Norfolk to opt for energy recovery ahead of MBT

The full council is to meet on Monday (December 12) for the final decision on options for the first phase of the county's long-term plans to meet the EU Landfill Directive, which calls for a reduction in biodegradable municipal waste being sent to landfill.

”Even if we do all we can to reduce, reuse and recycle our household waste, there is still going to be waste left over. “
– Cllr Ian Monson, Norfolk CC

Norfolk is currently recycling about 30% of its waste, but this still leaves about 260,000 tonnes of material going to landfill each year.

Councillors on the environment committee last night narrowly voted in favour of naming WRG as preferred bidder to build a materials recycling facility (MRF) and energy recovery facility to process 150,000 tonnes of residual waste each year.

A proposal from council-owned Norfolk Environmental Waste Services (NEWS) for a plant using mechanical biological treatment (MBT) is expected to be given only “reserve bidder” status after Monday's meeting. A bid from Global Olivine Ltd has been rejected.

In a report to councillors, council officers explained that the WRG proposal would be less costly.

Cllr Ian Monson, cabinet member for environment and waste, said: “There are no simple solutions to this problem. Even if we do all we can to reduce, reuse and recycle our household waste, there is still going to be waste left over that we have to deal with.”

WRG
Waste Recycling Group is proposing to build its “Recycling and Energy Centre” at the Longwater Industrial Estate to take waste collected from the central southern part of the county. This will include Broadland, Norwich city and most of South Norfolk and Breckland.

WRG will use existing transfer stations at Thetford, Pulham Market and Shipdham.

Unlike some energy-from-waste plants, which recycle materials like metals after incineration has taken place, the WRG facility would use its MRF to take out potentially recyclable materials before the incineration process, officers suggested.

The council is hoping construction of the facility can begin in 2007, subject to planning permission being secured, coming into operation in 2009 in order to meet the Landfill Directive's first diversion targets the following year.

SRM
Reserve bidder Sustainable Resource Management – which also includes equity firm Innisfree as a partner with NEWS – proposed a mechanical biological treatment facility to be located next to the existing NEWS recycling facility at the Longwater Industrial Estate.

The proposed plant would also have had a capacity to treat 150,000 tonnes of mixed waste each year, through physical separation techniques and anaerobic digestion. The process would have produced a “refuse-derived fuel” that would in this case have gone to landfill.

Score
In evaluating the two proposals, council officers gave the WRG proposal a score of 65.16% compared to 48.01% for the SRM proposal.

Norfolk has decided against a single, large waste management contract for its waste management, in favour of smaller contracts. Following this “phase one” contract, which governs the management of 150,000 tonnes per annum of residual waste, a “phase two” contract is to be developed to “address the remaining waste being landfilled and provide flexibility for future waste growth”.

Norfolk residents pay on average 80 a year through their Council Tax for waste collection and disposal. The council said this could double if action is not taken to divert waste away from landfill.

Director of Planning and Transportation, Mike Jackson said “With landfill space running out and the financial and environmental costs escalating, we need to act now. We must secure facilities to process Norfolk’s residual waste in a more environmentally sound manner. We are engaged in a through procurement process to identify options that are cost effective and don’t leave problems for the future.”