Give it a Grow during Compost Awareness Week

‘Give it a Grow’ is the message being put out by The Highland Council to mark the tenth annual Compost Awareness Week, which runs from 2-8 May 2010. This year Zero Waste Scotland and The Highland Council are encouraging us all to try our hand at new composting activities in order to do our bit for the environment.

Although around thirty percent of us already compost at home, there are lots more things we can all try. For example, around sixty percent of people say they have never tried composting general household waste, such as scrunched up paper or the contents from a vacuum cleaner, and around fifty percent of people have never tried using peat-free compost.

The Highland Councils Waste Awareness Assistants will be on hand across The Highlands at the following locations to provide handy tips on how to compost. Free packets of salad leaf seeds will be available for residents to take away and get growing (but only while stocks last).

The Highland Council’s Chairman of TEC Services, Councillor John Laing said: “This Compost Awareness Week we are encouraging everyone to give composting a go. Even those of us who are already composting at home could compost more things more often, or try new things, such as greener, peat free composts. However you choose to get involved, there are plenty of new things you can try, which will not only help the environment but also help your garden grow greener.”

Here are just some of the things we could all try this Compost Awareness Week.

There is often a belief that waste such as vegetable peelings or garden waste is harmless, but in a landfill tip they cause powerful greenhouse gases to be released into the atmosphere. Home composting is a simple alternative that anyone can manage if they have a garden or allotment – or even a patio or outside space.