Where your waste and recycling goes after collection

When our teams across West Oxfordshire collect your waste and recycling from your home, it is taken to specialist facilities where it is sorted, recycled, treated or used to create energy.  

Destination: URM, Knottingley Recycling and Treatment Facility  

What happens to your glass? 

Glass collected for recycling is taken to URM’s specialist glass treatment facility in Knottingley, which is one of the UK’s leading glass recycling sites. URM processes glass from councils across the country. 

At the facility: 

• Glass is crushed into small pieces called “cullet” 
• Magnets and air systems remove contaminants such as metals, plastics, paper and labels 
• The glass is cleaned and sorted, including removing ceramics and stones. 

Once processed, the clean glass is: 

• Remelted to make new bottles and jars, or 
• Used in construction materials such as insulation or aggregates. 

Glass can be recycled again and again without losing quality, helping to save energy and reduce the need for raw materials.

Destination: N+P, Crayford Materials Recycling Facility (MRF)  

What happens to your recycling? 

Dry Mixed Recycling (or DMR) is taken to N+P’s Crayford MRF, one of the largest and most advanced recycling sorting facilities in the UK. 

At the facility: 

• Recycling is fed onto conveyor belts 
• Machines and optical scanners separate paper, cardboard, plastics, metals and glass 
• Magnets and air jets help sort materials into separate streams 

Once separated: 

• Each material type is baled and sent to specialist reprocessors 
• These materials are then turned into new products, such as packaging, paper items and metal goods 

This process helps ensure as much material as possible is recycled rather than sent for disposal.

Destination: Severn Trent Green Power, Showell Composting Facility  

What happens to your garden waste? 

Garden waste is taken to the Showell composting facility near Chipping Norton, operated by Severn Trent Green Power. 

At the site: 

• Garden waste (such as grass cuttings, leaves and prunings) is shredded and piled into long rows, known as windrows. 
• The waste is regularly turned to allow air in, helping it break down naturally. 
• Over several weeks, the material decomposes into compost. 

The finished compost: 

• Is quality‑tested to strict standards 
• Is used by local farmers, landscapers and land restoration projects. 

This process keeps garden waste out of landfill and returns nutrients back to the soil. 

Destination: Severn Trent Green Power, Cassington Anaerobic Digestion Facility  

What happens to your food waste? 

Food waste is taken to the Cassington Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facility, where it is turned into renewable energy. 

At the facility: 

• Food waste is broken down and mixed. 
• It is fed into sealed tanks with no oxygen, where natural bacteria digest it. 
• This produces biogas, which is captured. 

The biogas is: 

• Used to create electricity and green gas, enough to power thousands of homes. 
• Any remaining material becomes bio‑fertiliser, which is used on farmland to improve soil health. 

This process reduces greenhouse gases and makes good use of waste that cannot be recycled. This process keeps garden waste out of landfill and returns nutrients back to the soil. 

Destination: Viridor, Ardley Energy Recovery Facility (ERF)  

What happens to your general rubbish? 

Waste that cannot be recycled is taken to Viridor’s Energy Recovery Facility at Ardley, near Bicester. 

At the facility: 

• Waste is burned at very high temperatures in a controlled environment. 
• The heat produced is used to generate electricity, which is sent to the national grid. 
• Advanced filters clean the gases before they are released. 

What’s left: 

• Metals are recovered from the ash for recycling. 
• Remaining ash can be used in construction materials, such as road building. 

This process significantly reduces the amount of waste sent to landfill while producing energy from rubbish that cannot be recycled.