You may not think about what happens to store cards once they’ve disappeared behind the counter, but a recycling project has saved 10 tonnes of plastic B&Q gift cards from going to landfill.

Bioplastic manufacturer Novamont has pledged to create a minimum bio-based content of 40 per cent across its MATER-BI bioplastics range in an attempt to further reduce the carbon impact of its products.

The Scottish Government has commissioned Zero Waste Scotland to carry out ‘detailed work’ on how a deposit-return scheme could work in the country, presenting a significant step in the campaign to reinvent how plastic packaging is recycled.

Members of the waste and resources industry descended on London this week for two days of discussion on the sector's hot topics. Producer responsibility, stuttering recycling rates, Brexit and a large serving of politics were the major talking points. Here are some of our main takeaways.

A study offering four models for the evolution of the UK’s producer responsibility system was launched by compliance scheme Valpak at the Resourcing the Future Conference.

A two-month expedition to study the ‘plastisphere’ of the Mediterranean Sea departed from the coast of Italy on Thursday, as scientists seek to study how the alarming formation of a plastic-based marine ecosystem will affect the sea and humans.

A route map to turn London into one of the world’s most resource efficient cities has been launched by LWARB, calling on stakeholders from local government to community groups to carry out a range of actions targeting five key areas including food waste and plastics.

A new packaging law has been approved by the German parliament, stipulating raised recycling targets for plastic packaging waste and recognising bioplastics as a renewable alternative for packaging.

More than 100 firefighters were called to a SUEZ waste transfer station in the town of Pool, Cornwall, after a store of plastic for recycling caught fire on Saturday evening.

Greater cross-sector collaboration is needed to tackle some of the major questions affecting the future of plastics recycling, according to RECOUP.