Tissues and paper towels are not recyclable, as they are chemically treated and made of poor quality material, and if used to cough, sneeze, or blow one’s nose can spread infections.

Although they should always be disposed of properly, this is even more important when efforts are being made to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

These items should be placed in a general refuse bag, which should always be tied securely before being put out for collection. This reduces the risk of infection for anyone subsequently having to handle these materials.

Recycling collected through clear kerbside bags is subsequently sorted by hand, to separate any paper from the cardboard content. These materials then go off for separate processing.

General refuse however is not sorted by hand. It undergoes mechanical processing, before being baled and wrapped ready to be exported for energy recovery.

Items that can be recycled in clear kerbside bags are newspapers, magazines, telephone directories, printer and copier paper, mail, envelopes, catalogues and shredded paper. Most cardboard can also be recycled using the clear bags, with a few exceptions.

Those include any items contaminated with food, such as ready meal containers or takeaway boxes, and single use drink cups, which should go into general waste.

Cardboard based milk, food, and juice cartons should go in blue kerbside bags, as they contain other materials and go through a different recycling process.

More information can be found at www.gov.gg/mybinnight.

Public Health is providing specific advice and support for anyone who has tested positive or is in self isolation, either because they have been instructed to, or are doing so voluntarily because they have potential symptoms of COVID-19 infection.

It states: “All waste that has been in contact with the individual, including used tissues, should be put in a plastic rubbish bag and tied when full. The plastic bag should then be placed in a second bin bag and tied.

“Do not dispose of it or put it out for collection until you know that you or the person you are caring for does not have novel coronavirus, or until you have been in self-isolation for 14 days, symptom-free. Should you or a member of your household test positive, you will be instructed what to do with the waste.”

Guernsey Waste is also asking islanders not to throw away potentially hazardous items that normally go to the Household Waste & Recycling Centre (HWRC) at Lougue Hougue.

This includes batteries, which pose a fire risk, and metal or electrical items, which can damage equipment at the waste transfer station. Islanders are being asked to hold on to these until the HWRC reopens, and not be put them in their general waste.