FRN launches new website
The charities in the network collect items for free, thereby saving people money on local authority bulky waste collection charges, according to FRN.
The non-profit organisation is the national co-ordinating body for more than 300 furniture and appliance re-use and recycling charities in the UK that collect a variety of household items to pass onto people in need.
According to FRN, donating one sofa for reuse can save a household up to 30, will help reduce poverty by saving a low income family 300, and will save 40kg of carbon dioxide from being released to the environment.
Changes to Viridors Peterborough EfW plans approved
Peterborough city councils planning and environmental committee has approved changes to an energy-from-waste facility proposed by Viridor, which will allow the firm to treat an additional 20,000 tonnes of waste.
The plant is set to be built under a 30-year deal, thought to be worth up to 60 million, between Peterborough city council and Viridor, which was named preferred bidder in August 2012 (see letsrecycle.com story).
Commenting on the committees decision, Robert Ryan, head of projects for Viridor, said: We proposed changes to the existing planning permission to maximise the benefits from the proposal to the council and the local area. Our proposals will result in additional efficiency from the plant and a smaller building, all of which contribute towards to cutting the citys waste disposal costs and carbon footprint.
County Durham AD facility to open this year
An 8 million anaerobic digestion (AD) facility which will process food waste from across the north east is set to open in County Durham this summer.
The Emerald Biogas facility, on the Newton Aycliffe Industrial Estate, is expected to be fully operational by July and will generate 1.56 MW of electricity enough to power 2,000 homes. The plant will process 50,000 tonnes of food waste per year and also has secured planning permission to increase capacity to four times its current size in future, according to Emerald Biogas.
The foundation work and building construction has been completed with installation of the AD process equipment scheduled for late January before commissioning begins in March.
Antony Warren, director at Emerald Biogas, said: Once up and running, the facility will be the only one of its kind in the region and capable of not only providing renewable heat and electricity for neighbouring industrial companies, but also producing quality fertiliser from the digestate for use by the local agricultural community. We hope the facility will further boost the regions reputation as a hub for renewable energy, as well as an economic boost for the local area.
Emerald Biogas is a partnership between food waste and recycling business John Warren ABP and farming, land and resource management firm Agricore, which are both based in County Durham. The company will employ eight people at the facility initially.
Funding for the project was provided by HSBC, WRAP and the Rural Development Programme for England (see letsrecycle.com story).
Organic Resource Agency wins waste framework place
Independent waste management consultancy the Organic Resource Agency (ORA), based in Malvern, has won a place on the Pro5 national framework for the provision of consultancy services in relation to waste and recycling.
ORA will provide expertise and advice under local government procurement organisation Pro5s waste and recycling framework. The framework will run for at least two years with a possible extension for a further two years.
Dr. Hugh Bulson, managing director at ORA, said: We are delighted that Pro5 have recognised and see the value in ORAs expertise. We look forward to providing support under this framework across the waste to resource management cycle from the design and optimisation of waste collection services, to the management of treatment facilities including mechanical and biological treatment, anaerobic digestion and composting through the design, construction and operational stages.
He added: We hope that the new Pro5 framework will allow local authorities to secure our services more efficiently and cost effectively, without the need for lengthy and costly procurement exercises.
Valpak launches free training seminars for businesses
Recycling and compliance specialist Valpak has launched a number of free environmental training seminars for UK businesses in order to keep them up-to-date with environmental legislation and industry developments.
The free seminars will run throughout 2013 and are open to any UK business. They will also provide a networking opportunity for attendees. The seminars will cover a range of topics, including legal compliance, cost savings/reduction and improving environmental performance.
Duncan Simpson, Valpak sales and marketing director, commented: In todays environment organisations are finding that they are challenged with meeting increasingly demanding sustainability and CSR targets. Setting the right objectives and implementing efficient and simple strategies to meet these objectives has never been more important. We recognise that sometimes its difficult to find time and resource to keep up-to-date with environmental legislation and industry developments. With this in mind were running a whole host of free Environmental Training Seminars throughout 2013.
A full list of events is available on the Valpak website.
Yorkshire recycling firm invests in SRF system
Yorkshire-based waste management firm Yorwaste has been investing in Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) technology with the aim of shifting its focus from waste processing to fuel production.
The firms Resource Recovery Facility near York has been developed to produce SRF since the end of 2012. The facility already produces electricity from landfill gas, composts green waste and recycles waste wood and liquid waste.
The facilitys SRF system comprises a variety of sorting equipment, picking stations, trommels, screens, an eddy current separator, air density equipment and a single UNTHA TR3200 shaft secondary shredder.
The shredder has a 1,100mm rotor and 175 rpm rotor speed can produce an output of 10 tonnes per hour. Yorwaste, celebrating its 20th anniversary in February, is now set to produce 25,000 tonnes of SRF in 2013.
Steve Grieve, managing director at Yorwast, said: We see waste as a resource that wherever possible, needs to be re-used, recycled and recovered and to this end we strive to invest continually in the latest state-of-the-art technologies to facilitate this objective.
Yorwaste handles close to 1 million tonnes of MSW and C&I waste each year. In 2011/2012 the company produced 60,000 MWh of green electricity from landfill gas and now has 9.6MW of electricity generating capacity at its landfill sites.
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