A shopping centre has shown the value of recycling with a programme to save cardboard and paper from landfill.

The Prince Bishops Shopping Centre, in Durham city centre, carried out an audit that discovered it was saving the equivalent of 1,360 trees a year - 80 tonnes of tree-based material.

Richard Toynbee, Prince Bishops Shopping Centre manager, said: "The amount of paper and cardboard that comes with our shops' packaging is quite substantial and we try to do our bit for the planet by offering the retailers a waste compactor that they can use to recycle it all.

"We encourage our retailers to separate out the cardboard and paper from the non-recyclable material so that we can help to save on landfill space, which is damaging to the environment."

For every tonne of paper recycled, 17 trees are saved, as well as three cubic yards of UK landfill space.

It is the kind of campaign advocated by Wrap, the national Waste and Resources Action Programme.

Sarah Dunn, media relations officer, said: "More and more organisations are joining the recycling revolution and realising the importance of adopting a more sustainable approach, but there is still a long way to go.

"The initiative taken by Prince Bishops demonstrates the benefits that adopting green policies can bring."

For advice on recycling and recycled products, visit www.recyclenow.com

Published: 09/05/2006