JUDGING the success of recycling across the region is akin to piecing together a complex jigsaw, with councils adopting a range of different policies and approaches.

Which local authority you are governed by determines whether you have twin bins or wheelie bins, green bags or blue bags, perhaps even green waste bins or wasted green bins.

The Northern Echo: Percentage of waste collected which was recycled graph.

All councils are trying to increase the percentage of household waste diverted from landfill, even if politicians of different parties have clashed over how the goal would best be achieved.

The North-East’s recycling rate, as of last October, was 25 per cent, with its councils committed to double that by 2020.

Among the most successful of the region’s authorities is Richmondshire, in North Yorkshire, which recycled 46 per cent of waste produced between July and September last year.

Redcar and Cleveland also scores highly, having recycled 42 per cent of waste in 2007-8.

Hartlepool Borough Council recycles just under a third of rubbish produced, but hopes to top 37 per cent when the next statistics are published.

Darlington Borough Council recycles just over a quarter of waste collected, although this figure also represents a large improvement on 2003’s rate of 12 per cent, and a mechanical biological treatment plant, due to open later this year, should boost the figures further.

In County Durham, the new unitary Durham County Council recently took over responsibility for waste collection from the old district councils, and officials are drawing up plans to harmonise the seven policies they inherited. The council’s recycling rate for 2008-9 was 30 per cent, up from 25 per cent in the previous year.

What can be recycled varies from street to street. Durham County Council is introducing an expanded green waste recycling collection scheme, a service which already exists in Redcar and Cleveland.

Many authorities also differ over what to do with waste once it is collected. In Darlington, glass is recycled into aggregate and textiles are sent to the developing world, whereas in Hartlepool glass is recycled into glass containers and textiles are reused.

If you are trying to do your bit for the planet, it can all seem rather complicated. Thankfully, you only need to know what your local council recycles and you can find that out by typing your postcode into the search engine at recyclenow.com The website will show you what can and cannot be recycled and where your nearest recycling bank is.