Non recyclable waste

We know how harmful particular types of waste can be to our planet, so reducing, reusing and recycling has never been more important.

We make every effort to keep the waste we have to dispose of to a minimum, and everyone can help with this. We can make a big difference by choosing to buy secondhand, reusing, and recycling as much as possible.

Although we're doing our part to reduce environmental harm, there are still many materials that cannot be reused or recycled.

Knowing what to recycle and how is important but being aware of the non-recyclables is essential too so that waste can be properly sorted. See our A to Z guide to find out what to do with those items you are unsure about.

How we dispose of your non recyclable waste

The waste you put in your black bin at home is collected by your local district council. It then goes to either Whinney Hill landfill or our two waste recovery parks at Farington and Thornton.

Whinney Hill landfill receives black bin waste from four of the twelve councils in the east of Lancashire and is under a contract that is due to end in 2025.

At Farington WRP, we extract any metals from the waste before it's shredded and sent off as refuse derived fuel (RDF) for energy from waste plants (EFW).

At Thornton, waste is screened to take out smaller items which often contains food waste and organics. This part of the waste is then dried, reducing the mass by 20-30%. This dried material is then sent as a compost like output (CLO) for land spreading.

The remaining waste creates a high quality refuse derived fuel. A local company then processes the waste for the cement kiln in Clitheroe.