The BBC has reported today the imminent opening of a revolutionary plastic recycling facility in Dagenham, which is the UK’s first with the ability to recycle plastic bottles.

Anybody who has had any contact with the recycling industry will know that until very recently, plastic bottles were the bain of the business. The problems of different sorts of plastic, the difficulties of collection, the sheer bulk of them and the problems of potential contamination looked insurmountable.

This was a headache because plastic bottles are one of the most abundant forms of packaging in the UK, and were contributing a large amount to our landfill.

Apparently this new facility aims to recycle 35,000 tonnes a year which is a good start to the problem. The recyclate can then be mixed with virgin plastic up to a 50:50 ratio.

The whole facility only cost £13 million, which is cheap for a recycling depot.

I don’t know if bottles from this area will be part of the annual 35,000 tonnes, but I hope so.

From Stuart Bray’s site:

Liberal Democrats are concerned that Mr McMahon’s decision to retire as the dentist at the Cowper Road dental surgery could leave Burbage without a dentist. Health officials have admitted that alternative provision will be made but this could be outside Burbage. Liberal Democrat Parish Councillors Stuart Bray and Ann Hall tabled a motion at February’s Parish Council meeting urging health officials to ensure Burbage doesn’t lose this vital facility. We also want to put on record our thanks to Mr McMahon for all his years of loyal service on behalf of his 5,500 patients.

I was a patient with Mr McMahon as a child, and while I was an appalling patient, he was (still is!) a great dentist. It’s important Burbage keeps its dentist, and preferably an NHS one!