While the nation debates the benefits of re-usable or disposable nappies, the London market development organisation has been working with UK representatives of Knowaste, which has already set up nappy recycling plants in California and the Netherlands.
” Technology does now exist for the recycling of disposable nappies.“
– London Mayor Ken Livingstone
Revealing the project in the run-up to “Real Nappy Week” – which starts on June 20 – London Mayor Ken Livingstone said: “Technology does now exist for the recycling of disposable nappies, although there are currently no plants in the UK.
“London Remade is seeking funding for such a plant in London and is working with the company to try and encourage them to choose London for their first plant,” Mr Livingstone explained.
A spokesperson for London Remade said:”We are working with Knowaste to attract funding, locate suitable premises and supply chains. We believe that the technology is sound and would very much like to have such a facility within the capital.”
The Knowaste process sees disposable nappies shredded and pulped before being chemically treated. Plastics are then removed, washed and turned into pellets. Super Absorbent Polymers are chemically treated and reactivated for re-use, with wood fibres mechanically and chemically cleaned. Remaining materials are composted.
Viability
However, there have been some questions surrounding the Knowaste process. Jos Glansbeek, director of the Dutch paper diaper manufacturers' association (NUPL), said he had been following the company's operations in the Netherlands. He said that the Arnheim plant was not a profit-making enterprise because the costs involved were too high.
Mr Glansbeek said: “It is not a cost-effective solution – they have been making a loss up to now – I have visited the company and they freely admit they have been making a loss. The only reason they are able to keep going is that they are funded by EC subsidies,” Mr Glansbeek explained.
” It is not a cost-effective solution – they have been making a loss up to now.“
– Jos Glansbeek,
The Dutch plant has been designed to process up to 70,000 tonnes of nappies each year, but Mr Glansbeek said the company had only been able to supply the plant with 30,000 tonnes each year. He suggested this was because it is difficult to provide collections for households, the only collections that have been possible have been from institutions including day care centres and hospitals.
Responding to the concerns, the London Remade spokesperson said: “Our understanding is that the UK subsidiary has learnt considerable lessons from its Dutch counterpart and will employ technology in a different way that will be more cost effective and on more appropriate scale (based on the density of the region's population).”
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Disposable nappy manufacturers – both in the Netherlands and in the UK – believe a more cost-effective solution would be to compost disposable nappies along with other household organic wastes under conditions comparable to animal by-product regulation requirements.
A spokesman forKnowaste (UK) said: “Knowaste BV have been steadily growing their business in the Netherlands
year on year, and have been profitable for some time.
The technology clearly works and the recycling potential for this huge and
previously unaddressed waste stream is proven and enormous, in Europe and
the UK.”
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