Counting cost of ‘legacy of landfill’

Aberdeen City Council has completed a four-year operation to clean up a major landfill site in what is believed to be the single largest project of its kind in Scotland.

The £16million environmental scheme has re- stored the former Ness facility, where an estimated three million tonnes of waste was dumped over a 30-year period.

Theworkwascarried out by recycling company Sita UK, which was appointed by the council to prevent the site from becoming an environmental hazard.

The Ness landfill is on the southern outskirts of the city and occupies a for- mer sand and gravel quarry.

Capping the site has also controlled the escape of landfill gas.

Waste management bosses at the city council said the gas was now being collected to determine whether it could be used to generate electricity.

Neil Cooney, convener of housing and environment at the city council, said: “Aberdeen City Council has had to commit significant funds to address the legacy of landfill.

“Leaving unknown environmental legacies for future generations should be a thing of the past.

“We urge everyone to play their part by recycling where they can.” Grampian Transport Museum has been awarded full accredited status under a new national standards scheme.

The Alford museum was one of the first in Scotland to gain the Museums Registration status in the 1980s.

It has now achieved accreditation which takes key areas of assessment into account – performance, profile, people, partnerships, planning and patronage.

Curator Mike Ward said: “Being accredited gives us certain advantages, the best of which is access to the Distributed National Collection. In other words we can invariably bring to Aberdeenshire wonderful items from the reserve collections of other accredited museums.”

Councillor Neil Cooney: ‘committed funds’