Spelthorne Borough Council

Providing Quality Services to the People of
Ashford, Laleham, Shepperton, Staines, Stanwell & Sunbury

Recycling glossary of terms

Biodegradable	Materials, typically from plant or animal sources that break down through natural processes
Compost	When matter, typically from plant or animal sources, decomposes it can be added to earth as a fertiliser to improve its quality
Household waste	This includes rubbish thrown in bins at home and collected by the local council.
Kerbside collection	Any regular collection of rubbish or recycling from the kerbside of a property. This is mainly from households..
Landfill site	A lot of rubbish is currently put in a hole in the ground – usually an old quarry. Landfill has many impacts including the release of gas when materials breakdown. Space is rapidly running out for new sites and existing landfill is filling up quickly.
MRF – Materials Recycling Facility	This is the destination for recycling from households (plastic bottles, cardboard, paper cans and glass). At a materials recovery facility, the recycling is sorted into the different materials. This is done through a combination of machines and people sorting materials into different types. The process also compresses the recyclables before transferring them for reprocessing.
Recyclable materials	Includes many kinds of glass, plastic, metal, paper, textiles and electronics. These can be turned from ‘used’ materials into new products. This prevents wasting useful materials that can be reprocessed a number of times. This will, in turn, decrease energy used and money spent.
Reduction	This means using and wasting less so less rubbish is created. For example, only buying new things when the old ones are irreparable.
Re-use	The act of using an item more than once – for example many supermarkets have ‘long life’ bags that can be used over and over again.

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