Spreading the composting word in North Lanarkshire

摘要

The importance of reducing the volume of green waste going to landfill is two-fold. First, green waste constitutes roughly one fifth of the 60 per cent of our waste classified as biodegradable. In a landfill, biodegradable waste breaks down to release methane and other VOCs (volatile organic compounds), raising concerns about the impacts of landfill gas, leachate, odours and vermin. Second, the Landfill Directive [99/31/EC], which impacts directly on Scotland's National Waste Strategy, demands that 65 per cent of our biodegradable municipal solid waste be diverted from landfill by 2020. North Lanarkshire Council is the fourth largest unitary authority in Scotland, with a 6.4 per cent share of the national population living in mainly urban surroundings. In the year 2000/2001, it propped up the local authorities recycling league table with a lowly 1.3 per cent. However, after a lot of hard work and innovation, latest calculations for the year 2001/2002 show this figure leaping to 5.7 per cent, and one of the projects working towards better waste management in the area is the North Lanarkshire Green Waste Trial. With the aim of promoting home composting, the North Lanarkshire Green Waste Trial (NLGWT) is a partnership set up between Bell College, North Lanarkshire Council and, most importantly, the residents of the North Lanarkshire area. Part funded by North Lanarkshire Forward (NLF), it forms part of the Bell College-based Reema Road Recycling Project, which works to raise awareness of and promote the implementation of the waste hierarchy of Reduce, Re-use, Recycle within the North Lanarkshire area.