EMUWC Plastics Blog

Ever since David Attenborough’s Blue Planet II hit TV screens late last year the impacts of waste and plastics on the environment have barely left UK media coverage. Lots of companies, organisations and individuals have taken inspiration and pledged to change their policies and/or lifestyle accordingly. 

At Enva, we focus heavily on the recycling stage of the waste hierarchy so that less waste ends up in landfill or as litter on land/in the ocean. We recognise the need to act sustainably to reduce; harm to wildlife, problems with vermin/disease and carbon emissions resulting from the slow breakdown of waste in landfill. That is why more than 95% of the waste we collect from around the East Midlands is diverted from landfill and reused, recycled or used for energy recovery. We ask that customers place all clean plastics into the recycling bins on site. Once they have been collected, all recyclable plastics are separated from other mixed recycling and processed into plastic flake before being transformed into new plastic products including fleeces and garden furniture. 

Enva is the current waste contractor for the East Midlands Universities Waste Consortium (EMUWC), this is a waste management partnership made up of the University of Nottingham, Nottingham Trent University, Loughborough University and the University of Leicester. That means we manage all of the general waste, glass, food and recycling waste that comes out of the onsite bins and skips and take it to our main site in Colwick for sorting. 

This academic year, we will be working to raise awareness in collaboration with the University’s around recycling best practice and what happens to waste, as well as promoting the use and importance of reusable plastics instead of single-use. For example, did you know that disposable Starbucks and Costa coffee cups are not recyclable and should go in general waste because they are plastic lined? Millions of disposable cups are thrown away daily but using a reusable coffee cup can cut down your waste and personal carbon footprint. Taking action through everyday changes like this one also link in with the Sustainable Development Goal; Responsible Consumption and Production which encourages people to be more aware about what they buy, use and throw away. The Goals highlight the 17 different interconnected areas the UN declared need to be addressed in order to achieve sound global sustainability.

Please contact us on East.MidlandsUniversities@enva.com  if you have any questions or for updates on our progress to improve your recycling!