{"id":475678,"date":"2026-03-14T18:37:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T18:37:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/475678\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T18:37:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T18:37:11","slug":"uk-bin-collector-warns-against-putting-one-item-in-bins-in-recycling-bins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/475678\/","title":{"rendered":"UK bin collector warns against putting one item in bins in recycling bins"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The inside expert claimed it is a &#8216;nightmare&#8217; to get rid of<\/p>\n<p>Andrew Nuttall U35 Lifestyle Writer<\/p>\n<p>09:39, 14 Mar 2026<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Bin collectors will hate seeing this in any recycling bins\" loading=\"eager\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1773513430_27_0_Refuse-collector-and-refuse-truck-in-street.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Bin collectors will hate seeing this in any recycling bins (stock photo)\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Bin collectors will hate seeing this in any recycling bins (stock photo)(Image: Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A bin collector has issued an urgent warning to households across the UK to stop disposing of a common item in their recycling, claiming it creates &#8220;too much mess&#8221;. Whilst there&#8217;s a proper method for handling it safely, failing to follow this guidance could leave your rubbish uncollected.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Ashley, who goes by @Theno1. binman on <a aria-label=\"TikTokLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.glasgowlive.co.uk\/all-about\/tiktok\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">TikTok<\/a>, recently shared a video appealing to the public to reconsider before tossing this problematic material in the bin. He explained that it typically &#8220;goes everywhere&#8221; and is &#8220;no good to anyone&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Whilst it might appear innocuous, paper that&#8217;s been shredded into countless tiny pieces can rapidly become a frustrating headache for refuse collectors dealing with it on their rounds throughout the UK. He said: &#8220;Stop putting shredded paper in your paper bins.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;It&#8217;s not recyclable anyway because people have broken it down too much, it&#8217;s too much effort and it costs too much money to recycle it. When we tip it, when it&#8217;s cold and windy and wet, it goes everywhere. We have to sweep it up, it&#8217;s all stuck to the floor &#8211; horrible.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">He added: &#8220;Please stop! Just throw it away, that&#8217;s what&#8217;s going to happen to it anyway. You&#8217;ve shredded it, it&#8217;s no good to anyone anymore.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Content cannot be displayed without consent<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Numerous UK councils will accept shredded paper in household recycling bins, though it must typically be contained. Ashley recommended using something like a <a aria-label=\"PrimarkLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.glasgowlive.co.uk\/all-about\/primark\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Primark<\/a> bag, which is also manufactured from recyclable paper material, to place it in.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Standard carrier bags often don&#8217;t make the cut for the recycling bin, as they&#8217;re typically categorised as &#8220;soft plastics&#8221; that can jam sorting machinery. Rather than attempting to recycle them at home, many supermarkets offer dedicated recycling bins or collection points that will take these bags.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"It takes a lot of effort to recycle shredded paper but reusing it for something else is a much better alternative\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1773513431_340_0_GettyImages-1158243172.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"It takes a lot of effort to recycle shredded paper - but reusing it for something else is a much better alternative\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">It takes a lot of effort to recycle shredded paper &#8211; but reusing it for something else is a much better alternative(Image: Getty)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A swift online search reveals several other effective ways to dispose of this waste if individuals are committed to reducing their landfill contributions. <a aria-label=\"GoogleLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.glasgowlive.co.uk\/all-about\/google\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Google<\/a> suggests enclosing it in a paper envelope or a cardboard cereal box to keep it contained.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Instead of recycling, people might consider repurposing the item. Further online suggestions include using it for composting or as bedding for small animals.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">It&#8217;s always wise to check your local council&#8217;s specific regulations, as some may not accept it &#8211; even when contained.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">In another online alert ahead of Easter, the rubbish collection service warned that councils won&#8217;t collect waste if people make certain common errors with their Easter eggs. Failure to place items in the appropriate bins could lead to your collection being deemed contaminated.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Council workers won&#8217;t risk tainting the rest of the lorry-load collected on that round and will likely leave your full bin behind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The inside expert claimed it is a &#8216;nightmare&#8217; to get rid of Andrew Nuttall U35 Lifestyle Writer 09:39,&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":475679,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[1397,90,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-475678","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-environment","9":"tag-science","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/475678","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=475678"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/475678\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/475679"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=475678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=475678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=475678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}