Devon thanks super recyclers at special ceremony
Devon's super recyclers have been recognised in a special ceremony (held on Thursday 31 Jan) to thank them for their hard work in helping to protect Devon's environment.
This was the first year of the Recycle Devon Thank You awards which mark the 10 year anniversary of the Don't Let Devon go to waste campaign.
Devon enjoys a recycling rate of 55% (2011/12) making it one of the highest recycling counties in the country. To celebrate and thank the residents of Devon, Recycle Devon hosted the special event.
Chairman of the Devon Authorities Waste Reduction and Recycling Committee, Councillor Mike Walters says; "The Recycle Devon Thank You awards were created to recognise the unsung recycling heroes across the county. We wanted to say a special Thank You for everything that they do to ensure that Devon does not go to waste. You have not let us down and we have been truly amazed at the enthusiasm and unselfish efforts, usually on a voluntary basis, that you all go to reduce, reuse and recycle. On behalf of the Devon Authorities Waste Reduction and Recycling Committee and personally, I would like to say thank you to you all. You are all Winners!"
Heart Radio's Matt and Caroline from the breakfast show presented the awards.
There were seven categories which people could be nominated for:
• Your Recycling Hero (Friend, Family Member, Neighbour or Local Recycling Champion)
• School Recycling Hero (Child)
• School Recycling Hero (Adult)
• Community Group Recycling Hero
• Collection Crew/Operative (Recycling, Garden, Food or Refuse Collector(s))
• Street Cleansers
• Recycling Centre Operative/Site staff
And the winners are...
School Recycling Hero (Child) Joint Winners
Kieran Fellows, Clawton Primary School
Kieran has been described as an 8-year-old with a real passion for recycling. He implemented a composting system at his School in Clawton, facilitates all kinds of recycling from paper to printer cartridges and even helped to build a recycling centre at the School. Kieran also reuses old materials to make new things like milk bottle bird feeders and old shoe flower pots and even goes as far as fishing recyclables out of the ordinary bins (often put there by forgetful teachers!).
Eloise Warren, Holsworthy Primary School
From a young age, Eloise has taken a full and active role in all the school's recycling policies. This year she has taken on the role of Chief Composter, which involves taking responsibility for collections from the bins around school and imparting knowledge and understanding to the smaller children. Not only was she a key member in helping the school to acquire its Green Flag status but she often uses her own initiative and is currently working with a local Councillor to arrange for the placement of recycling bins in her local area.
School Recycling Hero (Adult) Winner
Fran Rickwood, Teaching Assistant Okehampton Primary School
Frances works tirelessly for Okehampton Primary School often in her own time, obtaining grants or working on recycling projects. She encourages both pupils and staff to recycle everything. She was the driving force behind the School achieving a Green Flag award and has set up facilities for the children to grow vegetables for use in the School.
Collection Crew/Operative (Recycling, Garden, Food or Refuse Collector(s) Winner
Alan Keen, Organic Garden and Kitchen Waste collector in Torridge
Alan has been collecting mainly organic waste for Torridge District Council for 16 years. He is well known in the community for his enthusiasm to assist and help everyone. Alan always assists the elderly or struggling customers at the weekends in tidying gardens and subsequently filling green wheelie bins for his collection round during the week. If he is on holiday his customers wonder where he is because they bake cakes for him and his colleagues. Alan also works voluntarily for Margaret’s Church in Bideford and has raised funds for CLIC.
Street Cleansers Winner
Eboney Forward, Umberleigh
Being a street cleaner really is a thankless task but being a volunteer street cleaner to help your local community really does go beyond the realms of being a good neighbour. Yet that is exactly what Eboney does. She is always out cleaning the lanes and streets of litter. This is particularly appreciated by local equestrians because it can scare the horses if they see rubbish on the floor. She has been described as brilliant.
Recycling Centre Operative/Site staff Winner
Groundwork Trust, Weston Mill Recycling Centre, Plymouth
The Groundwork staff at Weston Mill are always really helpful when assisting members of the public either with unloading their items for recycling or by giving advise to help with future visits to the site. Their enthusiasm and fantastic customer service has made visiting the site a pleasure and has even converted a member of the public to become a “brilliant recycler” thanks to the enthusiasm and customer service received on their first visit
Your Recycling Hero (Friend, Family Member, Neighbour or Local Recycling Champion) Winner:
Karen Berger, Honiton
Karen is the driving force and inspiration behind the Waste Not Want Not days in Honiton. She has given her time and energy endlessly to create a real ethos of reuse in the town. With help from her volunteers, hundreds if not thousands of items have been saved from landfill and provide a welcome resource for people who may be struggling with the current financial times. In addition to this Karen has kindly shared her experience with others so that other towns and villages in Devon can benefit from the knowledge gained and lessons learnt.
Community Group Recycling Hero Winner
John Parker and the Hele Composting Group
John heads up the composting centre in Hele and has done for the last 9 years. He gets his hands dirty by filling and turning bins and sieving green waste to produce compost. On average John generates 40 tonnes of compost and shredded waste a year. The compost is then sold locally and the money generated by this (over £20,000) is used to support local community groups. John also offers a free delivery service to the elderly and educates people about recycling and composting at the annual Composting Centre Open Day. When he is not composting, John can be found putting the compost to good use in the local area by tree planting and maintaining the flower tubs.
Overall Recycling Hero for Devon Winner
Karen Berger
Shortlisted candidates from each category and winners all received a recycled glass trophy with a special trophy for the overall winner.
Photos of the winners will be posted soon.
