Do you believe that all of Jersey’s recycling ends up in the incinerator? If so, the Government has almost £40,000 set aside each year to convince you otherwise.
Infrastructure Minister Andy Jehan said his department “is working to improve public awareness of what happens to the items householders separate for recycling to dispel the myth that it is all incinerated”.
He continued: “An annual budget allocation of £39,000 is used to promote individual schemes and new initiatives in respective parish magazines and also provide support for signage to ensure consistent messaging.”
The Minister was responding to a written question posed by St Helier Deputy Inna Gardiner on recycling rates in the island and what the infrastructure department is doing to improve them.
In his response, Constable Jehan confirmed that Jersey’s recycling rate as of June 2025 was 35% and had remained “stable” in recent years.
But he admitted that there is a “lack of awareness amongst the public about what happens to recyclable materials once collected”.
The Minister also said there was “a perception of complexity” around the different parish recycling schemes, with a quarter of parishes still not having a kerbside recycling initiative in place currently.
Constable Jehan added that, if all parishes launched a kerbside scheme, the island could potentially increase its recycling rate to above 45%.
He also confirmed that he “open” to adopting some of the practices recently implemented in Guernsey, which has boosted its recycling rate to almost 60%.