Horsham District Council shares recycling advice following vehicle fire

Horsham District Council is reminding residents what can and cannot be put into their household recycling bins following a fire caused by a mobile phone recently in one of its waste collection vehicles.

Mobile phones and e-cigarettes should not be put into household recycling because, like other small electricals, they have lithium-ion batteries. They must be disposed of responsibly, through an electricals recycling service. One option is the Council’s own free small electricals recycling service.

On Friday 8 July a Council waste collection vehicle caught fire in Southwater. Thankfully no one was hurt, and three crews from West Sussex Fire and Rescue attended the scene. More than five tonnes of recycling had to be emptied onto the road to be properly extinguished, and once cleared up it could no longer be recycled.

The Council’s Cabinet Member for Recycling and Waste Cllr Toni Bradnum said: “This incident was easily avoided, and I hope we can raise awareness of what can and cannot be recycled in order to improve the District’s recycling rate and prevent more recycling going to waste.

“The Council’s free small electricals recycling service is an easy way to ensure lithium-ion batteries are recycled responsibly. I would encourage everyone to use it as it’s such a helpful service – they come right to your door!”

Tips to recycle more

Follow these tips to help us improve our recycling rate:

• • Make sure all recycling is clean, dry and loose in your bin. We cannot accept wet paper.

• • Take soft plastics, such as film lids, to a local recycling scheme: many supermarkets and charities have them

• • Recycle thick glass and hard plastics, such as Pyrex dishes and Tupperware, at a local Recycling Centre. These items cannot be recycled in household recycling

• • Recycle loose batteries on your bin: simply place batteries in a plastic bag and put on top of your bin

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