Bromley Council Recycles

The London Borough of Bromley is situated in the SE of London just on the outer edge of Greater London, bordering Kent. It borders the London Boroughs of Croydon, Southwark, Lewisham, Greenwich and Bexley, and the districts of Sevenoaks and Tandridge. It contains the two major town centres of Orpington and Bromley and four district town centres, Beckenham, Penge, West Wickham, and Petts Wood. Biggin Hill Airfield can be found in the rural area at the southern end of the Borough.

Bromley is the largest of all London's Boroughs, occupying 59 square miles. In 2008, Bromley reported a population of 302,600 with the majority living in the more urban areas to the north of the borough.

Waste Full Facts About London Borough of Bromley

• The ecological and carbon footprints in Bromley are amongst the highest in Greater London.

• The amount of municipal waste sent to landfill in Bromley has decreased significantly over the past few years.

• Bromley has one of the highest household waste recycling rates in London.

• The total municipal waste sent to landfill in 2009/10 is 150,807 tonnes, a reduction of more than 8,000 tonnes from the 158,447 tonnes in 2008/09.

• The amount of municipal waste sent to landfill now accounts for less than 40 per cent of all waste produced (2009/10).

• 27% of all municipal waste can now be incinerated.

• In 2009/10 Bromley sent 37,873 tonnes of municipal waste to landfill, well below its target for 2009/10 of 76,569 tonnes. The amount of waste going to landfill in Bromley has declined from 63,956 tonnes in 2005/06 to 44,653 tonnes in 2008/09.

• In Bromley the amount of household waste collected per person per year has fallen by 12 per cent over the last four years, from 498 kg per person in 2006/07 to 439 kg in 2009/10.

• Bromley ranks 6th highest out of all the London Boroughs for percentage of household waste recycled and composted in 2000/10.

• The overall recycling and composting rate has improved by almost 25 per cent since 2000/01 from 15.5 to 40.2 in 2009/10.

Paper that can be recycled:
Newspapers and magazines
Catalogues and phone books
Cardboard (flattened)
Pizza boxes
Cardboard tubes (e.g. toilet rolls)
Cards (e.g birthday, Christmas)

Why recycle paper?

Paper is biodegradeable so why should we recycle it? Why not just put it into landfills?
There are three very good reasons we should recycle paper.

1. When paper breaks down in a landfill it produces methane gas.
2. Recycling paper decreases the need to produce virgin paper.
3. Recycled paper takes less energy to produce than virgin paper.

London Borough of Bromley collects plastics, glass, and metals for recycling bi-weekly, alternating the collection with the collection of non-recyclable waste.

Each Borough of Bromley household has been given a 53 litre green box to contain plastics, glass, and metals. To make things easier for Bromley residents, plastics, metals, and glass can be placed in the same bin. These are then separated out after collection.

If you tend to accumulate more items for recycling than can be contained in a single box, you can contact the Borough to have more delivered. I regularly put out 2 filled boxes of glass,metal, and plastics.

What can be recycled:
Drink cans
Aerosol cans
Food tins and foil
Glass bottles and jars - all colours
Milk and drinks bottles
Detergent bottles
Plastic dishes and trays*
Yoghurt pots*
Ice-cream containers*
Margarine containers*

*Those plastics which cannot be recycled currently are sent to be incinerated and converted to electrical energy.

Within the past 5 years Bromley has been implementing food waste collection throughout the entire Borough. It started in a few trial areas, and once they'd ironed out a few problems was taken Borough-wide. Food waste is now collected and taken to where it can be heated to a very high temperature then composted. The composted material is then used in public parks throughout Bromley.

Every household was given two containers for collecting food waste. A smaller inside tub which can hold a 1 liter compostable bag. Households are given 2 X 50 bag rolls each year and extra can be purchased through local libraries. A larger tub with a lockable lid is provided to place food waste in for the weekly collection. The lock is very effective for keeping foxes and other neighbourhood wildlife from getting into the tub.

What can be collected as food waste:
Fruit, vegetables and peelings
Meat, fish and bones
Cooked and uncooked food
Plate scrapings
Leftover food
Bread, pasta, cereal and rice
Tea bags and coffee grounds
Dairy products and eggshells
Cut flowers (placed in a compostable bag or newspaper)

Household waste and recycling collections | Household waste and recycling collections | London Borough of Bromley

London Borough of Bromleys Household waste and recycling collections and Household waste and recycling collections information. Bromley is recycling more than ever and now can collect large, bulky household items and electronic appliances with advance arrangement.

Recycling at Home

Ways people can recycling at home

Teaching Your Children About Recycling Through Reading

A selection of the best books promoting recycling for young readers.