Nicola Jones, Tata Steel’s Manager for Steel Packaging Recycling, shares the vital role quality steel bales has to play in a more sustainable future and her expert tips on how to get there.
If you're a waste management or local authority professional, you'll understand the critical role played by quality bales in the recycling process, and how crucial having an easily accessible, reliable recycling partner is.
As one of the world's largest steel producers and one of the UK's leading steel re-processors, Tata Steel is in a uniquely strong position to help.
Recycling steel packaging makes a powerful contribution to the world’s transition towards a circular economy. If consumers recycled all their steel packaging items - food and drinks cans, aerosol sprays, biscuit tins, jar lids and much more besides - we would avoid sending any items to landfill and recuperating the materials.
This potential positive impact becomes even more powerful when you consider the 'forever recyclable' quality of steel which can be recycled an infinite number of times. Recycled steel can be resurrected as any number of different metal objects - from kettles, computers, mobile phones, fridges, to more food and paint cans. Steel is an incredible material!
To encourage consumers to get on board and recycle more, they need to know about the 'infinitely recyclable' attribute of steel and about what kind of products should and shouldn't go in recycling bins.
When the wrong products are thrown into the recycling bins - e.g. stainless steel (vs. steel) items, and non-packaging products such as gardening tools and cutlery - the quality of the bales is low. This means that potential for contamination, for example by moisture, increases as bales are less dense and the amount of ferrous material included is reduced.
When bale quality is high – thanks to people putting the right kinds of items in the bins - it's much easier to extract steel for recycling purposes and the process is more effective.
So how do we achieve those high steel density bales that the planet so urgently needs?
Clearly, a consumer education drive with consistent messaging is essential. This is the only way to prompt behavioural change which delivers meaningful impact. Tata Steel is committed to running a community outreach programme to help local communities understand the issues and the solutions. Eleanor Shorland, our Packaging Recycling Education Officer, goes into local schools and organisations to talk to children about the importance of recycling steel.
Over the years we've run workshops with schools, colleges, universities, home education groups, not-for-profit organisations and retirement communities – over 60,000 engagements to date. We've introduced and reinforced positive recycling behaviour and seen countless examples of uptake by school children and their families.
We also work with Metal Matters, a communications programme that helps local authorities to educate householders about metal packaging recycling and hopefully motivates them to review and boost their recycling habits. And we're constantly looking for new opportunities to spread the word.
Achieving positive behavioural change in consumers is also determined in part by convenience – how easy is it for them to recycle? Are there enough recycling bins available in the local area and are they located in easily accessible places? Are they regularly emptied by a reliable collection service?
To ensure that the answer is yes, working with an expert, trustworthy steel recycling partner such as Tata Steel is vital. We have a nationwide network of carefully selected metal balers which collect the contents of the bins and extract the highest steel density bales possible for us to recycle.
But Tata Steel goes much further than collection. We also provide an end-market for UK steel extraction, helping businesses to meet their packaging regulations through the sale of Packaging Recovery Notes (PRNs).
A PRN is a document that provides evidence that a material has been recycled. Tata Steel are accredited to raise PRNs when steel packaging is recycled at its Port Talbot steel making plant. The PRNs are then sold to organisations, brand owners or retailers that need to provide evidence of recycling as part of their packaging obligations.
In short, there's a lot going on behind the scenes to ensure that consumers recycle their steel packaging items correctly and regularly.
