Free newspapers go green in unique recycling deal (18/01/2008)

The publishers of London’s free evening newspapers have this week started recycling discarded papers in the centre of the capital in a unique deal struck with Westminster City Council to help the environment.

Associated Newspapers, publisher of London Lite, and NI Free Newspapers Ltd, which publishes thelondonpaper, have paid for 70 newspaper recycling bins to be placed at 56 sites across the West End, and will be responsible for the emptying and recycling of nearly 400 tonnes of free newspapers a year – saving the equivalent of 6,400 trees.

Cllr Alan Bradley, Cabinet Member for Street Environment, said:

"As well as the importance of helping the environment through recycling, we also want to ensure that Westminster retains it enviable status as one of the cleanest places in the country.

"I'm delighted that our unique agreement means that the million daily visitors into Westminster now have even more opportunities to recycle their newspapers."

The two newspaper groups have split the cost of the 70 bins between them, and have each taken ownership of two zones each in the West End, with NI Free Papers Ltd responsible for the servicing of newspaper recycling bins, and clearing away discarded papers near their distribution points in the Oxford Circus and Charing Cross Station areas, and Associated Newspapers looking after Leicester Square and Victoria Station areas. Both publishers have agreed the measures as part of a voluntary regime to help tackle the problem of waste newspapers in the West End.

These bins, installed by Westminster City Council over four days this week, are in addition to the 146 newspaper recycling bins the council already supplies and services itself across the city.

John Leitch, Circulation Director of London Lite, said:

"We are pleased that this initiative, which we worked together on with Westminster council, is now ready to start. There will be 70 new newspaper recycling bins in the West End which will give our readers a new opportunity to recycle London Lite. This new recycling initiative further reinforces our green credentials and our litter picker operation which has run since the launch."

Ian Clark, managing director of thelondonpaper, said:

"thelondonpaper is proud to be part of this initiative and to help our readers in Westminster recycle their newspaper. Over 400 bags of litter are already collected by our distributors and litter patrol teams every day in the capital. This is part of our ongoing efforts to minimise impact on the environment. thelondonpaper is printed on recycled paper and uses environmentally friendly ink that can be broken down without specialist recycling techniques."

Notes to Editors:

As part of the Voluntary Regime each newspaper group's own distributors will be responsible for maintaining a litter free work station during their hours of operation with:

*NI Free Newspapers Ltd responsible for the servicing of newspaper recycling bins, and associated litter-picking, in the Oxford Circus and Charing Cross Station areas.

*Associated Newspapers responsible for the servicing of newspaper recycling bins, and associated litter-picking, in the Leicester Square and Victoria Station areas.

*In their zones of operation each newspaper group will brand the bins, and display a telephone answering service and an email address for any comments by members of the public.

*The free newspaper recycling bins are LINPAC Twin Bins, which have a 170 litre capacity and combine two newspaper slots on each bin. With 56 bins out by lunchtime on Thursday the bins have the capacity to collect 1.5 tonnes per day. The remaining 14 bins will be installed at sites currently obstructed by construction work, with a handful held back as reserves.

*Westminster City Council has carried out periodic studies of street litter across Westminster since the introduction of the free evening newspapers. The highest concentration of newspapers in the street waste stream is found across the West End where newspaper waste accounts for 24 per cent of street waste. We predict that the publishers' new bins will help collect an estimated 38 per cent of all waste newspaper in Westminster.

Westminster’s Green credentials:

Recycling Facts:

Westminster currently has a recycling rate of 20.6 per cent, despite the challenges posed by a million visitors a day and the fact that more than 90 per cent of residents live in flats.

Electric vehicles:

Westminster plans to launch the biggest network of electric car charging points in the UK later this year following a successful pilot scheme. The number of sites will be increased to 60, with 12 on-street charging points across the city on top of 48 existing charging points the council runs in 13 of its car parks.

Queens Park Gardens:

Designing places for people and wildlife: A new community wildlife area is being created at Queens’s Park Gardens, which will provide a haven for wild birds, butterflies, bats, beetles and lots more. The wildlife garden has been designed in conjunction with the local community. Hedgerows, trees and shrubs, tall grasses, wildflowers, woodpiles, a composting area, climbers and creepers are all planned to provide wild birds, small mammals and insects with food shelter and places to breed.

Reducing Westminster’s Carbon Footprint:

Climate change is perhaps the greatest environmental threat we face today. Scientists predict that global temperatures will increase, sea levels will rise, and droughts, floods and storms will become more frequent and severe. The council has pledged to reduce its carbon footprint which has been calculated at 32,123 tonnes a year, and has committed to cut carbon emissions from its buildings by 20% by 2020.

Pioneering ‘recycling chutes’ for high-rise flats:

A new chute that could revolutionise recycling in high-rise flats won the council a prestigious recycling award. Recycling rates at the high-rise Hallfield estate in Paddington leapt from 10-40 per cent after the council pioneered a design to convert 12 chutes to recyclable waste rather then residual rubbish, earning it 'Best Local Authority Recycling Initiative' organised by letsrecycle.com in October 2007.

ENDS