Southall businesses are being given the opportunity to turn their used cooking oil into an environmentally friendly fuel with the help of Ealing Council.

A three-month trial, the first of its kind to be organised by a London borough, will start this week. Ealing Council has teamed up with local environmental charities and a waste oil disposal company to encourage businesses to turn unwanted oil into biodiesel, for free.

The pilot scheme is being supported by the Ealing Business Environmental Support and Training initiative (BEST), a partnership launched by the Council with Groundwork West London and Envirowise. BEST has written to 100 businesses to encourage them to sign up to the pilot and have their waste oil taken away for free.

The oil will be collected by Proper Oils Ltd and will be sent to either Kent or North London for processing to become biodiesel.

The project aim is to reduce the amount of used cooking oil down poured down the drains and alleviate the costs of disposing of or recycling used cooking oil. It will reduce the risk of attracting rats to the area, as food waste acts as a magnet to rodents.

Councillor Will Brooks, Cabinet Member for Environment and Street Services, said: “This service can benefit everyone involved, it’s free and encourages businesses to do their bit for the environment.

“Throwing oil down drains helps block sewers, which can then lead to flooding, and makes waste water treatment more costly.”