VILLAGERS in Witchford are now recycling a staggering 77 per cent of all their rubbish. Five tonnes of rubbish are now going to landfill each week, compared to 11 tonnes in November last year. The village is now one of the best in Britain for recycling i

VILLAGERS in Witchford are now recycling a staggering 77 per cent of all their rubbish.

Five tonnes of rubbish are now going to landfill each week, compared to 11 tonnes in November last year. The village is now one of the best in Britain for recycling its waste.

Witchford is part of a pilot scheme trailed by East Cambridgeshire District Council with alternate weekly rubbish collections. This means that one week the normal rubbish bag is collected, while the following week villagers put out a bag for garden and food waste as well as a black box for bottles, cans and paper.

To help others in the district understand the importance of reducing the waste they send to landfill sites, recycling experts from Cambridgeshire County Council will be visiting Ely this week.

Today (Thursday), the Beyond Recycling road show will be at Tesco, Angel Drove and on Friday at Ely Market Square handing out useful tips to promote recycling.

Gerald Tickner, waste strategy officer for East Cambridgeshire District Council, said: "The levels of recycling in Witchford are simply amazing. The national average is 27 per cent, so to be recycling 77 per cent of their rubbish is fantastic and a massive achievement for the residents of the village. They have begun to manage their waste effectively through the bag system and the alternative week collection to drastically reduce the rubbish collected by our refuse lorries.

"Reducing the amount of rubbish we all send to landfill is vital if we are to safeguard the future of our environment. The Beyond Recycling road show which we run in conjunction with Cambridgeshire County Council, will help explain how you can take simple measures to recycle what was once thought useless rubbish. We all must meet the challenge of conserving our precious resources, so by working together and doing our bit we can make a difference.