The first "major" waste treatment facility delivered under the Greater Manchester waste PFI contract has been officially opened by the waste and recycling minister.

(l-r) Cllr Neil Swannick, chair of GMWDA; Dan Norris, waste and recycling minister; and, Peter Hamnett, northern area manager of Viridor Laing

Opened on Wednesday (November 18), the Waithlands Resource Recovery Park in Rochdale is centred on an in-vessel composting (IVC) facility and includes a new transfer loading station and an upgraded household waste and recycling centre.

In total, the consortium of Viridor-Laing plans to construct or redevelop 36 waste and recycling treatment facilities across the Greater Manchester area over the next five years.

The developments come under its £4 billion contract with the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority (GMWDA), which is aimed at providing facilities to treat 1.3 million tonnes of municipal waste produced in the region each year.

Speaking at the opening of the Waithlands site, minister for waste, Dan Norris, said: "Making better use of our waste and reducing our reliance on landfill is an essential part of the drive to tackle climate change.

"These world class waste facilities will divert over one million tonnes of waste and are national importance in how we handle waste in England."

IVC

Work on the Waithlands site by Lancashire-based TEG Environmental began in January 2008, with the Rochdale facility representing the first of four in-vessel composting facilities being developed by TEG as part of the PFI under a subcontract worth £35 million (see letsrecycle.com story).

When complete the four IVC sites are expected to have a combined treatment capacity of 175,000 tonnes of green waste each year (see letsrecycle.com story).

Councillor Neil Swannick, chairman of the GMWDA, said: "The opening of the new facility is excellent news and is a major achievement. The composting plant which has already been featured on the television will take everyday food waste and turn it into a useful product for fields and gardens."

Development

Providing an update on other facilities being developed in an event in Manchester earlier this week, David Taylor, director of contract services at the GMWDA, revealed that construction on the Arkwright Street mechanical biological treatment facility had begun and it is intended to be open in 2011.

He added that the waste transfer station at Bailey Street in Tameside will be open by August 2010 and Longley Lane materials recycling facility is set to be opened from April next year.