Our Sustainable Development Department has secured funding from WRAP (Waste and Resource Action Plan) to manage one of ten new Master Composter programmes in Scotland.

The programme will encourage, advise and educate people in Glasgow about all aspects of home composting.  This forms a vital part of the Waste Aware Scotland ‘Compost at Home’ campaign - which has so far distributed nearly 200,000 compost bins to homes across Scotland.

Local Master Composter volunteers are being recruited and trained to advise and help individuals and community groups establish a home composting regime and ultimately help divert biodegradable and organic materials from landfill.  Volunteers will be supported throughout the entire process, giving them the understanding and the confidence to go into their local community and encourage as many people as possible to give home composting a try.  Home composting gives householders a chance to manage this waste in a more sustainable manner and make their own fertile compost.

Volunteering to be a Master Composter is open to anyone form age 16 upwards, and you do not any experience in composting as all training and support will be supplied. The volunteers offer local residents free advice and support including running workshops, speaking at local meetings or helping people on an individual basis. Volunteering is a great way to gain an understanding about the issues surrounding waste and recycling and acts as a key opportunity to meet, help and advise people in your local area. It is also great experience for anyone interested in a career in the environmental field.

This new programme complements all of the other projects managed by our Sustainable Development Department, in particular Getting Glasgow Waste Wise, our new waste prevention project for 2008.

This project falls in line with the Scottish Government’s recycling and composting targets that are set at 40% by 2020.  Many people today are still unaware of the need to recycle and compost in order to conserve valuable resources and reduce our impact on the environment. Home composting is a just one of the simple steps people can take to do this.

More information on the programme can be found at www.crns.org.uk/index/master-composter

If you are interested in becoming a Master Composter volunteer or would like more information on the project, please contact Brian Dillon on 0141 314 1450 (ext 3062) or email mastercomposter@thewisegroup.co.uk.

The project has been developed in partnership with CRNS (Community Recycling Network for Scotland).