According to LOCOG’s packing guidelines document, official London 2012 licensees, shops and suppliers will use plastic bags made form low density polyethylene (LDPE), which can be recycled at the end of their life. But the document also states this type of plastic needs specialist recycling facilities in order to be recycled and, according to a response from the Mayor of London, are rarely collected at kerbside or at recycling centres.
The Mayor was quoted in the Daily Mail on 18th January 2010 saying that he hoped to make London a ‘plastic bag free city by 2012 Olympics.’
Darren Johnson AM said:
"It’s very worrying that LOCOG shops will be handing out plastic bags that are not easy to recycle. The reality is these are bog standard plastic bags however you dress it up. They are not environmentally friendly and you need specialist facilities in order to recycle them.
LOCOG say they are committed to delivering a ‘zero-waste Games,’ but I don’t see how this can be achieved when you’re handing out thousands of bags which are difficult to recycle."