Oil's well that ends well in Warwickshire

Warwickshire residents are being urged to do something good for the environment and help reduce weighty water bills by recycling their used cooking oil.

An estimated £15 million per year is spent on cleaning blockages caused by 'fatbergs' - large masses of fat and grease that build up through disposal of used cooking oil down drains. If sent to landfill, oils often leak, polluting local watercourses and harming wildlife.

But thanks to a scheme run by Warwickshire County Council, residents are able to recycle their waste oil at specially placed tanks, located at six of the county's household waste recycling centres (Cherry Orchard in Kenilworth, Stockton, Bruton Farm in Stratford, Princes Drive in Leamington Spa, Hunters Lane in Rugby and Judkins in Nuneaton). All oil collected is recovered through a completely natural process into renewable electricity for UK homes and businesses.

Rob Murphy, Operations Director of the company that recovers the oil, Living Fuels, said of the scheme: "We're really proud to be working within Warwickshire, helping residents to turn a sticky, messy waste into something that benefits the environment and provides power to the National Grid."

Just one litre of recovered cooking oil can create enough energy to produce 240 cups of tea and one full tank can power the average home for a year. In 2012 alone, Warwickshire residents recycled over 7,100 litres of used cooking oil which created enough green energy to make almost two million cups of tea.

Glenn Fleet, Warwickshire County Council's Head of Waste Management, said: "Residents can do something good for the environment and help reduce weighty water bills by recycling their used cooking oil at most of our household waste recycling centres. The 'fatbergs' that are created in the drains cost the industry a fortune to clear, and the customers ultimately have to foot the bill."

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