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Recycling at Birkbeck
Alphabetical Index
A B C D E F G H I L M O P R S T V W
= YES it can be recycled, 
= NO it cannot be recycled at present, 
= Hazardous
A
Aerosols
Contact: Maintenance
Try and reduce the use of aerosols where possible as they are damaging to the environment.
If you have one or two empty aerosol cans, you may use the general waste bins (grey?).
If you have a larger volume, contact the maintenance team to arrange collection and disposal.
Audio Visual Equipment
Contact: IT Services
These now need to be handled in a specific way according to legislation. They should not be put in the general waste area or left outside or in hallways. This is not only a waste issue but a Data Protection one.
Contact IT Services to arrange secure collection and disposal.
B
Batteries
Contact: Maintenance
There are battery recycling collection points at the reception areas of each building.
Building Waste
- see Construction WasteBottles
- see Glass Bottles or Plastic BottlesC
Cans
- see Drink Cans or Food TinsClingfilm
Cling film – This cannot be recycled. Put into the general waste bins.
Cooking Oil
- see OILComputers
- see IT and AV equipmentContacts
- see ContactsConstruction Waste
Contact: Maintenance
Waste generated during construction or refurbishment work is disposed via the project contractors and Estates and Facilities.
D
Drink cans
Contact: Recycling
Put empty drink cans (aluminium) into yellow recycling bins. Make sure there is no liquid left in them. If you are feeling energetic , squash them so they takes up less space in the collection lorry.
E
Extinquishers
- see Fire ExtinquishersF
Fire Extinquishers
Contact: Maintenance
You should not dispose of these.
If you have one in your area and think that you no longer need it or that it should be moved to another location, contact the maintenance team for guidance or to arrange collection and disposal.
Flammable Liquids
Contact: Health and Safety Adviser
If you use hazardous substances on a regular basis, you should have a standard procedure in place for handling and disposal.
If you use these substances infrequently or are not sure of the procedure for your area, contact the Health and Safety Adviser for guidance.
Fluorescent tubes and light bulbs
Contact: Maintenance
These now need to be handled in a specific way according to legislation. They should not be put in the general waste bin or left outside or in hallways.
Contact the maintenance team to arrange collection and disposal.
Food
Contact: Recycling
This should be put in the general waste bins.
If you have a garden or allotment on site, there may be a small composting facility. Currently allotments are in place at the Clore Building only. To find out about available composting or to start a garden or allotment for your building, contact Greenthing@bloomsbury.ac.uk
Food Packaging
Contact: Recycling
Most food packaging can now be recycled. This includes sandwich containers, salad boxes, drinks cups and yoghurt pots.
Make sure you put any waste food in the general waste bin and then use the yellow recycling bins for the packaging.
Swill items like yoghurt pots to make sure there is no liquid or food left in there. That is what causes mess and nasty smells.
Food tins
Contact: Recycling
Put empty food tins (mostly steel) into the yellow recycling bins. Give them a swill out first to make sure there is no liquid or food left in them as it causes mess and nasty smells.
Fridges, Microwaves
Contact: Maintenance
For large kitchen appliances, contact the maintenance team to arrange collection and disposal.
Furniture
Contact: Estates Helpdesk (extn 2001)
We can often make use of good quality office furniture elsewhere in the college. Items that cannot be reused can be recycled.
Contact the Estates Helpesk to arrange collection.
Also, if you need new furniture, contact Estates Helpdesk before you buy anything new. We may have something stored which would meet your needs and save you money.
G
Gas Cylinders
Contact: Laboratory Manager
If you use hazardous substances on a regular basis, you should have a standard procedure in place for handling and disposal.
You should not attempt to dispose of these containers or the gases they contain without seeking advice on the appropriate procedure.
If you use these substances infrequently or are not sure of the procedure for your area, contact The Laboratory Manager or the Health and Safety Advisor for guidance.
Refrigerant gases (refrigeration equipment and sulphur hexafluoride in some electron microscopes) is decanted into collection vessels by responsible person or company and exchanged by providing company.
Glass
Contact: Recycling
The college does recycle glass but for the safety of our cleaning team, please put this in the red bins only.
The volumes of waste glass collected within the college are very low.
Red glass collection bins are available in most kitchen areas of the college.
The Student Union has a higher volume of glass waste and this is collected via ULU.
Green Waste
The college is not responsible for the maintenance of the outside areas and therefore does not offer a green waste collection.
If you have a garden or allotment on site, there may be a small composting facility. Currently allotments are in place at the Clore Building only. To find out about available composting or to start a garden or allotment for your building, contact GreenThing
H
Household Appliances
- see Small AppliancesI
Ink Cartridges, Toner Cartridges
Contact: Post Room
Take or send to the Post Room.
IT equipment
Contact: IT Services
These now need to be handled in a specific way according to legislation. They should not be put in the general waste area or left outside or in hallways. This is not only a waste issue but a Data Protection one.
Contact IT Services to arrange secure collection and disposal.
The equipment will be used where possible internally or recycled as appropriate.
L
Laser Printer Cartridges
- see Ink, Toner CartridgesM
Metals
Contact: Recycling
Building waste materials should be removed by the contrator. For other metal waste, excluding drink cans and food tins, contact the maintenance team to arrange collection and disposal.
Mobiles
Contact: IT Services
These now need to be handled in a specific way according to legislation. They should not be put in the general waste area or left outside or in hallways. This is not only a waste issue but a Data Protection one.
Contact IT Services to arrange secure collection and disposal.
The equipment will be recycled as appropriate.
O
OIL - FUEL and LUBRICATING OILS
Contact: Health and Safety Adviser
Fuel or lubricating oil – contact the Health and Safety Advisor for guidance or to arrange collection and disposal.
OIL - COOKING OILS
Contact: Sodexo
The catering service is responsible for the disposal of waste cooking oil from the eatery.
P
Packaging
Contact: Recycling
Most packaging materials are now accepted by our recycling collection. This includes plastic wrappers on boxes or books and the packing materials put into boxes.
Before you dispose of packaging material, consider if you can reuse it. Cardboard boxes can be used for storage for example.
Flatten cardboard boxes to make them more manageable. If they will not fit into the blue bins available just put them next to the bin so that the cleaners know that they are waste to be recycled.
Use the blue or yellow recycling bins.
Paint
Contact: Maintenance
Painting work is completed by external contractors and disposal of waste materials is included in the contract.
Departments should not have paint to dispose. However if you need to for any reason contact the maintenance team to arrange collection and disposal.
Paper
Contact: Recycling
Use the Recycling bins for:
- White copy and printer paper. (Don't worry about staples or paperclips still being attached.)
- All types of coloured paper
- Envelopes including windowed ones
- Newspapers & Magazines
- Paper sandwich wrappers
- Paper plates - without the food waste
- Paper cups - not the plastic lids though
- Sticky labels and their sheets
- A4 folders
- Small amounts of flat packed cardboard
- Small amounts of books
Personal Computers (PCs)
- see IT and AV EquipmentPlastic Bottles/Containers
Contact: Recycling
Put plastic bottles into yellow recycling bins. Make sure there is no liquid left in them. If you are feeling energetic, compress them so they takes up less space in the collection lorry.
Give food containers a swill out first to make sure there is no liquid or food left in them as it causes mess and nasty smells.
Phone handsets and chargers
- see MobilesPrinter Consumables
- see Ink, Toner CartridgesR
Radioactive Waste
Contact: Health and Safety Adviser
Birkbeck no longer has a licence to hold radioactive material nor holds any material which requires a licence or is exempt from licensing.
The last items of this type were disposed of in 2010.
S
Sanitary Waste
Contact: CLEANING
Sanitary waste bins are provided in all toilets and collected and transferred to the locked outside store where they are further contained within a locked metal shed
Small Appliances
Contact: Recycling
These now need to be handled in a specific way according to legislation. They should not be put in the general waste bin or left outside or in hallways.
Contact the Recycling to arrange collection and disposal. (You can eat the toast first!)
Sweets and Crips Wrappers
These cannot be recycled. Put into the general waste bins.
T
Tin cans
- see MetalsTin (Aluminium) foil
Aluminium foil cannot be recycled. Use the general waste bin.
Toner Cartridges
- see Ink, Toner CartridgesV
Vegetable Oils
- see OILW
WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment)
- see IT equipment, Audio Visual equipment or Small appliancesWires
Contact: MAINTENANCE
Contact the maintenance team to arrange collection and disposal.
Wood
Contact: MAINTENANCE
Contact the maintenance team to arrange collection and disposal.
Birkbeck Contacts
Estates Helpdesk (extn 2001) Estates and Facilities Helpdesk
Health and Safety Adviser - Tom McCartney, Email: t.mccartney@bbk.ac.uk
IT Services - ITS Helpdesk, Email: its-helpdesk@bbk.ac.uk
Laboratory Manager - David Renouf, Email: d.renouf@bbk.ac.uk
Maintenance - Alan Fisher, Email: a.fisher@bbk.ac.uk
Post Room - Harry Lee, Email: h.lee@bbk.ac.uk
Recycling - Anne McKeown, Support Services Officer, Email: recycling@bbk.ac.uk
Other Contacts
Green Thing - Email: greenthing@bloomsbury.ac.uk