News in brief

Oxford event highlights food waste

Chefs and volunteers served up free vegetable jalfrezi curry and parsnip rice to passers-by on George Street using produce donated by fruit and vegetable wholesalers Fresh Direct that was rejected in the supply chain.

Although the food was free, donations were also being accepted by local charity Oxford Food Bank, which helps to divert food waste from landfill and distributes it to those in need.

According to OWP, households waste more food than supermarkets and restaurants, costing an average of 50 each month per household.

Speaking before the event, OWP chairman David Dodds said: We collect food waste for recycling all across Oxfordshire turning it into electricity and a valuable fertiliser/compost for local farmland. While this is great for the environment, it would be better not to have to collect so much food in the first place: having less waste is even more environmentally friendly. We hope people will join us for a free lunch and pick up some new ideas for using up leftovers or tips on how to save money at the same time!

Islington scheme boosts recycling and employment

An innovative recycling scheme in Islington has saved over 15 tonnes of waste from house clearances going to landfill in just nine months while providing employment in the local community, according to the partners behind the initiative.

The Ray Walk Recycling Centre was launched in May 2012 by Kier in partnership with Islington council and social enterprise Bright Sparks, who converted 40 disused garages into a workshop, office and recycling storage units. Kier provides repairs and maintenance services to the tenants of Islington council though their Arms Length Management Organisation homes.

The scheme helps to reduce waste from void clearances going to landfill and provides affordable furniture and electrical items to local people, as well as offering training and volunteering opportunities.

The project has already seen five volunteers go on to paid employment after gaining NVQ qualifications as well as enabling Bright Sparks to open an additional furniture shop, where the refurbished items are sold. In the last four months alone, 14.5 tonnes of furniture have been diverted from landfill, a figure estimated to reach 60 tonnes by May 2013, with fly-tipping on the Andover estate significantly reduced. At least ten new training posts are expected to be set up this year in retail, driving and electrical.

Kier voids manager, Steve Matthews, said: The new recycling centre is a great resource for local businesses as it provides a convenient and cost effective way to clear unwanted waste. Recycling charities are often limited by the items they are able to collect and are also not always able to adhere to the strict timelines for void clearance. Our partnership with Bright Sparks means were able to take all items to the workshop where at least 70% of them can be recycled. As well as the environmental benefits of not sending waste to landfill, we also predict the new scheme will save more than 100,000 a year in waste disposal charges, a saving which will go back to the council.

Lenders approved for Wakefield PFI waste facility

The UK Green Investment Bank, Barclays Bank, Bayern LB and SMBC have all been approved by legal experts as sponsors of a 750 million PFI contract to build a residual waste treatment facility in Wakefield.

Following advice from legal practice Norton Rose, the lenders will provide banking facilities of more than 100 million for the South Kirkby facility, which will be built by Shanks Group and capable of processing 230,000 tonnes of waste annually.

Shanks signed the 25-year contract with the council on Monday January 14 (see letsrecycle.com story), which according to Norton Rose marks the first time the Green Investment Bank has financed a project in the waste sector.

Mark Berry, partner at Norton Rose, said: We are pleased to have advised the lenders on this project, which represents the UK Green Investment Banks first investment in the waste sector.

The number of commercial banks active in the current market has diminished considerably since the global financial crisis. It is encouraging that there is a strong appetite amongst those banks still active in the waste sector. This could bode well for the merchant sector which has yet to gain real traction with project financing solutions.

Midlands investors back energy-from-plastic firm

Warwickshire firm Recycling Technologies has signed an equity financing deal with Midlands based Wroxall Investors Group (WIG) to further develop its plastic recycling technologies.

Recycling Technologies was formed to commercialise a process developed at the University of Warwick that is claimed to transform Mixed Plastic Waste [MPW] into heat and electricity. The company was spun out in 2011, with assistance from Warwick Ventures, the Universitys research commercialisation arm.

Adrian Griffiths, Managing Director at Recycling Technologies, said: We are really pleased with this deal. It not only secures the funding we need at this stage in our growth but simultaneously has expanded the experience that we can draw on as we develop the business.

Following the deal, businessman Martin Lusby will take the position of chairman of the board at the firm.

Mr Lusby said: Recycling Technologies is at an exciting stage in its development. The concept of a machine that can be installed into existing recycling facilities to turn what most people still regard as waste plastic into electricity and heat in a CHP plant (combined heat and power) is timely given the increasing costs of landfill and energy prices. With the first machine is due to go into production in 2014 the WIG investment will allow the team and company infrastructure to be expanded at the Swindon base to ensure this commercial opportunity is fully exploited.”

CEWEP publishes third waste-to-energy report

The Confederation of European Waste-to-Energy Plants (CEWEP) has published the third edition of its report on the energy efficiency of waste-to-energy (WtE) plants in Europe.

The report found that the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) incinerated by European plants had dropped to 59.4 million tonnes per year, representing 85.5% of the total MSW incinerated in 2009.

This is due to the improved energy efficiency of WtE plant operators, according to the report.

Ella Stengler, CEWEPs Managing Director, said: The energy efficiency criterion (R1 formula) that was introduced in the Waste Framework Directive has proved to be an incentive for Waste-to-Energy plants in Europe to improve their Energy Efficiency.
A copy of the report can be downloaded from the CEWEP website.