or vouchers for events or experiences. They come without any packaging.
Buying your new outfit for a Christmas party from a charity shop, and returning it afterwards. This will save you money, you’ll be supporting a good cause, and avoid the need to throw away a garment you might never wear again.
Many shop-bought decorations come with lots of non-recyclable packing and will have travelled thousands of miles. Why not make your own? There are plenty of online tips for anyone who isn’t an arty-type.
Home-made cards and presents are much more personal, so keep the Christmas ribbons, paper and cards you receive this year and re-use them next year as gift tags, or make them into cards again.
Look out for Christmas trees that can be replanted, but if yours can’t, take it to any recycling centre so it can be composted.
Artificial Christmas trees that need a new home can be donated to a charity shop, or if no longer in good condition, can be taken to a Household Waste Recycling Centre.
If your recycling bin is struggling to cope with all the extra bottles, cardboard, plastic and paper, put any that can’t fit into the bin in a clear plastic sack or cardboard box. Place it next to your bin on collection day.
Don’t forget that your bin collection day might change due to the bank holidays. Check with your district council to make sure you don’t miss it!
The HWRCs will close at 3pm on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve and be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New year’s Day. Otherwise they will be open as normal from 8am-5pm.
Becky Kenton-Lake, from Oxfordshire County Council’s Waste Recycling team, said:
“More and more people tell us they are planning to have a ‘greener’ Christmas this year, so we hope these tips will be useful and help to reduce the huge amount of extra waste generated during the festive period.
“Reducing how much we throw away and recycling food that can’t be eaten are some of the easiest things we can all do to help the environment.”
For further information about recycling over the festive period, visit the website www.oxfordshirerecycles.org.uk/christmas
Christmas is a busy time for Oxfordshire’s bins – residents generate nearly 2,500 extra tonnes of waste over the festive period – that’s the same weight as 400 elephants... or around 25,000 reindeers!
Oxfordshire County Council provides services that enhance quality of life in the community and protects the local environment.
Its Waste Recycling team works on initiatives to reduce waste and encourages recycling. It manages the treatment and processing of household waste collected by district councils. Oxfordshire has seven Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs):
Alkerton household waste recycling centre
Stratford Road, Alkerton, Near Banbury, OX15 6HZ
Ardley Fields household waste recycling centre
Brackley Road, Ardley, OX27 7PH
Dix Pit household waste recycling centre
Linch Hill, Stanton Harcourt, OX29 5BB (Postcode for Sat Nav - OX29 5UX)
Drayton household waste recycling centre
Steventon Road, Drayton, Near Abingdon, OX14 4LA
Oakley Wood household waste recycling centre
Old Icknield Way, Crowmarsh, Near Wallingford, OX10 6PW
Redbridge household waste recycling centre
Old Abingdon Road, Oxford, OX1 4XG
Stanford in the Vale household waste recycling centre
Faringdon Road, Stanford in the Vale, Faringdon, SN7 8L
From turkey to sprouts, the county council encourages residents to put anything that can’t be eaten into their food caddy for recycling.
Bones, dairy products, vegetable peelings and all other cooked and uncooked food can be recycled; used to generate electricity for 9,000 homes and fertiliser for local farms.
Unwanted presents can also be given a new home through the county council’s Reuse scheme at all the Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRC). This includes the newly launched scheme at Dix Pit, near Witney. Before placing reusable items into the skips, speak to a member of staff for advice.
Oxfordshire County Council’s top-tips, to help reduce waste and recycle more during the festive period, are part of its Thriving Communities initiative. They include:
Buying charity gifts or vouchers for events or experiences. They come without any packaging.
Buying your new outfit for a Christmas party from a charity shop, and returning it afterwards. This will save you money, you’ll be supporting a good cause, and avoid the need to throw away a garment you might never wear again.
Many shop-bought decorations come with lots of non-recyclable packing and will have travelled thousands of miles. Why not make your own? There are plenty of online tips for anyone who isn’t an arty-type.
Home-made cards and presents are much more personal, so keep the Christmas ribbons, paper and cards you receive this year and re-use them next year as gift tags, or make them into cards again.
Look out for Christmas trees that can be replanted, but if yours can’t, take it to any recycling centre so it can be composted.
Artificial Christmas trees that need a new home can be donated to a charity shop, or if no longer in good condition, can be taken to a Household Waste Recycling Centre.
If your recycling bin is struggling to cope with all the extra bottles, cardboard, plastic and paper, put any that can’t fit into the bin in a clear plastic sack or cardboard box. Place it next to your bin on collection day.
Don’t forget that your bin collection day might change due to the bank holidays. Check with your district council to make sure you don’t miss it!
The HWRCs will close at 3pm on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve and be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New year’s Day. Otherwise they will be open as normal from 8am-5pm.
Becky Kenton-Lake, from Oxfordshire County Council’s Waste Recycling team, said:
“More and more people tell us they are planning to have a ‘greener’ Christmas this year, so we hope these tips will be useful and help to reduce the huge amount of extra waste generated during the festive period.
“Reducing how much we throw away and recycling food that can’t be eaten are some of the easiest things we can all do to help the environment.”
For further information about recycling over the festive period, visit the website www.oxfordshirerecycles.org.uk/christmas
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