25 - Compost contest keeps growing

Dudley residents could win £50 in garden vouchers with a competition encouraging people across the Black Country to compost.

All Dudley residents who order a composting bin during Compost Awareness Week, which runs from Sunday 4 May, will be entered into the free prize draw.

The competition is being organised by WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme) to celebrate the eighth annual Compost Awareness Week and is part of the national Recycle Now campaign.

Lots of things are suitable for home composting from the obvious fruit and vegetable peelings to the less obvious items like cardboard and shredded paper. Composted waste breaks down naturally to produce a fertiliser, which can be used to keep plants and gardens looking green. It can also help soil retain its moisture, which is good news during the hot summer months.

Chris Jenkins, Dudley Council’s waste minimisation and education officer, said:

“Dudley Council is committed to composting and Composting Awareness Week is a great way to promote the benefits.

“It’s easy and can make a huge difference to the amount of waste we produce.”

Chris will be available to give advice and hand out information at the Cornbow Centre in Halesowen on Tuesday 6 May from 10am to 3pm and at Burnt tree Island’s Tesco on Friday 9 May from 11am to 3pm.

Subsidised bins for 2008 cost £17 for a 220-litre bin and £20 for a 330-litre bin. To order yours visit www.recyclenow.com/compost or call 0845 077 0757 and quote reference HCA2.

Note to Editors

Top tips for home composting

· Make sure your compost bin has a good spot, ideally in the sun and on bare soil. If you do put

it on concrete, tarmac or patio slabs, ensure there’s a layer of soil or existing compost on

the bottom.

· There’s no need to throw away all your kitchen waste – a third of it can be composted.

· Make sure you have a good balance of green waste (vegetable peelings and grass cuttings) and

brown waste (scrunched up cardboard, egg boxes).

· Be patient. It takes at least 12 to 18 months before your compost will be ready.

· A few handfuls of finished compost can be used to activate a new mixture.

· When it’s turned into a crumbly, dark material, resembling thick, moist soil with an earthy fresh

smell it’s ready to use.

· Scoop it out with a garden fork or spade.

· Transform your garden, using your homemade compost in pots, borders or to enrich vegetable

plots.

Notes to editors

Recycle Now is the multi-media national recycling campaign, implemented and managed by WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme) on behalf of the government. The aim of the campaign is to encourage more people to recycle, more often.

WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme) is a major UK programme established to promote resource efficiency. It is funded by DEFRA, the government department for environment, food and rural affairs. Its focus is to create a stable and efficient market for recycled materials and products and to remove the barriers of waste minimisation and recycling.

For more information about WRAP go to www.wrap.org.uk or to find out more about the Recycle Now campaign go to www.recyclenow.com.

News Release Contact Information

Name:	Kate Arnold
Telephone:	01384 814778

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