There are many types of plastic. High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and Polypropylene (PP) are two of the most common plastic families, and ones that CLAW Environmental specialise in recycling.
The following is a brief description of these materials.
HDPE – High Density PolyetheyleneHDPE comes in three main types.
1 Injection Mould – wheelie bins, crates, buckets
2 Extrusion Grade – pipe, sheet
3 Blow Mould Grade – drums, milk bottles, ibc bladders
PP – PolypropylenePP comes in two main types.
1 Homopolymer – generally used to make thin section products – garden pots, take away containers
2 Copolymer – used for thicker section products – crates, buckets, rakes
CLAW Environmental process these materials using combinations of shredding, granulating, washing and pelletising which takes scrap plastic and returns it to a form used in the manufacture of new goods.
CLAW Environmental offers collection services and site drop off for these materials at our yard in Welshpool. Please see below for further information on dropping off materials for recycling.
CLAW Environmental has the capacity to process other rigid plastics. Please contact us to discuss your needs.
Please ensure all rubbish is removed as well as any metal (chains/locks/repairs).
Small labels and some paint is acceptable.
For large quantities, please remove wheels/axles (other than the bottom bin), and stack in lots of 5 to 10 bins. Stacked bins need the bottom wheels for stability and mobility.
There are many types of containers from chemical drums through to water bottles. Labels are acceptable. Please remove lids and bring in separately.
Chemical Drums – Herbicides, Pesticides and DG (dangerous goods).
These must be triple rinsed with no remaining residue or content. For a guide on triple rinsing see the drumMUSTER website page “Agsafe Effective Drum Rinsing Standards”
Chemical Drums – Non DG
These must still be rinsed. Depending on the chemical, triple rinsing may not be needed, but must still leave the drum with no residue.
Other HDPE Containers – large water containers, milk bottles
Must be rinsed leaving the container with no residue.
We do not accept oil or paint drums due to contamination problems.
If you have any doubts as to the containers suitability for recycling please contact us.
IBC’s (Intermediate bulk container) require the same rinsing requirements as drums. Please see the entry for drums and containers.
We do not accept oil, paint or resin IBC’s due to contamination problems.
Pipe is usually made from one of three polymers, Polyvinylchloride (PVC), Polyethylene (HDPE, MDPE and LDPE) or Polypropylene (PP). CLAW Environmental currently accepts most PE and PP pipe material for recycling. Please contact us to confirm acceptability.
Following is a brief description of the three types of pipe. Please ensure the pipe is not contaminated with residue and remove any metal fittings.
PE Pipe – Generally black, and covers a range of uses from high pressure pipes through to reticulation pipe. Some PE pipes have an outer colored layer, white for electrical use and yellow for gas.
PP Pipe – Not as common, but can be used in some applications including culvert pipe and hot water.
PVC – Commonly used for irrigation pipe and fittings (generally white). It is also used for electrical conduit and conduit fittings (generally white and orange). We do not currently recycle PVC material.
Pallets come in a variety of plastics. Please download our fact sheet which explains what we can and cannot accept.
The majority of crates and storage tubs are made from PP. There are a few crates which are made from HDPE.
Crates can normally be identified by the PIC (polymer identification code). PP crates will be marked 5 or PP, HDPE crates will be marked 2 or HDPE.
Please bring crates in sorted by polymer.
Please remove any steel wheels, handles, non plastic items and rubbish from the crates.
If you are unsure what polymer the crates are, contact us and send us some photos.
Large crates and bins like Nally Bins and Megabins are made from HDPE.
Please remove any steel fixings or rubbish.
Bang out any loose organic material and stack. They do not need to be sorted by colour. Stacking same size pots will reduce the space taken for storage.
Pot trays and some seedling trays are also PP and can be mixed with the pots.
Seedling trays which are crinkly in nature can also be recycled.They are made of rigid polystyrene, so need to be kept separate.
Buckets are normally made from PE or PP. Lids can also be made from both. Please ensure they are sorted into plastic types.
They must be clean with no food, chemical or paint residue.
All metal handles must be removed.
Corflute is a corrugated plastic commonly used for signs and packaging.
Please remove any metal, tape, ropes.
Printing on the corflute is acceptable.
The lids do not have to be sorted into colour or polymer. Any size lid up to 10cm can go into our blended mix.
Lids larger than this will usually have the polymer stamped on them. We can still take these but they will go into our pure polymer streams. Please keep separate.
Please remove any food / drink / chemical residue or any other contamination.