Council is offering a free bag of compost for all this weekend

Lisburn City Council is celebrating ‘National Compost Week’ which runs from May 5-11 by also offering home composters for £5 each, to each of its residents.

The compost bags will be given out in a fist come first served basis when they recycle at Drumlough or The Cutts.

Councillor Jenny Palmer, Chairman of the Council’s Environmental Services Committee, said: “Over recent months the Council has been actively promoting its brown bin recycling scheme and to date it has been a tremendous success citywide.

“Annually the Council promotes National Compost Week; and this year it is delighted to offer home composters to residents at a bargain price of £5.

“I would encourage as many residents as possible, in particular those with flower beds, to consider availing of this offer as about 30% of household waste can be turned into compost.

“Composting makes sense for both the environment and your pocket as it returns vital organic matter and nutrients to the soil and it reduces the amount of landfill waste, therefore, reducing the production of harmful pollutants and greenhouse gases.”

In the past year through the brown bin scheme nearly 10,000 tonnes of waste was diverted from landfill saving over £350,000 to the ratepayers compared to the cost of this material being landfilled.

Mrs Palmer said that she would encourage all residents to consider their household waste and identify methods for reducing and reusing it as well as continuing to recycle.

“The Council is looking forward to providing local households with a free bag of compost.,” she said.

“The bags are branded to say the compost comes from brown bin material collected in your local area so the Council hopes this will also encourage people to use their brown bins at home.

“During this week, the Council will also be providing bags of compost to the local schools that are part of its Zero Food Waste initiative.”

The arc21 Education bus will be at Dobbies garden centre on Thursday May 8 with officers from the Council’s Waste Management Unit on site to discuss composting needs between 10am and 4pm.

“We will have some seeds to giveaway and residents will have the opportunity to enter a draw on the day to win a £50 voucher to spend at Dobbies,” said Mrs Palmer.

For more information on recycling, waste management or to get a free kitchen caddy starter kit please call Lisburn’s Recycling Hotline on 028 9250 9453 or log onto www.lisburncity.gov.uk