A local council has been the talk of the county after filling up a Zero Waste Box to the brim in just four weeks.

East Cambridgeshire District Council, who installed the box for seemingly unrecyclable items such as crisp packets and sweet wrappers at The Grange, will send the contents to Terracycle to safely recycle all the collected materials.

Once with Terracycle, the waste is separated into fibres and plastics. The fibres are recycled or composted, and the plastics are extracted to be made into recycled plastic products.

East Cambridgeshire’s Environmental Services team have been at the forefront of installing the Zero Waste Box.

In the four weeks, the box had been filled with 1,118 packets and wrappers.

Councillor Anna Bailey, leader of East Cambridgeshire District Council, said: “This is fantastic news for our district.

“Having installed just one of these boxes in reception, the turnout has been incredible.

“This is something all organisations should utilise from Terracycle, who are able to recycle items that ordinarily would go to landfill.”

With the success of the Zero Waste Box for crisp packets, the Environmental Services team at East Cambridgeshire District Council have now installed a Zero Waste Box for coffee pods.

Much like the crisp packets, the coffee pods will be sent to Terracycle and separated by material.

All plastic from the pods will undergo extrusion to eventually be moulded into new plastic products.

To find out more in recycling and waste, visit the ECDC website: https://www.eastcambs.gov.uk/content/recycling-and-waste-ecss

To find out more about Terracycle, visit their website: https://www.terracycle.com/en-GB/