The North Yorkshire Rotters, founded in 2006, have spent two decades encouraging residents to compost at home, reduce waste, reuse items, and recycle.
The group delivers free talks, workshops, and demonstrations to schools, community groups, and the public, with a strong focus on practical support for home composting.
Cllr Richard Foster, North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for managing our environment, said: “It has been an honour to celebrate the achievements of our dedicated and passionate volunteers.
“For 20 years, the North Yorkshire Rotters have given up their time to inspire communities to make easy and sustainable changes to reduce waste and protect our environment.
“I want to thank them all on behalf of the council and the residents they are supporting.”
In addition to composting, the Rotters share advice on minimising food waste through the national Love Food Hate Waste campaign.
A celebration event was held at County Hall in Northallerton to mark the milestone, where long-serving volunteers were presented with special badges and certificates.
Cllr Foster encouraged others to get involved with the group.
He said: “Volunteering is a great way to make a real difference to where you live, learn new skills, and meet like-minded people.
“You do not need to be an expert composter or have any voluntary or community group experience, with training and ongoing support provided and all expenses paid.”
The volunteers support North Yorkshire Council’s Beyond Carbon programme by engaging with schools, community groups and members of the public across the county to reduce the impact of climate change.
The programme is committed to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, with the aspiration for North Yorkshire Council to become net carbon neutral.
Volunteers work directly with schools and community groups.
Since 2019, the group has contributed around 8,800 volunteer hours, helping to prevent almost 3,700 tonnes of waste, prevent 2,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, and save the council more than £462,000.
Pauline Percival, one of just two volunteers that have been with the programme since it started in 2006, said: “To me, volunteering with the North Yorkshire Rotters is all about meeting people.
“If you’re interested in talking to people about a variety of subjects including food waste, composting, and climate change then let us know.”
Anyone interested in volunteering with the Rotters or booking them for an event can visit www.nyrotters.co.uk or email nyrotters@northyorks.gov.uk.
