Problem
Ceredigion County Council has been among the top-performing local authorities in Wales for recycling, having recycled around 70% of the waste it’s collected each year since 2019/20. However, despite this strong performance, the Council was still receiving queries from residents seeking clarification on what materials could be placed in their recycling bags.
Contamination issues also emerged, particularly around plastics, as residents struggled to identify which items were recyclable. The growing variety of packaging materials and the broad use of ‘recyclable’ labelling added to this confusion, highlighting the need for clearer, more accessible information. Without improved guidance, the risk of contamination in recycling streams increased, potentially affecting overall material quality.
Solution
To address these challenges, Ceredigion County Council launched a detailed A-Z recycling guide on its website in 2015, designed initially to help residents on their recycling journey by providing clear and specific instructions for each material. The guide lists individual items and materials, outlining options for recycling and reuse, whether through kerbside collection, recycling centres, or reuse schemes. Importantly, the guide also outlines what items cannot be recycled, therefore helping to reduce contamination.
A key feature of the A-Z guide is its search functionality, which allows residents to find items by product type, eliminating the need to understand terms such as “packaging” or differentiating between “rigid” or “hard” plastics.
The guide is designed to be adaptable, with information updated as services change, and new packaging materials arise.
Alongside the A-Z guide, the Council actively educates residents on best recycling practices through newsletters, social media, and community engagement. By making recycling information clear and easily accessible, the Council encourages residents to improve waste separation habits, simplifying the recycling process and boosting participation.
Impact
The enhanced focus on recycling education and communication has improved residents’ access to accurate information, reducing confusion and supporting better quality recycling.
During the 2022/23 financial year, Ceredigion County Council maintained its strong recycling performance, achieving a 70.3% recycling rate, ranking 4th among Wales’s 22 local authorities. It was also one of only four councils in the country to reuse, recycle, or compost over 70% of its waste that year. Since the guide was published, the Council has also seen contamination levels decrease, improving the quality of recyclables.
Looking ahead, the Council plans to expand the online resource to include waste reduction and prevention strategies, helping residents not only recycle more effectively but also reduce the amount of waste they generate in the first place. This initiative aligns with broader efforts to move further up the waste hierarchy, prioritising waste minimisation in line with Welsh Government's Beyond Recycling strategy, which aims to make the Circular Economy a reality in Wales.