At an event hosted by the Community Recycling Network for Scotland (CRNS) in Glasgow, Environment Minister Ross Finnie announced a further £5 million had been made available to fund community groups.

Environment Minister Ross Finnie opened the event by encouraging more community groups to take advantage of £5 million available through the Executive’s INCREASE programme so that more waste is switched from landfill.

“The community sector plays a significant role in reducing, reusing and recycling waste and raising awareness,” he said.

“Many community recycling groups also provide employment and training opportunities for disadvantaged people and provide refurbished goods helping us in our drive to create thriving communities who care for the environment.”

The second round of the Executive’s funding scheme for the community recycling sector recently opened to applications.

£2.5 million per year is available under the INCREASE programme. More details can be found at the intiative’s website at www.increase-programme.org.uk.

In February, edie reported on how Scotland had met its recycling targets for the first time (see related story) but there was still a long way to go to bring the country in line with its European neighbours.

The report on the targets also highlighted that while some waste authorities were doing well others were struggling to move away from the bin-to-landfill culture that has dominated British waste management in previous decades.

It is hoped that the extra funding for the grassroots recycling groups will go some way to addressing the issue.

Recent figures show that community recycling projects divert around 65,000 tonnes of waste from landfill each year as well as employing 734 staff, providing 515 training placements and 2,400 volunteering opportunities.

by Sam Bond

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