SINCE the environmental agenda reached the mainstream of politics, councils have been given recycling targets and have to record their waste tonnage and implement actions to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill.

Part of our Go Green campaign will be looking into what has been achieved, or not, by local authorities and asking them how their environmental agenda will be developed during the next 10 to 20 years.

But the major aim of Go Green Woking is to explore what little differences we can all make to our lives that will reduce the amount of waste we produce, recycle more of the waste that is produced and recover more of what can be recycled. We will look at all aspects of the environment — from the state of litter in Woking Park to ways for residents to generate their own electricity.

1. Waste Reduction

Households in Woking, Runnymede and Surrey Heath produced almost 90,000 tonnes of waste last year, the vast majority of which ended up as landfill.

The amount of waste we produce continues to snowball. Now is the time to stop and think about what we buy and how much waste it creates.

Aim One of our Go Green campaign is to halt the continual increase in the waste we all bag up each week.

2. Recycling

The amount of waste householders in Woking recycle has jumped from 30 to 40% in the past year — among the higher figures in the country against a government target of 30%.

But around 12% of this 40% is composted waste, with only around a quarter of household waste — the plastics, paper and cans we all throw away — being recyclable and recycled

In Surrey Heath, the overall figure for recycling is just above the government’s target of 30%, with Runnymede lagging behind at18%.

The News and Mail believes that both Woking and Surrey Heath should aspire to 45% recycling figure in 2007/8 and Runnymede should be aiming at 30%.

Information is scant on recycling in the business sector as it does not benefit from council-run recycling schemes in any of the boroughs but the campaign will aim to promote responsible practices. That includes taking a long, hard look at ourselves.

3. Energy Saving

Not leaving the lights on at night, cutting out unnecessary car journeys, reducing the amount we fly, and making sure our homes are properly insulated are some of the ways we can reduce the energy we use.

By making small changes we can help achieve the cuts the experts say are needed.

The government’s climate change bill aims at a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions of 60% by 2050 compared to 1990 but environmental groups say a cut of 80% is needed. Equally important is the conservation of water. In Woking, we believe that an annual reduction of 3% in energy use is a realistic Aim Three.