Greening the Royal Norfolk Show

Recycling is set to become one of the big themes of this years’ Royal Norfolk Show.

South Norfolk Council, and the Norfolk Waste Partnership are joining forces to make it a Green show with seven recycling points cross the showground, run and managed by school students.

And on Wednesday, BBC TV’s Changing Rooms guru Oliver Heath, a furniture recycling expert, will be on hand to give advice to visitors.

The school students will be helping visitors put the right waste in the right bins and at the same time practicing some role reversal, with adults learning from young people about the importance of recycling.

In all, 80 students, aged from 11 upwards, will be staffing the recycling points. They are from Cliff Park High School, Gorleston, Neathered Community High School, Dereham, Wayland High School, Watton and Costessey High School.

Each recycling point will feature art and sculpture put together by the students to illustrate the importance of recycling. Visitors will be able to spin the recycling wheel of fortune and look at a model home made out of recycling materials.

And all the time, a South Norfolk Council waste lorry will be touring the show picking up the recycling material that is being collected by the students.

South Norfolk Council Environment Officer Natasha Ingram, who will be at the show said:

“We will be taking recycling pledges, giving out waste reduction packs and other goodies to people who can guess the number of cans in a bale of crushed cans waiting to be recycled.

“There will also be a composting area and a real nappy promotion as well as lots of advice on what can and can’t be recycled.”

Councillor Philip Waltham, who leads for South Norfolk Council on Safeguarding the Environment and will also attend the show said:

“There’s no better place to hammer home the messages of recycling in a fun way than at one of Norfolk’s most popular and well known events.

"The children from these schools across the county, and the School’s waste Action Club deserve the support of everyone for the effort they are making to bring the message of recycling to every corner of our county.

”This kind of work is vital if we are to win the hearts and minds of Norfolk residents, and push our recycling rates up even higher than they are now.”

South Norfolk Council officers will be at the Norfolk Waste Partnership stand number 231.

They will also be promoting other key environmental issues on the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health stand, including summer noise pollution, using a CD to illustrate how barking dogs and loud music can disturb everyone’s peace.

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