Published in September 2018, the sixth edition of the Recycling Carbon Index shows council recycling schemes in England, Wales and Northern Ireland saved CO2 emissions equivalent to boiling the kettle for 285 billion cups of tea in 2016/17.

The annual index uses the most up-to-date waste data to calculate the quantity of CO2 emissions each local authority is saving in England, Wales and Northern Ireland through their recycling collections. This allows local authorities to compare their performance and share best practice.

The total across England and Wales and Northern Ireland came to 3.7 million tonnes saved, a 87,000 tonne improvement from 2015/16. The growing carbon savings being made across the UK as the result of changing recycling practices will only become more crucial in the years to come, as highlighted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s recent report, which states that reducing levels of carbon emissions is one of the most important steps in keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees centigrade.

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