Top tip - are you confused about what goes in your bin and is recycling helpful? Derbyshire County Council have a great page on waste and recycling myth busting!
Interested to find out what happens to your recycling after it goes into the bin lorry? This video shows you the whole recycling process!
You must only put the items listed below in your burgundy bin. Lots of items may say that they are recyclable on the packaging but this does not mean we accept them.
Please place recycling in your bin loose. Do not put plastic bags and bin liners in your burgundy bin or it will not being emptied. This includes recyclable and biodegradable bags - they cannot be recycled.
Extra recycling that won't fit in your burgundy bin can be presented in a cardboard box / clear bag at the side of the burgundy bin on collection day. Large flattened cardboard boxes may also be placed at the side of your burgundy bin but please make sure all boxes are empty and free of plastic film and polystyrene packaging.
Do not put these items the Burgundy Bin - No thanks
Not all plastic items can be recycled in your burgundy bin. It is important to check what can be placed there before sorting your recycling. The items below are examples of things that cannot go in your burgundy bin.
- Food waste
- All plastic bags (including recyclable and biodegradable ones)
- Tissues, kitchen roll and wipes
- Nappies, sanitary products, animal waste (including cat litter)
- All plastic wrappings (e.g. cellophane, polythene, bubble wrap)
- Crisp packets
- Polystyrene
- Windowpanes, pots and pans, Pyrex glass
Do put these items in the Burgundy Bin - Yes please
Plastic bottles
We can only recycle:
- Plastic bottles, and all coloured plastic bottles including:
- Drinks bottles (such as pop bottles, milk bottles, fruit juice bottles)
- Sauce Bottles (such as ketchup/salad cream bottles)
- Household cleaning product bottles:
- bathroom cleaners
- washing up liquid
- bleach bottles (including trigger sprays and soap pumps)
- Personal hygiene bottles:
- shampoo
- conditioner
- shower gel bottles
Plastic food trays, food pots and food tubs
We can only recycle:
- Food trays - Including black and brown coloured trays (such as from raw meat, fruit and vegetables). Please remove any film lids and absorbent pads in the bottom of the tray and put these in your black bin.
- Plastic food pots:
- Yogurt pots
- soup pots
- coleslaw and cottage cheese pots
- Plastic food tubs:
- margarine tubs
- ice cream tubs
Important to remember
- Everything in your burgundy bin must be clean and free of food waste so please assist us by quickly rinsing any obvious food deposits from packaging or bottles. Leftover food can contaminate other recyclable items such as paper and cardboard and attract flies and maggots.
- All bottles must be empty. Liquids can contaminate the rest of the recycling and damage processing equipment.
- You can leave labels and bottle tops on.
- Plastic film lids must be removed and placed in your black bin.
We cannot recycle:
Any type of plastic bags including plastic bags that say recyclable (such as carrier bags, bread bags, bin liners)
- Crisp packets, food packets, cereal bags, sweet/chocolate wrappers
- Film lids on food trays/pots
- Laminated pouches (such as cat food pouches)
- Medicine packs (such as tablet blister packs)
- Toothpaste tubes
- Polystyrene (including takeaway chip trays and white polystyrene packaging)
- Plant pots/plant trays
- Coat hangers
- Take away coffee cups/soft drinks cups
- Any plastic wrappings such as cellophane, polythene and bubble wrap
- Plastic knives, forks and spoons
- Plastic bottles used to store hazardous chemicals
- Paint tins/tubs
- Hard plastics (such as children’s toys, plastic storage tubs, buckets, washing up bowls)
Food tins, drinks cans, aerosols and foil trays
We can only recycle:
- Drinks cans
- Food tins
- Empty Aerosols
- Aluminium foil (i.e. clean foil used for baking or covering food)
- Aluminium foil food trays (i.e. takeaway trays)
Important to remember
Please empty and rinse out your tins and cans. We ask residents to do this as leftover food and liquids can contaminate other recyclable items and encourage flies and maggots.
You do not need to remove labels, these get removed during the recycling process.
We cannot recycle:
- Crisp packets, sweet wrappers and chocolate wrappers
- Laminated foil (i.e. cat food pouches)
- Metal containers for engine oil
- Metal containers for chemicals (i.e. metal paint tins)
- General kitchen ware (i.e. frying pans, saucepans, baking trays, cutlery)
- Other random metal items (i.e. pipes, electrical wire/electrical items)
Glass food jars and drinks bottles (lids included)
We can only recycle glass packaging including:
- Bottles of any colour (such as wine, beer and spirit bottles)
- Food jars (such as sauce, jam, baby food jars)
Important to remember
Please empty and rinse your jars and bottles. We ask residents to do this as leftover food and liquids can contaminate other recyclable items. You can leave the lids on. This helps to stop any liquid leftover in the jars/bottles leaking onto other recyclables. These lids are removed and recycled during the recycling process.
We are unable to recycle any glass beer bottles that contain pieces of lime/lemon inside.
We cannot recycle:
- Glass cookware (such as Pyrex)
- Drinking glasses
- Vases
- Ceramics (such as plates, bowls, mugs)
- Nail varnish bottles
- Microwave plates
- Mirrors
- Picture frame glass
- Light bulbs
- Perfume/aftershave bottles
- Any other random glass items
Why can’t I recycle this glass?
These types of glass melt at different temperatures when processed or may contain lead. This can cause lumps and impurities in the new product and cause them to be rejected.
Cardboard and Paper
All paper recycling can be put straight into burgundy bins, this is now separated at our material recycling facility. There is no need to use your caddie / bag which had been previously supplied. Please ensure all paper is placed into the burgundy bin loose, please do not place it in bags.
If you still have a caddie / bag you may keep this, there is no requirement for them to be returned to the Council.
Important to remember
Please make sure you remove any plastic cellophane packaging (for example, from around magazines).
We can only recycle:
- Paper, magazines, junk mail, white envelopes, shredded paper (weighted down) and:
- Cardboard boxes (such as cereal boxes, but please remove the bag and any leftover food)
- Delivery boxes (please make sure you remove all the packaging such as bubble wrap and polystyrene)
- Cardboard egg boxes
- Brown paper/brown paper envelopes
We cannot recycle:
- Wrapping paper, gift bags and greetings cards (due to laminate or metallic coatings)
- Take away drinks cups (such as coffee, soft drinks and milkshake cups)
- Any cardboard that is dirty with food (such as. pizza box with sauce on or food inside)
- Cardboard fast food packaging with food/sauce inside
- Paper towels, tissues and kitchen roll (even if clean)
- Baby wipes/make up wipes (including ones with no plastic)
- Hygiene/sanitary products (such as nappies, sanitary towels, tampons)
- Cotton wool
- Wallpaper
Waxed Food Packaging
We can only recycle:
- Waxed drinks cartons (such as fruit juice cartons and UHT milk cartons)
- Waxed food cartons (such as fish finger boxes, custard cartons)
Important to remember
Please make sure you empty out the cartons and give them a quick rinse. Leftover food or liquids can contaminate other recyclable items.
We cannot recycle:
- Laminated pouches (such as cat food pouches)
Textiles / Batteries
You can put the following at the side of or on top of your burgundy bin:
- Batteries, placed on top of the bin lid in a clear plastic bag: (please don’t tie to bin handle)
- Textiles and shoes (placed on top of your burgundy bin in a clear plastic bag)
Please do not put loose clothing/textiles in your burgundy bin. This will result in your bin not getting emptied.
We can only recycle:
- Clothes
- Paired shoes (please tie them together by the laces)
- Bed linen
- Curtains (please remove the hooks)
- Towels
We cannot recycle:
- Dirty clothing
- Duvets/quilts, pillows and cushions