AN environmental trust which has distributed millions of pounds to hundreds of green projects is to fold, The Northern Echo has learnt.

The County Durham Environmental Trust (Cdent), which since 1997 has donated £14m to more than 300 ecoschemes, stopped receiving money in March, closed to new applications in July and will fold within six months.

Its closure comes after its income, from Premier Waste Management landfill tax payments, fell from more than £1m a year to just over £300,000. That prompted its board to conclude that its operation, separate from other grant-giving bodies, could not be justified and voted itself out of existence.

John Wearmouth, Cdent’s long-serving chairman, said: “The board has taken the view the money is not sufficient to have a specialist organisation such as Cdent. We have come to the end of our natural life.”

Mr Wearmouth stressed the move was not due to public spending cuts but a reduction in landfill tax income caused by increased recycling and other eco-friendly efforts.

Among Cdent’s most notable projects are: the “five villages”

paths network around Coxhoe, tree planting around St Bede’s waste disposal site, in Birtley, the creation of Brandon community garden, work at Horden park and the development of railway paths.

Mr Wearmouth said: “I’m delighted we’ve been able to encourage many initiatives where people have said Cdent funding was instrumental.

“It’s an excellent national scheme and it’s important it continues. Even though the amount is reducing, there are significant amounts still to spend.

“Cdent has done a significant job with the significant amounts of money available, but we feel that the smaller amount now available is better handled with other sources of funding.”

All Cdent-funded projects will be inspected to ensure compliance, ahead of them being signed off.

In future, the money will be handled by the County Durham Community Foundation (CDCF), under the Premier Waste Landfill Fund.

CDCF handles about 140 funds.

Christina Rackley, its head of grants and donor development, said: “It’s very sad that Cdent is closing but we’ve been running landfill funds for many years, so we are experienced, and we know the local area.”

For more information, visit cdcf.org.uk or entrust.org.uk