ACE UK announces joint ownership of OPRL Ltd
The Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment (ACE) UK announced today that it is to become a joint owner of OPRL Ltd, which runs the UK’s on-pack recycling label scheme.
The joint ownership will be with current owners the British Retail Consortium (BRC), the trade association for the retail sector.
It is said that the move will help to create a strong leadership position for the beverage carton industry to promote more effective recycling by engaging consumers further.
Richard Hands, chief executive of ACE UK said: “We believe that simple easy to understand on-pack recycling information is vital in helping consumers to recycle more. To this end we have worked closely with OPRL for several years, including developing the special beverage carton recycling label which reflects the wide availability of local authority collection services for cartons, often at kerbside.”
Jane Bevis, chair of OPRL Ltd added: “This is a significant step in OPRL’s development as we build closer ties with other industry bodies working to increase recycling. It is essential that there is clear and coherent leadership, not only to meet the UK’s recycling targets, but also to establish the material base of the circular economy and growth of green jobs here in the UK.”
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Yorwaste to handle waste from University of York
Waste management and recycling company Yorwaste has secured a contract to handle waste generated by the University of York.
After working closely with the university for five years, Yorwaste has been re-awarded the contract to achieve higher recycling and landfill diversion rates.
The company will provide a general waste and mixed recycling collection and processing service for the university, which will involve the collection of 1,083 tonnes of general and mixed recycling per year.
Over the three year contact, Yorwaste has the task of increasing recycling by 30% within the first year and will carry out 4,000 bin collections each month on behalf of the university. All the material will be taken for processing to the company’s Harewood Whin Resource Recovery Centre in York.
Gill Mulroe, Yorwaste key account manager, said: “We are planning to stage a number of roadshows at the university. The students come from all over the UK, and abroad, and depending where you are from there can often be mixed messages when it comes to recycling. So by getting everybody to understand how the recycling will be done at the university, this should increase the overall recycling rates.”
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NLWA application for development accepted for examination
North London Waste Authority’s (NLWA) application for a development consent order to build a new energy recovery facility has been accepted for examination by the Planning Inspectorate.
The Planning Inspectorate will appoint an examining authority to consider the application, before making a recommendation to the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, who will either grant or refuse development consent for the project.
The planned facility would replace the existing plant at the Edmonton EcoPark by 2025, with development including a new energy recovery facility. This would take waste that cannot be recycled from seven north London boroughs and turn it into both heat and power energy.
The replacement facility would need to manage up to 700,000 tonnes of waste a year at a peak, and could provide enough power for around 127,000 homes. The Authority is also looking at diverting some of the energy to local homes and businesses via heat networks.
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Aberdeen receives funding to boost recycling rates
Aberdeen city council has secured funding from Scotland’s resource efficiency and circular economy expert, Zero Waste Scotland (ZWS).
The £82,291.25 funding, which was awarded from ZWS’s Tenement Infrastructure Fund (TIF), will provide the opportunity to improve waste and recycling services for hundreds of households in the area.
Changes will see a replacement of individual wheeled bins, bags and boxes for waste and recycling with on-street communal bins for general waste and on-street communal bins with blue lids for mixed recycling.
The new bins will be installed in 14 priority streets in Torry, Mastrick, Old Aberdeen and Kincorth where the recycling rate is currently at around 10%.S
Aberdeen city council’s zero waste management sub-committee convener, councillor Jean Morrison, said: “Aberdeen city council is proactively working towards becoming a zero waste city as we move towards a situation where we recycle more than we throw away. The mixed recycling service will play a major role by making the recycling process easier for residents, which in turn will lead to an increase in recycling rates.”
This is the third such project that the city council has carried out using the TIF.
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Salford introduces recycling reward scheme
Salford city council is launching a new recycling reward scheme in a bid to boost recycling across the city.
Recycling rates within the city’s eight neighbourhoods will be monitored monthly and local good causes and community groups will receive rewards of up to £1,000 in value wherever rates have increased.
A call is currently out for local groups and good causes to pitch to be included in the scheme.
Councillor Gena Merrett, executive lead member for housing and environment, said: “Recycling is vital because we can’t keep burying waste in the ground. It costs the council £300 to dispose of one tonne of general waste whereas we earn £25 for every tonne of recycled waste. Every tonne we can divert from landfill means we can generate income to support essential public services and it’s better for the environment.”
The scheme, which is funded by a £200,000 government grant, will start on 1 December 2015 and will run until March 2017, with £200,000 available for the community, providing recycling increases. It aims to boost recycling and decrease the amount of waste going to landfill by 3%.
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