News in Brief

Bids invited for rewards and recognition fund

As announced in the Governments waste review, published last week (see letsrecycle.com story), the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) will provide up to 2 million over the next three years to help fund local projects that look into fresh ways to help people recycle more and produce less waste. Community groups, charities and local authorities can bid for a share of the first 500,000 of funding until 26 July 2011, and Defra will begin advising successful applicants from 16 August. Funding will only be allocated to what Defra called genuinely innovative projects that reward or recognise individuals or communities, and are tailored to local situations and different collection systems and housing types.

Recycling minister Lord Henley said: People want to do the right thing and recycle more and local communities know whats best to make this happen. I want to tap into the ideas from the best and brightest local entrepreneurs and organisations to develop exciting and innovative new ways to boost our recycling rates even further.

Biffa wins Basildon dry recyclables sorting contract

Basildon council in Essex has awarded waste management firm Biffa a four-year contract to sort its household recyclables.

The contract, which started last month and has the option to be extended by a further three years, will see Biffa collect bulked dry recyclables, such as paper, card, cans, plastics, Tetrapaks and the like, from Basildons recycling centre in Billericay and transport them to its 200,000 tonnes-a-year materials recycling facility at Edmonton in north London. Glass will be sent direct to a glass reprocessor. The contract award brings marks the twelfth local authority contract won by Biffa for the Edmonton plant and will lead to up to 14,000 tonnes of Basildons dry recyclables being sorted at the plant each year.

Biffa Recycling contract manager Steve Oulds said: Were delighted to be working in partnership with Basildon to provide quality, efficient processing of its recyclables. This new contract has enabled Basildon Council to enhance its recycling service for residents as our plant can handle a wider range of materials such as Tetrapaks, foils, and so on.

Ridgeway aims for top gear with SWR waste deal

Automotive recycling company SWR Waste Management has signed a contract with car dealership Ridgeway to help overhaul the companys recycling performance.

Under the contract, Alton-based SWR will manage the dry waste, including paper, card, plastic, metal, wood, glass, packaging, and residual general waste, from all of Ridgeways dealerships across the South of England. The service will operate under a combination of SWRs in-house collection service and a series of selected sub-contractors. The aim of the waste service is to try and help Ridgeway achieve a 70% recycling rate or higher and SWR intends to provide detailed reporting on Ridgeways recycling performance, which will enable them to monitor their progress and demonstrate green credentials to customers and stakeholders.

David Ninnes, group purchasing and procurement manager at Ridgeway, said: Our ethos is centred on delivering the highest standards of service in everything we do for our customers. This level of quality must also permeate throughout our entire supply chain, and everyone that works with Ridgeway must adhere to our high standards.

Survey indicates 76% of Wales are committed recyclers

Over three quarters (76%) of Welsh residents now consider themselves committed recyclers according to a Welsh Assembly Government survey commissioned to coincide with Recycle Week 2011.

The Spring 2011 Recycle Now Tracker which was carried out by consultancy GfK NOP on behalf of the Waste and Resources Action Programme also showed that 93% of people consider recycling important and 77% say that they recycle even if it requires extra effort. The research also shows that 88% of people believe that recycling brings benefits to the local community.

The sample assessed 403 adults from across the country who are solely or jointly responsible for waste management in their household.

Welsh environment minister John Griffiths welcomed the findings and called on people to get involved in Recycle Week activities in their area. He said: When it comes to recycling, Wales leads the way. This research reiterates the fact that Wales is a nation of recyclers, and that we recognise the economic as well as environmental benefits which recycling brings.

Agency seeks views on Eastcroft EfW permit change

The Environment Agency has launched a consultation on an application from WasteNotts Reclamation Ltd, a subsidiary of Waste Recycling Group, for a substantial variation of its environmental permit to operate the Eastcroft energy-from-waste incinerator.

The company, which operates the plant off Cattle Market Road in Nottingham, is seeking to increase the capacity of the incinerator from 160,000 tonnes-a-year to 200,000 tonnes-a-year. The Environment Agency must decide whether to grant or refuse the application and, if granted, it will decide what conditions should be included in the permit. Therefore, it is seeking views from local communities in Nottingham in relation to the application received on May 20 2011, with comments welcome until July 14 2011.

Dave Lowe, environment manager for the Environment Agency, said: It is important that we obtain and consider the views of the public and key stakeholders before we make our decision on the application. We would like to encourage communities close to the site to forward their comments on the application as part of our consultation process and this will close on 14 July 2011.