FIRST Bus is appealing for people across Bristol to donate their waste cooking oil to help run an environmentally friendly bus.

Six months ago First unveiled The Chipper; a bus intended to run on 100 per cent biodiesel made from waste cooking oil in a trial to cut smoke emissions.

In that time the bus has cut its carbon emissions by 15,000kg; the equivalent of taking 30 cars off the road for six months.

The company relies on donations of oil to keep the bus going, and a number of businesses in the city played their part and provided nearly 4,000 litres.

Unfortunately though it wasn't enough, and on 36 out of 123 days the Chipper had to run on normal diesel.

However, First is determined to push ahead with another six-month trial and so wants more companies and residents to provide them with a rather unusual Christmas present.

Engineering project manager John Bickerton said: "During the first six months of the trial we received a significant amount of waste oil but it hasn't been as much as we've actually needed.

"The supply was also a bit inconsistent, but we're hoping to iron out these problems over the next six months.

"We'd like to appeal to any businesses with staff canteens, or restaurants using large amounts of cooking oil to donate their waste oils to us.

"Our fuel partner McKeowns can collect the oils for free, and even supply fresh oils to those who want them."

During the course of the trial, waste oil has been collected from the Bristol Fashion Beefeater pub, the Bishopston Fish Bar, First's own staff canteens in Lawrence Hill, Muller Road and Hengrove, the Vittoria Pub on Whiteladies Road and the Mayflower Chinese Restaurant.

A significant proportion of the waste oil was collected from the household waste recycling centre in St Phillip's Marsh, which has seen a 157 per cent increase in waste oil since May.

Mr Bickerton said: "Christmas is a time for hearty dinners and more people than ever will be cooking their roast potatoes and roast parsnips and all manner of other things in a good dose of cooking oil.

"All we're asking is that people collect this oil once they're done with it and that they donate it to us.

"Take waste oils to the household waste recycling centres and we'll arrange for it to be collected."

First needs approximately 715 litres of waste cooking oil every week to be able to run the bus on biodiesel.