Croydon Council leaflet on "Recycling and Waste" produced during COVID-19 pandemic

Fold out A5 leaflet "Recycling and Waste" including information about how to dispose of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), by Croydon Council, delivered to local residents in late 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic generated a significant amount of additional household waste, from disposable face coverings to surface cleaning wipes and rapid lateral flow tests.

This guide, distributed to households in Croydon, features tips on how to waste less and recycle more in 2021. Home workers are reminded to recycle their used paper just as they would in the office, and the booklet explains how to dispose of teabags and packaging from online shopping. Single-use face masks and gloves, it goes on to say, must go into general waste to avoid putting workers at risk.

While some recycling businesses later developed innovative processing services for rapid tests and gloves, one study estimated the world had generated about 8.4 million tonnes of ‘mismanaged’ (not processed or recycled) plastic waste from the pandemic as of August 2021.