By Mark HeathTHE push towards making Suffolk a greener county has been given a huge boost with a £4.8million grant to support recycling and composting schemes.
By Mark Heath
THE push towards making Suffolk a greener county has been given a huge boost with a £4.8million grant to support recycling and composting schemes.
The handout has been awarded to the Suffolk Recycling Partnership by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
It will be split between Suffolk County Council, Ipswich and St Edmundsbury Borough Councils and Babergh, Suffolk Coastal and Forest Heath District Councils.
The cash boost has been raised through the National Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund, which is aimed at reducing the amount of waste going to landfill sites over the next two years.
Composting facilities will be developed and expanded with the money, while the kerbside collection of green waste, paper, cans and plastic will also be stepped up.
Julian Swainson, Suffolk County Council portfolio holder for sustainable environment, planning and transport, welcomed the funding.
He said: “This is a wonderful opportunity for Suffolk's local councils to deliver first-rate recycling and composting services to the county's residents.
“There is a lot of hard work ahead for the Suffolk Recycling Partnership to deliver recycling programmes to meet Government targets, but this grant is a huge boost to Suffolk's efforts.”
Conservative spokeswoman, Joanna Spicer, added: “This is good news for Suffolk. Waste is one of the biggest challenges facing Suffolk and it is very important that district councils and the county council work together on it.
“I would also like to praise the recycling initiatives brought in by councils across the region, which have been terrific.”
Sue Carpendale, chairman of Babergh District Council's strategy committee, said the grant was a “vote of confidence” in its recycling plans.
She added: “It represents a significant contribution to supporting the district council's long-standing commitment to recycling and composting.
“It will allow us to further improve the suite of services we offer to those local residents who are keen to compost more of their garden waste.”
mark.heath@eadt.co.uk
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