GLASGOW RESTAURANTS are amongst businesses in Scotland who are joining forces to recycle more and save on costs.
The projects are being showcased by the Scottish Government after a landmark step towards creating a zero waste society in Scotland was taken yesterday, when new Waste (Scotland) Regulations were passed by the Scottish Parliament.
The new Regulations will require all businesses to separate paper and card, plastic, metal and glass for recycling by January 2014. Businesses that produce more than 5kg of food waste per week will also need to separate this for collection.
Householders are also set to see changes as a result of the regulations as councils will increase kerbside services to include separate collections for paper and card, plastic, metal, glass and, with the exception of rural areas, food too.
To support the changes required by the regulations, Zero Waste Scotland will be investing £8 million in councils and commercial waste management firms this year, including £5 million to support the roll-out of new food waste collections and £750,000 to help increase the availability of collection services to Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs.)
Zero Waste Scotland is also supporting collaborative approaches to recycling collections, designed to make it easier and cheaper for SMEs to recycle by working together. In Glasgow, the Glasgow Restaurant Association is taking forward plans to bring its 84 members together to recycle food waste at reduced cost. Pilot projects are underway in Bathgate, Falkirk, Clackmannanshire, Alloa, and Dumfries and Galloway. If successful, businesses could save up to 70% on waste management fees per year.
Iain Gulland, Zero Waste Scotland director, said the Regulations are about unlocking economic opportunity for Scotland. Our waste is a valuable resource we can no longer afford to ignore. The potential to save money, create jobs, and grow Scotlands recycling and reprocessing industry is huge. By taking simple steps to reduce waste, Scottish businesses could save an estimated £2 billion.
Last year, Zero Waste Scotland provided £4 million to councils and businesses to help with the start-up costs for food waste collections, and this year it will invest a further £5 million in this activity.
