A waste partnership has scooped a top accolade at a national awards ceremony for helping to cut household waste levels on Merseyside and Halton.
The Merseyside and Halton Waste Partnership, which consists of Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority and Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral councils, picked up the prize at the LARAC (Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee) Celebration Awards 2013.
The first placed award came in the ‘Best Waste Minimisation or Prevention Project’ – runners up were North London Waste Authority and Hertfordshire County Council. The local Partnership project prioritised the reduction of food waste, clothes and textiles re-use, the prevention of junk mail and promoted home composting.
The campaign reached 1.5million residents through a combination of newspaper, magazine and radio advertising, attendance at local festivals and events to give out information and advice, press and media releases, website provision through http://www.recycleformerseysideandhalton.com/, provision of ‘No Junk Mail’ stickers, and waste prevention information messages on the sides of bin collection vehicles throughout the region.
The judges felt the project “demonstrated clear savings for the councils involved with an impressive tonnage of material collected across Merseyside.”
This is waste that is no longer going to landfill, with a reduction of more than 16,000 tonnes less of household waste being generated in the city region.
Carl Beer, Chief Executive of Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority, said: “It’s great to have our work recognised on a national level, and to be the best of the best is a real testament to the effort that has gone into the project. Waste prevention isn’t the easiest thing to promote, but it is just as important as recycling, so we will continue to put our messages out there and try to help the Merseyside and Halton public cut waste and save money.”
