In the UK it is estimated that only 31% of plastics waste is currently recycled.
The UK's recycling system is very flawed and doesn't support recycling a lot of plastics. Different materials are recycled in different areas, there is not one set system across all households. Each council collects different types, with some councils not collecting any plastics at all. According to a BBC analysis there are 39 different rules for what can be put into recycling collections.
This map shows the differentiation in the availability of recycling plastics across the country, with 2 councils not collecting any plastic at all. There are very few councils that recycle most types of plastics which is detrimental to the intent of recycling more plastics.
New proposals mean that there will be more consistent labelling introduced to indicate which plastics can be recycled - at the moment 46% have disagreements in the home as to what can and can't be recycled.
 | PET | polyethylene terephthalate | Water bottles, soft and fizzy drink bottles, pots, tubs, oven ready trays, jam jars |
 | HDPE | high-density polyethylene | Chemical drums, jerricans, carboys, toys, picnic ware, household and kitchenware, cable insulation, carrier bags, food wrapping material. |
 | PVC | polyvinyl chloride | Window frames, drainage pipe, water service pipe, medical devices, blood storage bags, cable and wire insulation, resilient flooring, roofing membranes, stationery, automotive interiors and seat coverings, fashion and footwear, packaging, cling film, credit cards, synthetic leather and other coated fabrics. |
 | LDPE | low density polyethylene | Squeeze bottles, toys, carrier bags, high frequency insulation, chemical tank linings, heavy duty sacks, general packaging, gas and water pipes. |
 | PP | polypropylene | Polypropylene can be processed by virtually all thermoplastic-processing methods. Most typically PP Products are manufactured by: Extrusion Blow Moulding, Injection Moulding, and General Purpose Extrusion. Expanded Polypropylene (EPP) may be moulded in a specialist process. |
 | PS | polystyrene | Toys and novelties, rigid packaging, refrigerator trays and boxes, cosmetic packs and costume jewellery, lighting diffusers, audio cassette and CD cases. |
 | Other | other types of plastics |
Recycling hierarchy
Prevention – Reducing resource use in manufacture, ensuring products last for a long time and using less hazardous material
Preparing for reuse – Repairing, cleaning, refurbishing and checking
Other recovery – incineration with energy recovery, anaerobic digestion, gasification and pyrolysis which product energy (fuel, heat and power)
Disposal – Landfill and incineration without energy recovery
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