The company submitted a planning application to Birmingham city council this month (August 5) for the project, which would have the capacity to divert around 170,000 tonnes of waste from landfill a year.
Of this, 50,000 tonnes would be recovered in a materials recycling facility, while the remaining 120,000 tonnes-a-year would be processed to produce a solid recovered fuel. The processing would involve sorting and shredding of material, although the exact details would depend on where the outputs are sent to.
These final destinations could be cement kilns or combined heat and power energy facilities, although a spokesman for the company noted that contracts for these outputs were yet to be agreed. A further 30,000 tonnes-a-year of residual waste would be bulked and sent to landfill.
The project, at a site in Landor Street in Nechells in east Birmingham, would replace SITA UKs existing commercial and industrial (C&I) waste operations in the city at nearby Montague Street. These involve around 60,000 tonnes-a-year of material that is collected locally being bulked up and sent to landfill.
The potential for the Landor Street development was highlighted by SITA UKs strategic development manager, Tim Hughes. He said: The proposals for Landor Street offer a fantastic opportunity for us to help divert much more of Birminghams waste away from landfill and help protect the environment by putting this waste to good use.
It will also create much-needed local jobs on a site which has recently been vacated and jobs lost as a result.
He added: We do not anticipate there will be any adverse impact on the local area as a result of our proposals and we have a long track record of working successfully within Birmingham, so we are keen to maintain our good relationship with local businesses, the Council and community as we seek to develop these proposals.
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SITA expects Birmingham city council to consider the planning application for the Landor Street project within the next 13 weeks. The application specifically relates to changing the use of the existing building and for some development of the site, which was formally used by logistics company DHL.
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