A TRIAL to recycle green waste from County Durham households starts next month thanks to £117,000 in funding.

The donation by County Durham Environmental Trust (Cdent) will enable 3,000 homes in Durham to receive plastic wheeled bins and 6,000 in Newton Aycliffe to be issued with biodegradable bags for recycling garden waste as compost.

During the 12-month trial, both schemes will be monitored to determine the number of people taking part, the amount of waste collected, the effectiveness of each method and the quality of compost.

The results will be used to help identify the best scheme for the whole of County Durham.

Chairman of Cdent John Wearmouth said: "This trial aims to reduce the amount of waste that is currently going to landfill sites by providing a solution for garden rubbish right on the doorstep."

Green waste will be gathered through kerbside collections.

The results will be analysed by students from Northumbria and Sunderland universities.

Lucy Hovvels, portfolio holder for the environment at Sedgefield Borough Council, said: "Green waste currently accounts for around 20 per cent of domestic waste, so anything we can do to recycle this will have a big impact.