Scotland to ban automotive batteries from landfill
Unveiled this week (July 6), the ban mirrors restrictions on battery disposal in the rest of the UK which were laid out in April 2009's Waste Batteries and Accumulators Regulations 2009 (see letsrecycle.com story) and are also set to come into force on January 1 2010, the Waste Batteries (Scotland) Regulations 2009 can be found here.
The Scottish regulations also detail requirements for battery storage, stating that any site licence which is in effect today and authorises the storage and/or treatment of waste batteries should be modified to include the condition that: “The treatment of any waste batteries shall include, as a minimum, the removal of all fluids and acids. Such treatment and any storage, including temporary storage, of batteries shall take place in sites with impermeable surfaces and suitable weatherproof covering or in suitable containers.”
Pallet recycling scheme hailed as “overwhelming success”
Launched in December 2008, the scheme targets pallets from both the Jewson branch network and those collected from customers' sites in a bid reduce the numbers being sent to landfill at a collective supply and disposal cost of around £4 per item. Jewson backhauls the pallets across its 500 branches, and from its network of delivery sites, on empty lorry space after delivery, with the pallets then taken to one of three Jewson Timber Distribution Centres at Grangemouth, Newport and Hull.
Rod Leigh, procurement manager at Jewson and the scheme's creator, said: “There are the environmental benefits brought about by reusing existing materials, negating the need to produce more of the same; the lorry miles are significantly reduced through the collection of pallets on return journeys; and less material is sent to landfill.”
Consultation on PFI contract launched
Stakeholders are being asked for their opinions on a draft contract being drawn up by Defra as part of its guidance for local authorities embarking on the PFI procurement process for waste treatment projects.
The Waste Infrastructure Delivery Programme (WIDP) – the group within Defra which has responsibility for supervising and allocating waste PFI- has given interested parties until July 22 to reply to a consultation on the draft document and its supporting schedules.
In particular, the draft contract – which can be found here – aims to clarify what aspects of an agreement are required under the Treasury's rules for standardising PFI deals, and what can be changed according to the needs of a particular contract. The consultation explains that “this distinction has been drawn in order to preserve flexibility for procuring authorities and bidders in view of the diversity of technological solutions present in the market” but to also take into account the cost and time savings that could provided by standardising contracts.
SCA takes deliver of 21 collection vehicles
The company, which has head offices at Aylesford in Kent, has been supplied the DAF 26-tonnes rigids by Coventry-based commercial vehicle hire firm Fraikin and each vehicle has been finished in SCA's blue livery. The delivery of the vehicles marks the continuation of a working relationship between SCA and Fraikin stretching back to 1993, with the latest vehicles replacing over one quarter of SCA's 75-strong fleet that carry material to it's eight processing plants across the UK.
Commenting on the new fleet, Robin Collier, operations director at SCA Recycling said: “Fraikin has worked closely with us for more than 15 years to understand our operation and ensure our fleet incorporates the best available technology. This enables us to be certain of full compliance with the latest health, safety and environmental regulations, whilst maximising the efficient management of our fleet.”
Ealing's recycling rate hits “all-time high”
The London borough of Ealing has reported that its recycling and composting rate has hit an “all-time high” after reaching an annual figure of 35%.
The council claimed that, throughout 2008/09, over 40,000 tonnes of residual waste was saved from going to landfill, almost 7,000 tonnes more than the previous year. The figures also show that Ealing residents recycled 26,628 tonnes of material through kerbside green boxes and recycling sites – an increase of 7% on 2007/08 – and 14,528 tonnes of organic waste, an improvement of 56% on 2007/08. The council claimed that its recycling rate reflected improvements made since it invested £3.8 million to improve refuse and recycling services in November 2007, including introducing kerbside collections of mixed plastics.
Councillor Sue Emment, cabinet member for environment, said: “Residents have made a spectacular effort to recycle so much, but we want to see these levels continue to rise. As the weather is getting warmer people will especially benefit from using their food recycling bins to deter animals from getting into bin bags and prevent the food creating a smell.”
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