When you hear the word ‘landfill’, you probably don’t think of a place where nature is thriving. But you might be in for a surprise. In Greater Manchester, we saw the potential in these spaces and have made it our mission to make room for nature at our waste and recycling sites.
Creating homes for insects
Our Sustainability Champions are always on the lookout for spaces to give back to nature. We’re on a mission to install planters, bug hotels or wildflowers at all 20 recycling centres in Greater Manchester. Many already boast habitats for critters.
85,000 honey bees call recycling centres home after we created hives at two sites. The bees work hard pollinating local plants which keeps the cycle of life turning. A by-product of their hard work is delicious local honey. This liquid gold sells out incredibly quickly, but if you’re lucky you might be able to find a jar in our Renew shops.
Closing the loop on food
Did you know all the food and garden waste you recycle at home is turned into compost in the North West? Because it’s made up of food scraps the compost is packed with microorganisms and nutrients which help enrich the soil it’s added to. Most of the compost is used to grow wheat on farms close by, which gets turned into bread. Producing food locally means it doesn’t need to be transported on fuel-guzzling planes, ships and trains so has a much smaller environmental impact.
The Recycle for Greater Manchester Community Fund is a pot of money awarded to amazing local projects. Some of the projects have a direct impact on improving biodiversity, like Caritas Dioceses of Salford who transform leftover school dinners into nutrient rich compost. The compost is then used to grow more food on their allotments which is given to people in the local community who struggle to access fresh food.
Turning ex-landfills into forests
Waste management has changed. Nowadays, very little waste from households in Greater Manchester goes to landfill sites. These sites were closed and covered with topsoil decades ago. Although the unruly weeds and grass that started growing on top did offer some protection to natural wildlife like insects, we knew much more could be done to encourage biodiversity in these spaces. We’ve transformed two landfill sites that have been out of use for over 40 years into forests where nature can thrive.
In Spring 2024, City of Trees planted over 750 trees at the sites in Rochdale and Stockport. All the plants introduced are native species and have been carefully curated to harmoniously coexist whilst attracting a broad mix of mammals, birds, and insects.
These new forests will join up with existing woodlands around the sites to create nature corridors for animals to move through and live in. The ex-landfill sites are already home to a wide variety of wildlife including rabbits, roe deer and foxes, with water voles, bats and a huge variety of bird species living in the woodlands close by.
As well as creating a welcoming habitat for animals, the new forests are already starting to absorb CO2. This is a positive step towards achieving our bold ambition to decarbonise waste and recycling sites. The decarbonation project is part of the Five Year Environment Plan which is striving for a carbon neutral city region by 2038.
Why is biodiversity so important?
Biodiversity impacts everything we need to survive. Microorganisms enrich the soil where we grow our food. Roots from trees and plants hold the earth together preventing landslides and absorb water to avoid floods. Even the air you’re breathing right now has been improved by plants filtering the toxins out.
A recent report into the State of Nature analysed our local environment and found a shocking decline in biodiversity. Nearly half of biodiversity in the UK has been wiped out since the industrial revolution. More pollution, more buildings, more humans, meant less space for nature.
Things are so severe the UK is ranked in the worst 10% of all countries for biodiversity. Which isn’t hard to believe as 1 in 4 mammals in the UK are facing extinction.
The Government has made a commitment to stop the loss of biodiversity by 2030. It will also protect 30% of land to support nature’s recovery. The GMCA is working on a Biodiversity Action Plan that’ll set out how we’ll contribute to the national biodiversity commitments.
The good news is we are already working to improve biodiversity in our city-region. Small actions, just like small creatures, can make a big difference. We’re continuing to protect and encourage biodiversity at the 22 waste and recycling sites in Greater Manchester, whilst providing support and funding for projects that nurture nature in our city region.
