Community Recycling Plant

Scenes of community recycling project and Scrapstore re-use scheme providing materials for schools.

In 1986, Community Recycling Opportunities Programme (CROP) in Milton Keynes recycled nearly 1200 tons of rubbish – bottles, cans, paper, cardboard and some plastics. Scenes of large quantities of metal cans pouring into a skip. Waste glass is lifted in the bucket of a forklift. Today 20 – 25 tons of glass is being transferred for recycling. Cardboard boxes are removed from a van. Martin Fodor of CROP talks about the growing support for their bottle banks, can banks and interest in saving paper, and they’ve been able to recycle more each year since they began. Scenes of the CROP Scrapstore which redirects waste materials from local businesses where there is potential for use by schools. Over 120 schools and playgroups have become members of Scrapstore, paying a membership fee then visiting to explore what’s available and take away materials free of charge. Children from Rickley Middle School visit the Scrapstore to find art materials. Their head teacher says this resource is welcome as money is scarce and they also bring materials for recycling. The children have been many times and enjoy the experience and use the items they choose for their projects in school. The reporter was Rebecca Atherstone for this video made to be shown in a news story on Anglia Television early evening news / magazine programme About Anglia.

Keywords

Waste; Rubbish; Recycling; Re-use; Scrapstore; Schools; Environment

Legacy (DO NOT USE)

In the commentary, the name of the Headteacher at Rickley Middle School sounds like Michael Rees but this cannot be confirmed from online data. In the Anglia TV data it appears as Michael Reef.

Additional Description

The local charity group, Community Recycling Opportunities Programme (CROP) began the earliest collections from recycling banks in Milton Keynes in the 1980s. Milton Keynes Borough Council then worked with CROP to start kerbside collection of recyclables from residents. A trial started in 1990 in the Linford area using red recycling boxes for paper and a blue box for glass, plastic bottles, metal food and drinks cans. By 1992 this scheme had been successfully rolled out across MK.