Keep Britain Tidy

Most People Think Recycling is Enough!

New research from environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy reveals a major barrier to driving urgently needed waste reduction and reuse behaviours is a fundamental misunderstanding amongst the public of what waste prevention actually means.

It says that, in the absence of meaningful progress at government level on waste prevention or steps to bring down resource use, Keep Britain Tidy has launched its own new report for waste management and sustainable consumption policy-makers and behaviour change practitioners to ignite debate on how to move people up the waste hierarchy.

Under the waste hierarchy, reduce and reuse sit above recycling and are crucial to lessening the environmental impact of what we purchase, use and dispose of. However, people feel they are doing their bit for the environment by recycling; while this should not be discouraged, the charity is calling on local authorities and other organisations to work together to educate and motivate people to move beyond recycling and make choices that reduce the environmental impact of what they purchase in the first place.

You can read the full report here.