THE man from the ministry saw at first hand the drive to recycle during visits to two waste plants in the North-East this week.

Senior Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) official Tim Judson visited two facilities which are helping to eat into the waste mountain in County Durham.

Both sites are said to be making a significant contribution to the increase in the amount of rubbish recycled and composted in the county, which rose from ten per cent in March to 15 per cent by the end of June.

Durham County Council and its waste company, Premier Waste Management, played host to Mr Judson's visit.

It began at the household waste recycling centre at Potterhouse Lane, Pity Me, on the outskirts of Durham.

Potterhouse Lane is one of ten sites in the county where the public can recycle a range of waste materials.

All ten have undergone a recent upgrade, both in terms of increased recycling availability and on-site customer service.

The improvement was funded by a grant from Defra's Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund.

As much as 85 per cent of the material arriving at some household waste recycling centres is now being recycled.

From Pity Me, Mr Judson moved on to view the aerobic digester at the Thornley Waste Transfer Station, near Shotton Colliery, in east Durham.

The digester converts ordinary household waste into a soil conditioner and other recyclables, such as ferrous and non-ferrous materials.

Durham County Council member with responsibility for waste management, Councillor Brian Myers, believes the Defra official left pleased at what he saw.

"We know that Mr Judson and the Government will be impressed that we are making great strides in achieving the challenging recycling and composting targets being set by the Government and the EU."

Coun Myers believes Durham is now at the "leading edge" of waste management in the country and was delighted that the county's efforts attracted such interest.