Glass recycling firm Recresco has begun operations at new sorting and reprocessing plant in South Wales which will eventually offer the capacity to process up to 100,000 tonnes a year of material.
The Cwmbran plant, which was developed for an undisclosed amount, is the companys first in Wales and is intended to the give the glass company a foothold in the country.
According to Recresco, it is one of just two large scale glass sorting facilities operating in South Wales.
The new facility is on the Springvale Industrial Estate at Cwmbran, which lies 20 miles to the north west of Cardiff. The plant is currently processing 10 tonnes of glass per hour at 50% capacity and intends to reach its capacity of around 100,000 tonne-a-year by the end of 2011.
It is intended to reprocess glass from local councils, household waste and recycling centres and private companies collecting material from bring banks. Material collected is then sorted by colour and is then able to be used in remelt applications.
Export
Establishing a plant at Cwmbran is intended to help cut down the amount of recovered glass that is exported out of Wales for sorting and reprocessing, with the majority of material currently being sorted in England. Recresco added that rising transport costs had made the transfer impractical.
Karl Fenton, Recresco site manager, said: This new facility will support and enhance the waste industry and the community by reprocessing locally sourced waste glass and reusing it in local businesses. Wasteful haulage miles are being eliminated and it is creating local jobs.
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Recresco is based in Nottingham and also operates facilities in Avonmouth, Southampton and a plant at Ellesemere Port in Cheshire.
Mr Fenton added: We are pleased to be involved in this environmental success story. The new site in Cwmbran will result in reduced waste to landfill and reduced carbon emissions as well as providing local benefits in terms of new jobs and improved recycling infrastructure.
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