Figures just released show that a million tonnes of household waste has been diverted from landfill, and to mark the milestone a competition for young people and a giveaway to residents has been announced.
Hills Waste Solutions is launching a competition for young people in Wiltshire to design a poster to encourage residents to recycle.
The competition is open to school children in years 1-11 who attend a schools encompassed by Wiltshire Council. Entrants can pick any of the many items people can recycle in their kerbside black box or at household recycling centres (HRCs) as a theme. They can find details on these items at www.recycleforwiltshire.co.uk.
The five finalists will each receive a £20 book token. As well as the book token the overall winner will earn their school a computer. The winning entry will be turned in to a poster and used by Hills and Wiltshire Council to promote recycling. All five finalists will also get a tour of the Materials Recycling Facility at Lower Compton. The judges will come from Hills and Wiltshire Council. People have until Friday September 30 to submit their entries.
In 1996 the then Wiltshire County Council signed an agreement with Hills Waste Solutions to handle its municipal waste. Hills initially took responsibility for household recycling centres and later for kerbside collections.
It took until 2007 for the first 500,000 tonnes to be diverted from landfill. However recycling facilities have expanded hugely to meet the appetite by people in Wiltshire to recycle. The aim is to always appropriately dispose of the waste collected sending as much as possible for recycling rather than landfill.
It has taken only four further years to reach the magic one million mark.
Mike Webster, group director – Waste Solutions, said: “Since the local authority contract in Wiltshire began we’ve seen improvements year on year.
“Residents now have far more options when it comes to recycling and we divert ever more away from landfill and in to reuse.
“We’re proud of the part we have played in making Wiltshire a greener place to live and work.”
