British Plastic Waste and Rubbish end up in Poland and Malaysia

A seriously disturbing article:

What a recycling shambles: TWO THIRDS of plastic food containers we carefully set aside are burnt or sent to landfill - MailOnline

"The Daily Mail, which campaigns against plastic pollution, today reveals that waste from British families ended up in a dump in Poland that caught fire causing a major pollution scandal. The tip in Zgierz is subject to an investigation by prosecutors amid claims that UK rubbish is being exported cheaply on the pretext of being recycled when it is either dumped in landfill or burnt...Britain is on the verge of burning more waste than it recycles for the first time, with some councils sending more than 80 per cent of rubbish for incineration. An international league table last year revealed that England has one of the worst recycling rates in the developed world, coming 18th in a comparison of nations on recycling efficiency. The proportion of waste incinerated by English councils has risen fourfold in a decade".

After China  banned the importation of virtually all waste plastic products, "Poland has stepped into the void...After Malaysia, it has now become the second-biggest market for Britain's recyclable plastic... but there is a dark underbelly  for this nascent Polish industry...."

Read the much longer article in the print edition, Saturday 4 August, 2018.


Plastic food pots and trays are often unrecyclable, say councils, BBC News