An electric ‘green machine’ is now on duty in Bournemouth collecting food waste and cleaning graffiti.
Thanks to Bournemouth Coastal BID and a Covid grant from the council the electric vehicle is improving the environment.
Its operators collect food waste and coffee grounds from hospitality businesses along the BID’s coastal area.
The waste is then emptied into a machine on top of Boscombe’s Sovereign Centre which turns it into top quality compost.
This is then used in community projects to grow plants and vegetables.
The composter on top of the Sovereign Centre
Fiona McArthur, manager of Bournemouth Coastal BID, said: “We were able to secure a ARG3 grant from BCP Council which enabled us to invest in this electric vehicle.
“The green machine has a variety of uses, one being the collection of food waste and coffee grounds from our levy-paying businesses.
“All this waste is put into the composter situated on the top of the Sovereign Centre which in six months turns it into compost.
“The vehicle also has a power hose so staff can clean signage and also remove graffiti.
“It will be on the road across our areas which run from Tuckton and Hengistbury Head to Westbourne.
“Improving the environment is something our levy-payers have asked us to do and this is just one small area of our work.
“Through this scheme Coastal BID businesses are supporting their communities and helping produce vegetables for food banks.”
For more information contact Ed Baker at Deep South Media on 07788392965 or [email protected]
Notes to editors:
The Coastal BID runs from Westbourne to Hengistbury Head. It is one of two BIDs voted through by Bournemouth businesses in April 2012. In this ballot, 73% of those who voted supported the creation of the BID. There are 760 eligible businesses within the Coastal BID area, with a total rateable value of £30 million.
Business Improvement Districts, (BIDs), originated in Canada in the 1980s and quickly spread to the USA.
In January 2004 the Government introduced legislation which created the legal framework for setting up BIDs in Britain. To date over 185 have been established in the UK. They have been credited with halting and reversing the decline in many towns and cities. BIDs last for three or five years. Of the 87 that have come up for renewal, 78 have been voted in for a second term, usually with an increased turnout and majority. BIDs are successful!
BIDs work on simple principles. Businesses decide what projects they wish to undertake to improve the area and their profitability. Every eligible organisation contributes a small percentage of their business rateable value (usually around 1% or 2%). From these many contributions a significant fund is built up which has the power to make a real difference.
Based on a 1.5% levy the Coastal Districts BID generates a core income of c. £466,000. Because of the power of the BID it is possible to attract additional income through voluntary contributions and match funding for key projects etc.
BIDs make places more attractive and exciting to visit, reducing costs to participating businesses, increasing footfall and putting local businesses in control of the additional services which they have funded.