News in Brief

A new appliance recycling centre has been commissioned in North Somerset this week to provide collection and recycling of bulky items for local residents.

The site will be available for householders in Bristol and North Somerset and was set up by Bristol and Bath-based charity SOFA Project.

Once fully operational, predicted to be January 2006, it is expected that the site will divert 4,000 tonnes of bulky waste per annum from landfill.

The project was made possible by a 200,000 grant from the Department for the Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Waste Partnership Fund and a 300,000 grant from the Big Lottery Fund’s Community Recycling and Economic Development (CRED) Programme.

Marianne Cole of Surrey county council hopes the leaf mould bags will increase home composting

Surrey county council has begun offering its residents the chance to pick up a free leaf mould bag to compost leaves at home.

The council is also giving residents the chance to find out more about composting at a number of events across the county for a week from October 10.

Marianne Cole, Surrey county council's waste projects officer, said: “Coupled with Surrey's drive to reduce the amount of waste we create in the first place, we are trying to reduce the amount of biodegradable waste that is thrown needlessly into our households bins.

“Around 80% of the average household bin in Surrey is reusable, recyclable or compostable. Composting and making leaf mould is one solution for some of this waste material and has the added benefit of making a great soil improver for your garden,” she added.

Defra is set to launch a free training course for local authorities on new waste technologies for the diversion of biodegradable municipal waste from landfill.

The objective of the course, which is to run in November, is to provide local authority officers with the knowledge to evaluate new waste technologies and provide advice in the decision making process on the diversion of BMW from landfill.

The three day course will cover several topics including planning, financing, licensing, permitting and procurement.

Those wishing to register interest can do so by emailing wastetech@enviros.com or by telephoning 0870 2409894.

Nicola Ball of the CMC (left) with Rozanne Gimson at RPG Herbs in Congleton, Cheshire

A Cheshire herb nursery is to use compost made from recycled garden waste in its commercial operations.

The move by RPG Herbs of Congleton came following trials organised by the Clean Merseyside Centre, using compost supplied by WRS Composting of Formby, Merseyside.

The results showed that a reduced peat mix using 67% peat and 33% PAS100-accredited recycled compost is suitable for containerising plant production of herb species including chives, mint, oregano, parsley, rosemary and thyme.

Rozanne Grimson, who owns and runs RPG Herbs alongside her husband Paul, said:
“We will see how the reduced peat mix performs this winter and if we are happy with our winter crop we will continue to mix more widely next year.”

Hackney council is to hold its first ever Give or Take Day this month for residents in the borough.

The event, which will take place on October 22 at The Round Chapel in Lower Clapton, offers residents the opportunity to bring belongings that they don't want and exchange it for items that they do want.

All items are free, even if nothing is brought along, and the event will also feature a bouncy castle to entertain younger visitors.

Jessica Crowe, deputy Mayor and cabinet member for environment, said: “Give or Take days are a great way to get rid of things you don't want. They also offer people on low incomes the chance to pick up household items they may need.”