RESIDENTS were yesterday asked to recycle as much as possible over Christmas.

Bosses at waste management company Yorwaste urged people not to bin bottles and cans, but to leave them out for kerbside collection or take them to recycling points.

They also asked residents to separate Christmas cards and wrapping paper from the usual newspapers and magazines, as often they cannot be recycled together.

Recycling and external affairs manager John Miller said: "People in North Yorkshire and the City of York will contribute to the millions of tonnes of rubbish generated in the UK this Christmas, most of which will end up in landfill sites.

"This needn't be the case. Recycling is easier than ever before, so everyone can help by reducing the amount of waste they generate, reusing what they can and recycling."

Yorwaste household waste sites will be open throughout the Christmas period, apart from Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

Figures from Defra and Recycle Now, the national recycling campaign, show that more than three million tonnes of waste will be created in the UK this Christmas.