08 : 45 am |9th September 2010

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KITCHEN WASTE NO LONGER – WEST LONDONERS WILL BE ABLE TO RECYCLE UP TO 50% OF THEIR HOUSEHOLD RUBBISH WITH NEW GREEN WASTE SCHEME

29/11/2002

Vegetable peel, old fruit and tea bags need no longer end up as rubbish, thanks to a new West London pilot launched this month to turn kitchen scraps into compost .

The 12 month scheme – run by a partnership* of local authorities, big business and environmental organisations - will see kitchen scraps being collected from the doorsteps of 3800 homes in Richmond, Brent, Ealing and Hounslow. The scraps will then be turned into compost, with the aim of selling it for use in parks and gardens.

Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s are also playing their part with collection of unused vegetables and fruit from eight stores in the pilot area.

Designed to be to easy-to-use, homes in the pilot areas have been given two small containers into which they can put all their vegetable and fruit scraps, tea bags and coffee grounds. One smaller container is kept in the kitchen until full and then emptied into a larger outside bin, which is collected weekly for composting.

Running as part of an existing doorstep recycling service, the £350,000 Recycling Organics in West London (OWL) Pilot could result in big gains for the environment. Those taking part will now be able to recycle up to 50 per cent of their rubbish, which means less waste being dumped in landfill sites or burned and, therefore, less pollution. The compost produced in the first year will also help return vital nutrients to the soil.

The pilot will be constantly evaluated to see if it is proving a hit with residents and, if it is, the scheme could be extended to more homes across West London.

Andy Bond Managing Director of ECT Recycling - the organisation collecting the waste - said: “ You’d be amazed at the amount of rubbish every house throws away each year and the negative impact

this can have on the environment. If this pilot is successful, it will show people just how easy it is to recycle, reduce the need for landfill and it could also give a real boost to local gardeners.”

Mike Nichols, General Manager of West London Waste, said on behalf of the boroughs involved : “We need long term solutions to help deal with the growing waste mountain and recycling kitchen scraps is just the sort of sustainable idea that could help make a difference. If schemes like this are to be successful though they have to be easy, people have to want to recycle and so this pilot will help to show if this is possible.”

Steve Bruce-Jones, Managing Director of Waste Recycling Group’s Central Division, said: “We are delighted that WREN is the main funder of this important project using landfill tax credits* from our operations. Waste Recycling is a UK leader in composting, a process that we feel has a major role to play in helping to achieve more sustainable waste management.”

Hugh Carr-Harris from London Remade said: "The aim of the game is not only to increase recycling rates but also to show that a saleable product can be manufactured. This scheme is not just about collecting kitchen waste for composting, it’s also about 'closing the loop' by developing local markets for the final product. Creating demand for the product is essential if markets are to become sustainable.”