Birmingham sends half of its aluminium abroad to be recycled
Birmingham City Council sent over half of its aluminium recycling abroad to be processed last year – and only its paper and cardboard recycling was processed within the city.
Published as the result of a Freedom of Information request by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the council revealed that 280 of its 529 tonnes of aluminium recycling were sent to Germany for processing last year.
The remaining 249 tonnes was “sent outside of Birmingham to be recycled at a number of facilities within the UK,” while glass, plastics and other metals were also sent outside of the city to be recycled.
The only recycling collected in Birmingham that is actually processed within the city is paper and cardboard, which the council says has been the case for the past three years.
Figures also show that the amount of aluminium recycling being collected by the council is actually decreasing.
In 2016, 1,068 tonnes were collected, of which 151 tonnes were sent to Germany, but last year this figure was more than halved, down to 529 tonnes.
The council also revealed that it does not process recycling on behalf of any other authority or country.
Speaking in response to the news, Druid’s Heath and Monyhull councillor Julien Pritchard said: “On balance, it’s better that aluminium is at least being recycled somewhere rather than going to landfill or the incinerator, but what this shows is that national governments have failed to take recycling seriously for years – in Britain we simply haven’t supported and invested in recycling the way we need to.
“We’ve been let down by the Government, but Birmingham could still do more – the city has declared a climate emergency, so we know action is urgently needed.
“Birmingham needs to work with neighbouring councils across the Midlands and through the West Midlands Combined Authority, to find ways to reduce waste in the first place and to encourage more comprehensive recycling services locally so we don’t continue to dump our waste on other countries. We process recycled paper in Brum, why not other materials?
“It’s win-win – a more circular economy means we’re more reliant on ourselves. Money spent locally helps retain jobs here, as well as cuts down the damage we are doing to the environment.”
A spokesperson for the council said that aluminium recycling had to be sent abroad as the UK does not have the smelting capabilities to process it itself.
