THREE environmental organisations have been awarded National Lottery grants totalling £67,000.

The money comes from the Social, Economic and Environmental Development (Seed) programme, which has awarded £485,500 in grants to innovative environmental projects in the North-East so far.

The £15.3m programme is managed by the Royal Society for Nature Conservation (RSNC).

Teesdale Conservation Volunteers will use £20,600 to fund Rotters, a community composting project.

Schools, residents and volunteers will recycle garden and organic kitchen waste into compost.

The scheme will also provide training and employment for unemployed people.

Project manager Martin Bacon said: "After our initial community composting trials, we realised a commercial shredder was needed to allow us to compost more materials more efficiently.

"Thanks to the Seed programme, we can now recycle more green compost from many more households in Teesdale."

Groundwork West Durham is getting £42,700 to fund the Action for Biodiversity and Community in Derwentside (ABCD) project.

Volunteer project assistant Sarah Young said the project aimed to offer a range of volunteering opportunities to people aimed at increasing understanding of the Durham Biodiversity Action Plan and offering practical skills in the protection and management of the local environment.

She said: "The award from the Seed programme allows this valuable project to run.''

South Stanley Woods Group will use a £3,800 grant to train members to carry out ecological surveys of the woodland. This will enable the group to monitor and develop the woodland and produce a plan for access, interpretation and protection.

Joolz Form, community woodlands project officer for Groundwork West Durham, said: "It is fantastic to have a group so committed to their local woodland that they are prepared to attain very specialised training and knowledge to safeguard a sustainable future for a very special place."