Worms go to school!
Schemes to recycle TVs and cut food waste in schools by introducing wormeries are among a host of projects awarded community funding by Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority.
Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority (MWDA) and its contractor Veolia Environmental Services have awarded a total of £20,000 to community groups after receiving dozens of applications from recycling projects.
The aim of the funding is to support community and non-for-profit organisations and encourage them to get involved in local projects that can help the environment. Groups were able to bid for grants of up to £5000.
The funding was awarded to the following:
Black Box Creative Communities
Bulky Bob’s Ltd
Eco Glass
Live Wirral Wardens
North Birkenhead Development Trust
Councillor Kevin Cluskey, Chairperson of MWDA, said: “We were inundated by groups looking to obtain funding. The successful applications had many things in common, such as enthusiasm for making a difference to their communities, unique ideas to help the environment, and a professional manner in putting the application together.”
Projects were encouraged to include one or more of the following:
reduce the amount of waste generated and sent to landfill
increase re-use of materials
increase recycling
address carbon benefits
Alex Paterson, General Manager for Veolia, said: “We are more than happy to provide funding in conjunction with MWDA for local organisations who are actively aiding us in promoting the message of recycling and reducing waste within the North West.’
Carl Beer, Director of MWDA, said: “Many groups on Merseyside are doing a lot of encouraging work when it comes to recycling and waste reduction. Hopefully this funding will provide some help to the selected groups and the region as a whole.”
Previous years’ funding has included a youth arts club creating artwork from recycled glass, equipment being purchased for testing and re-using old electrical items and community events that raise awareness to sustainable waste management issues.
This year’s project details include:
Bulky Bob’s Ltd - maximising the reuse and recycling potential of previously unwanted televisions and computer monitors.
Black Box Creative Communities - school workshops and performances around the three R's (Reduce, Re-use and Recycle).
North Birkenhead Development Trust - Waste Not Want Not workshops. Activities including re-use workshops and an end-of-week recycling fashion show and accompanying DVD.
Eco Glass - a creative glass re-use project including workshops for local people.
Live Wirral Wardens - reducing food waste through the promotion of vermi-composting (wormeries) in schools.
Black Box, a Liverpool-based creative and performing arts business, will be exploring schools’ capacity to reduce, re-use and recycle with a series of linked performances and workshops in seven primary schools across Merseyside.
“We are delighted to be working with MWDA” said Black Box Artistic Director Ian Moore. “The project, called, quite simply, ‘Rubbish!?’ aims to tackle the general ignorance of environmental issues with adults and children as well as encourage behavioural changes in attitude toward waste disposal, re-use and recycling through performing and creative Arts.”
