A NEW recycling service has been launched for disposable paper cups in Dorset.

The Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP), working alongside the Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment (ACE UK), has set-up the service to allow residents to recycle their empty cups along with food and drink cartons at 20 specialist recycling banks across the county.

Coffee cups cannot currently be recycled at the kerbside as they are made from similar materials to food and drink cartons - paper with a plastic lining - and can therefore only be recycled at specialist recycling facilities.

However, DWP is also calling for residents to take a re-usable cup when they purchase a hot drink, rather than use a disposable one.

Disposable cups that are placed in household and public litter bins are either sent away for expensive treatment or go to landfill.

The carton recycling banks located in car parks across Dorset will now accept paper cups which are used for tea, coffee and other hot drinks in high street coffee shops, fast food outlets and supermarkets.

The new service is the result of an agreement between ACE UK, which operates the dedicated food and drink carton recycling service available in Dorset, high street retailers and cup manufacturers.

The agreement was set up to give many more people access to recycling for paper cups through the carton bring bank service.

Cllr Tony Alford, chairman of the DWP’s Joint Committee, said: “Although coffee cups cannot be recycled through council waste collections, with their growing use we were keen to take the opportunity to include them in the carton recycling banks.

"The residents of Dorset have always responded well to the different recycling schemes we’ve implemented, and we hope that they will take full advantage of this new service.

"We encourage everyone to take a re-usable coffee cup with them when they buy a hot drink but, if you can’t, please keep your cartons and disposable cups together and take them to a recycling bank the next time you are passing by.”

For more information on where the banks can be found, go to dorsetforyou.gov.uk/recycling-centres/carparks.