High Peak residents score one of best recycling rates in the East Midlands in latest official figures

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) reports that the borough is now recycling 50.5 per cent of all its domestic waste – the second best result in Derbyshire and fifth overall in the wider East Midlands region.

The local authority with the highest household recycling rate in the region for 2019-20 was Derbyshire Dales, at 61.9 per cent – the seventh best record in the country.

At the 76th best performing local authority area in the country, it represents a continued improvement which has seen the High Peak rise from 162nd in the table in 2010-11, when the recycling rate was just 41.6 per cent.

Nicola Kemp, head of service commissioning at High Peak Borough Council, said: “This is really great news and, on behalf of the council and our waste partners Alliance Environmental Services, we want to say a huge thank you to our residents for their continued commitment to doing the right thing by recycling more and more of their waste and achieving this fantastic improvement in our rates.

“It’s down to their efforts that we’ve seen such a rise in our overall position in the county, regional and national recycling tables – a real achievement.”

She added: “The last year has been especially challenging and maintaining services through this time has been our priority and something that, we know, is very much appreciated by our residents.

“While it’s important to thank everyone for playing their part, we mustn’t stop now. We still come across everyday items that can be recycled, such as shampoo bottles, in the black bins. We have a lot of useful information on our website which you can use to see what can go into your bins. It’s worth looking at to see if you're throwing things away which could be recycled and help us improve our recycling rate even more.”

If you are unsure about whether a specific item can be recycled, find a simple guide at www.highpeak.gov.uk/BinsHelp.

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