There are many single-use plastic items that we use everyday like toothbrushes, confectionery wrappers and make up that can’t be recycled by the council. Sussex Green Living have set up community recycling collection points across Horsham District for these and many other products through partnership with TerraCycle. TerraCycle an innovative recycling company that has become a global leader in recycling hard-to-recycle materials.
Sussex Green Living volunteers sorting the single-use plastic recycling
These Earth’s natural resources are key to our Western lives: water, air, oil, gas, coal and minerals. Perhaps we could be thinking about recycling as another resource that is about reusing these over and over again? Here are some tips as to how and where we can recycle.
During the weekend of Saturday 6th to Monday 8th May, there will be celebrations and parties all the country. Local town, Eastbourne, has put together a guide to help with the preparations and create eco-friendly events. We’re sure that King Charles would approve.
During the first lockdown in 2020 many people felt isolated. Sussex Green Living (SGL) thought it was important to connect people and to continue its work improving the environment. SGL’s Carrie Cort organised weekly online Horsham Climate Café events. Some of these attracted over 150 people, both local and from further afield. One of the aims of the café was to introduce people ‘virtually’ from the same villages and this is when the seed of Billingshurst environmental group BilliGreen was planted.
The group was started by Mela Davidson and Melanie Holliker who both wanted to create a network that boosted the local community and had a positive impact on the local environment.
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Chapel-sorting-0822.jpg8101080Eve Delveshttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngEve Delves2022-11-10 07:35:502023-03-31 14:00:06Community Collaboration at its Best
In West Sussex, 58.8% of an average household waste bin’s contents could have been diverted from general rubbish. Shockingly, 12.9% of the contents are items that could have been placed in kerbside recycling, and 40.5% is food waste. West Sussex County Council (WSCC) are asking us to reduce what we use, and re-use where possible. If items can’t be re-used, then recycle or compost. But what happens to the rest of our waste?
As managing our environmental impact becomes increasingly important, this is a question on many peoples’ minds. In West Sussex, all household waste is processed at two sites managed by Biffa, West Sussex Ltd. A team of our recycling volunteers recently organised visits to Brookhurst Mechanical Biological Treatment Facility and Ford Materials Recycling Facility to find out more.
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Recycling.jpeg16932048Eve Delveshttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngEve Delves2022-09-15 10:28:342023-03-31 13:36:25Do you consider what happens to your waste? (First published in West Sussex County Times)
As mentioned in last week’s blog, a jolly band of Sussex Green Living’s recycling ‘wombles’ enjoyed a tour of Biffa Mechanical and Biological Treatment Facility at Warnham recently.
And when I say ‘enjoyed’ I really mean it! If anyone had told me even a few years ago that I would be excited about a tip trip, I would have been very sceptical – but there we are, that’s how life rolls.
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-Wombles-at-Biffa.jpg12241632Eve Delveshttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngEve Delves2022-08-24 16:15:592023-03-31 13:36:08Want less, Waste Less (first published in West Sussex County Times)
I’ve always considered myself to be a bit of a greenie, I recycle after all! However, last month I took part in The Big Plastic Count organised by Greenpeace and Everyday Plastic. The aim was to count my plastic packaging waste over the course of a week and record it as part of a nationwide study to understand how much plastic waste we are creating in the UK.
We already know that we’re using too much plastic. The UK produces more plastic packaging per person than almost any other country in the world – only the US is worse. And if things carry on as they are, the amount of plastic waste produced around the world is set to double by 2040.
So could the answer to our plastic problems be refill?
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/shutterstock_1411461272-min-scaled.jpg17072560Eve Delveshttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngEve Delves2022-06-13 13:59:252022-06-13 13:59:25Refill is the new Recycle
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/morag-carrie-rotated.jpg640480Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2022-03-23 16:20:402023-03-31 13:30:19Community Eco Centre for Horsham
Don’t forget this Saturday it is our Sussex Green Hub event at the URC Horsham RH12 2RG (near Wilko off West Street and the Lynd Cross pub and opposite St John the Evangelist). This collaborative community event is on the last Saturday every month 10 – 4pm, this month we have some extra activities within the hub and just outside. Free food and free advice to help people, planet and pocket!
Carbon Clinic – every month going forward a new volunteer, Christian based at our Sussex Green Living (SGL) display area, is offering a carbon clinic. People are invited to sit and have a friendly non judgemental chat about their lifestyle choices, he will run through a survey with them, then he emails the participant with ideas for changes they can make to reduce their impact on the environment. Please make time to chat to Christian yourself, you will hopefully get a few new ideas. Learn more here. Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/sussex_green_hub2.jpg9071254Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2022-02-22 22:03:302024-05-07 10:45:09February green events in Horsham
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/SGI-attendees1.jpg12241632Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2022-01-27 07:47:072022-01-27 17:50:42Hope and help on hand for Horsham District people and planet!
♬♫♪ We’ve got a Brand New Sussex Green Living Terracycle drop-off location in Southwater!* ♬♫♪
Here in West Sussex we’re very fortunate in that West Sussex County Council take a wide variety of materials in our kerbside bins for recycling. At present, however, there are a number of things they can’t yet take that can be recycled. This can be frustrating for those of us who are keen recyclers. A group of those frustrated parties, including Sussex Green Living, Southwater Church, Southwater Beavers and Southwater Scouts, (to name but a few), have got together with Terracycle to tackle some of this waste-that-isn’t-waste. In addition to the clothes bank already there, Southwater Church now has two more recycling collection bins up by the Church Rooms on Church Lane.
The first bin is for crisp & snack packets only – all brands and all sizes.
The second bin is for
• Ballpoint pens, felt tips, biros, correction fluid, markers, glue sticks and highlighters
• Plastic wrapping for; sweet biscuits, cakes, crackers, chocolate, popcorn & nuts
• Fruit & Vegetable baby food pouches – Ella’s Kitchen and other brands (no pet food pouches please!)
• Plastic Milk Bottle Tops
• All other plastic container tops (metal lids can be recycled in kerbside Blue Bins)
• Plastic Air fresheners: cartridges and packaging Read more
Local Locations for TerraCycle® recycling single use plastics
“The bins are ready and labelled. All bags (canvas for mixed recycling and large 300 litre black sacks for the crisps and snacks) are ready to go. I’ll bring them down on my way to The Horsham and Shipley Community Project to save an extra car journey.”
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Wombles-3.jpg12191866Eve Delveshttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngEve Delves2021-11-21 14:13:382023-03-31 13:43:11Local Locations for TerraCycle® recycling single use plastics by Rob Fryatt (first published in West Sussex County Times)
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/SGHub-launch-photo-hamper-scaled.jpg25601891Nick Bennetthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngNick Bennett2021-09-18 10:41:582023-03-31 13:43:53Horsham’s Great Green Day
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/WSCT-12-Rs-10.12.20-2-scaled.jpg15572560Karen Parkhttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngKaren Park2020-12-15 08:14:262021-01-10 19:55:45How We Can Enjoy the 12 Rs of Christmas
We are delighted to be working with BilliGreen an environmental group in Billingshurst in offering our 8th parish single-use plastic drop off location. BilliGreen have agreed a public drop off location in the The Chapel car park, we have supplied some council bins for local people to use to help recycle specific hard to recycle plastics. Sussex Green Living working with a company called TerraCycle have been collecting these waste resources since 2012, our largest drop off locations being the William Penn School in Coolham and the Quaker Meeting House, Worthing Road, Horsham.
BilliGreen’s recycling location is at The Chapel, High Street, Billingshurst, RH14 9QS – the bins are in their car park which can be accessed on foot from the high street or by car via Lakers Meadows near the library. The bins are available 24/7. Local people are able to collect and recycle: Crisp packets and non-meat savoury snack packets, Biscuit, cracker and cake wrappers, Cereal bar and rice cake wrappers, Confectionery such as sweet bags and chocolate bar wrappers, Beauty and personal care products such as pots, lids, pumps and trigger spray heads, roll on/stick deodorant, lip balm containers, lids from sun-care products, Baby food and yoghurt pouches (any brand) and Ella baby snack packets, Cheese packaging (any brand) of sliced cheese protective plastic film, flexible bags, pouches and netting and Plastic milk bottle tops with 2 or 4 printed in a triangle.
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/13952C32-6CF9-4307-9508-D38F51411036-scaled-e1606288096754.jpeg19202560Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2020-11-16 17:03:512023-03-31 13:44:27Single use plastic recycling in Billingshurst
SUSSEX GREEN LIVING THANK HORSHAM DISTRICT COMMUNITY AND LOCAL CHURCHES FOR THEIR RECYCLING EFFORTS AND ANNOUNCE OPENING OF NEW RECYCLING HUB
Joy Carter, “lead Womble” at Sussex Green Living has continued to co-ordinate the sorting and dispatch of “hard-to-recycle” types of waste accepted by TerraCycle during the COVID-19 lockdown and subsequent period and would like to encourage local residents to keep on recycling.
Given the current situation with COVID-19 and the government’s restrictions to reduce the spread of the virus, our day-to-day lives have changed, and our priorities have shifted but it is not all bad news! Green issues remain a key topic, and Sussex Green Living, along with TerraCycle would like to remind everybody that recycling is as important now as ever before! By disposing of waste correctly or storing it to send to TerraCycle when things get back to normal, we can collect now and have an impact forever. Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_7825-scaled.jpg19202560Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2020-10-06 15:18:112023-03-31 13:44:40Churches unite to help fundraise for our recycling hub
In partnership with TerraCycle, a global leader in recycling hard-to-recycle materials, Sussex Green Living is now working with over fourteen parishes and schools to divert billions of waste resources from landfills.
Why is Recycling Single-Use Plastic Important?
Plastics are extremely durable and cheap to manufacture, making them almost impossible to overlook for manufacturers when it comes to product design and packaging. But their durability comes at the cost of slow degradation rates in the wild; upwards of 300 to 1000 years.
With about 380 tonnes of it being produced every year, by the time the plastic we have disposed of today begins to degrade the quantity in landfills, oceans and everywhere else will have become totally unmanageable. That is, unless, we can turn the tides.
Bisphenol A has been observed to disrupt physiological levels of sex hormones, negatively affect thyroid hormone gene expression in humans, and cause other detrimental effects. In marine life, issues with plastic entanglement and ingestion have been observed at a broad scale. Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/wrappers-to-riches-sm.jpg224300Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2020-09-25 19:56:312023-03-31 13:44:54Parishes and Schools recycle more single-use plastics
In partnership with TerraCycle, a global leader in recycling hard-to-recycle materials, Sussex Green Living is now working with over twelve parishes and schools to divert billions of waste resources from landfills.
Why is Recycling Single-Use Plastic Important?
Plastics are extremely durable and cheap to manufacture, making them almost impossible to overlook for manufacturers when it comes to product design and packaging. But their durability comes at the cost of slow degradation rates in the wild; upwards of 300 to 1000 years.
With about 380 tonnes of it being produced every year, by the time the plastic we have disposed of today begins to degrade the quantity in landfills, oceans and everywhere else will have become totally unmanageable. That is, unless, we can turn the tides.
Bisphenol A has been observed to disrupt physiological levels of sex hormones, negatively affect thyroid hormone gene expression in humans, and cause other detrimental effects. In marine life, issues with plastic entanglement and ingestion have been observed at a broad scale.
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/a-recycling-scaled.jpg17072560Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2020-07-03 17:27:082023-03-31 13:45:18Parishes and Schools Keep Joining in on Our Single-Use Recycling Scheme
Some ‘Wednesday Wombles’ sorting crisp packets pre covid
Bigger and better: Appeal for help to expand our single use plastic recycling operation and deliver a greener Horsham!
After a quiet start to the lockdown on the single use plastic recycling front, we are delighted to say that things are starting to pick up again and we are receiving increasing donations of single use plastics waste resources at the Quaker Meeting House drop off point. This is brilliant news as we want to make sure we’re diverting as much single use plastic household waste away from landfill and incineration, and finding new purposes for these materials through our TerraCycle recycling scheme.
We are extremely lucky to have our small but dedicated team of volunteers (affectionately known as the Wombles!) who throughout the lockdown have continued to sort through the donations on a weekly basis in a socially distanced manner. However as waste resource donations return to pre lockdown levels, SGL is in desperate need of support to expand its recycling capability. To give some indication of the quantities the team are working through, a staggering 120,000 crisp packets have been recycled by our team over the course of the last two years! Once single plastic donations are dropped off at the Quaker Meeting House, these are sorted through by hand by our volunteers, boxed up and sent to a company called TerraCycle who manage the recycling of these hard to recycle materials. Without these volunteers, crisp packets along with lots of other household single use plastic resources such as biscuit and snack wrappers would be discarded in waste bins, which currently are transported to Germany and Holland to be incinerated at significant financial and environmental cost. Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/IMG_4108.jpg24483264Kim Tomlinsonhttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngKim Tomlinson2020-06-19 14:19:592023-03-31 13:45:07Fundraising to expand our single use plastic recycling operation
Press release – Help Sussex Green Living win prize through ‘liking’ recycling video
Sussex Green Living (SGL) volunteer Joy Carter has won Terracycle’s global #keepOnRecycling contest for her “how-to” film that inspires householders to recycle specific single-use plastics during the lockdown.
The film promotes the free recycling schemes run by SGL and Terracycle to avoid items ending up in landfill or being sent overseas by the Council to be incinerated.
Joy said: “Now that most of us are staying home we are generating a lot more waste than normal and it is an ideal time to learn what to do with items that can’t be put in our recycle bins”.
Help Sussex Green Living Go Global!
Joy is donating the £80 prize money to the Horsham Community Fridge but has set her sights on the global prize and needs your support. The funds would enable SGL to set up a storage facility for all the recycling they sort through ordinarily on a weekly basis at the Quaker Meeting House. To help SGL win, please watch, like and share Joy’s film on social media. https://www.facebook.com/SussexGreenLiving/
Carrie Cort, SGL founder, said: “We are delighted that the volume of recycling from the local community has increased so significantly – it shows how many people care about being zero-waste. However, we now need to expand our operation to avoid volunteers taking a bag loads of recycling home to sort through. Please support our film and help us win the Terracycle award”. Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/TerraCycle-video.jpg540564Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2020-05-28 12:04:232023-03-31 13:45:30Help us in global recycling contest
Local people removed from isolation for one hour a week through the virtual Horsham Climate Cafe. Saturday 11th April saw the numbers grow from 7 the first planning week, to 15, with 24 turning-in last week to learn about frugal and free wild cooking from Fiona founder of Earthkind and an eco art competition which Sussex Green Living are running with the South Downs National Park. With lots of other exciting local and countywide ideas materialising.
The Horsham Climate Cafe normally pops up once a month at the Quaker Meeting House in Horsham, but quickly adapted with lockdown to go online using Zoom free video conferencing. Last week saw people from Horsham, Billingshurst, Lindfield, Worthing, Chichester, Peacehaven, Petworth and Leeds tuning-in! The aim is to remove people for social isolation for an hour a week to discuss ideas for supporting community and planet in this uncertain time. The organisers are very heartened to be receiving such a positive response and great engagement!Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/11.04.20-HCC.jpg9161578Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2020-04-15 07:56:032020-04-15 08:03:29Virtual climate cafe connecting people and planet
Sussex Green Living appeals for homes to help keep single use plastic recycling going in Horsham District
Sussex Green Living is appealing for help in the homes with single use plastic recycling during the covid19 crisis. Since 2012 Sussex Green Living with the help of lots of volunteers have been recycling specific single-use plastics. The materials are sent to and recycled by a company called TerraCycle.
Carrie the founder of Sussex Green Living is appealing for help “Over the last year the volume of donations has grown 10 fold, we have a wonderful team of volunteers we call the SGL Wombles who were helping sort every Wednesday afternoon at the Quaker Meeting House”, she continues “We had to make the decision to stop those team sorting sessions last week”.
Two volunteers are going to try to keep the lesser volume now being received, sorted and dispatched to TerraCyle. Helen Whittington, the onsite warden of the Quaker Meeting House will daily clean the handles on the bins in the meeting house garden, this being the main drop off location in the district (although there are six other parish locations and schools who also collect). Joy Carter, endearingly called chief Womble is going to remove the recycling to a remote location (using personal protective gear) and then trying to sort after 72 hours. Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Covid19-recycling-request.jpg24562448Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2020-03-25 14:28:022020-03-25 14:59:02Appeal for homes to help our recycling volunteers
In addition to the single use plastics we recycle mainly through TerraCycle, the following plastics can be dropped off for recycling at the major supermarkets:
– All plastic carrier bags, except biodegradable or compostable bags
– Breakfast cereal liners
– Shrink wrap & ring joiners from multipacks of water, cans etc
– Frozen food bags, e.g. bags for frozen vegetable, chips, etc
– Dry cleaning bags/bags covering new clothing
– Magazine and newspaper wrappers
– Bags for fruit and vegetables
– Bubble wrap
For online shopping deliveries, many supermarkets also allow you to hand your unwanted bags back to the driver for recycling. Read more
We are really excited to share our latest stats and facts showing the impacts of our single-use plastic recycling scheme, which was launched in 2012 in partnership with TerraCycle. In the early days Carrie the founder of Sussex Green Living and her young son Adam sorted and dispatched the recycling, now we have about 20 volunteers aged 8 – 90. Our main public drop off locations are at the William Penn School in Coolham and the Horsham Quaker Meeting House. We also have community micro-drop off locations in: Leechpool School in Horsham, Rudgwick Youth Club, Thakham Village Hall, Storrington Community Market (once a week), Slinfold and Henfield. There are thousands of people collecting for us from all over the county. Over the eight years we have run this special recycling scheme we have diverted millions of pieces of single-use plastic from landfill and incinerator. Most of our single use plastic recycling raises money for the William Penn School.
Prior to the stats shown below we collected TerraCycle waste resources for the benefit of WAKOOS a nursery for children in Billingshurst and Horsham Matters, these statistic are not shown below. Read more
https://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/cropped.jpg737939Carrie Corthttps://www.sussexgreenliving.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SGL-logo-158-x-78-RGB.pngCarrie Cort2019-10-11 22:03:182023-03-31 13:47:18Stunning single use plastic stats!
We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.
Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.
Essential Website Cookies
These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.
Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.
We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.
We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.
Other external services
We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.
Google Webfont Settings:
Google Map Settings:
Google reCaptcha Settings:
Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:
Privacy Policy
You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page.