THE AMOUNT of plastic bottles recycled in South Cambridgeshire has rocketed. Since kerbside recycling of bottles was introduced by South Cambridgeshire District Council in October, 92.47 tonnes of plastic bottles have been recycled. The figures represent

THE AMOUNT of plastic bottles recycled in South Cambridgeshire has rocketed.

Since kerbside recycling of bottles was introduced by South Cambridgeshire District Council in October, 92.47 tonnes of plastic bottles have been recycled.

The figures represent a 389 per cent increase compared to the same period last year, when 23.75 tonnes of plastic bottles were collected from local recycling banks.

Cllr Sue Ellington, environmental services portfolio holder at the district council, said: "We're thrilled that households are making such good use of the new plastic bottle collections. It's also great to see the knock-on effect of increased recycling of other materials, reducing still further the amount of waste that South Cambridgeshire sends to landfill.

"We've put a lot of effort into delivering the new collections on time and on budget and it's fantastic to see that effort paying off. South Cambridgeshire has one of the best recycling rates in the country and that's down to the dedication of our residents and the hard work of our staff. "

Residents are also recycling more tins, cans and glass. In the first six weeks of the expanded scheme the amount of tins and cans collected increased by 8.63 per cent and glass by 5.85 per cent when compared to the same period last year.