A to Z of reusing, recycling and waste disposal

Try to re-use magazines by donating them to your friends, relatives, colleagues or your local doctor's surgery. They can be recycled in your green bin or at your nearest bring site or recycling centre. Recycled magazines will be made into new paper products.

Visit the medical waste page for more information on what we will collect and how to book collections.

Unused medicines should be returned to your doctor or pharmacist. Empty medicine bottles can be recycled in the green bin or bottle banks.

You can take scrap metal to your local recycling centre. Metal will be recycled into new metal products.

If your microwave still works, please donate it to a charity shop or your local reuse organisation. You can recycle your microwave by taking it to your nearest recycling centre, where you can put it in the small waste electrical container. The metal and plastic will be recycled into new products.

If your milk containers are made from glass, you should return them to your milk man. If they are made from plastic, they can be put in your green recycling bin, taken to your nearest bring site or recycling centre.

Some charities run postal collection schemes for unwanted phones. You will be able to find out more information on the internet. Most supermarkets and phone shops have collection facilities for unwanted mobile phones. You could also put them in your nearest WEEE bank (see W for a list of sites).

You can recycle your old style monitor or flat screen monitor by taking it to your nearest recycling centre, where you can put it in the television/monitor container. The metal and plastic will be recycled into new products.

It can be difficult and dangerous to dispose of unwanted paint. It should not be poured down the drain or put in your black rubbish bin. You can donate unwanted paint and varnish that is still useable to your local recycling centre and put it in the distinctive pink Seagulls paint collection container. The paint will be donated to Seagulls, a local community paint re-use organisation.

Paper can be recycled in your green bin, at your nearest bring site or recycling centre. Please note that we are not able to accept shredded paper for recycling (please see shredded paper).

There are three recycling centres in Leeds where you can take your paper containers with metal ends such as hot chocolate, gravy granules, coffee and Pringles for recycling - Kirkstall, Wetherby and Yeadon.

Hot drinks paper cups are used in high street coffee shops, fast food outlets and supermarkets. These cups are lined with several layers of polyethylene (plastic). Because of this they are not suitable for recycling along with normal cardboard. Why not try a reusable cup? You can recycle your paper coffee cups in the recycling on the go bins for coffee cup in the city centre.

Peat bogs are rare habitats that are being destroyed to produce peat, so try to avoid buying or using it. If you have unwanted peat, it can be added to your compost heap or spread on your garden.

Please see Chemicals

Photographs and photographic paper cannot be recycled due to the plastic laminate on them being difficult to remove at paper pulping plants. If plastic is mixed into the process the recycled paper become unusable. Please dispose of these items in your black bin.