With the capacity to treat 17,500 tonnes of hazardous waste and 7,300 tonnes of non-hazardous waste each year, the plant would receive packaged healthcare and related wastes suitable either for on-site treatment or transfer off-site to other disposal or recovery facilities.
A Stericycle spokesperson said: “We can confirm that we have applied for a permit to build a transfer station and plant near Telford and whilst we await developments it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time.”
The proposed facility is to replace one currently operated by the company at the Four Ashes Industrial Estate near Wolverhampton, due to end operations this year.
The company’s application document says the plant will employ up to 69 people.
A decision on the proposals is to be made by Telford and Wrekin council in the next few months.
Process
The treatment plant will consist of a shredder, a single chamber steam auger and pollution abatement equipment, according to Stericycle.
The Americn company added that waste will be shredded under negative pressure before transfer to the auger chamber, where a combination of heat, moisture and residence time is sufficient to disinfect the waste.
Steam is supplied to the auger from the gas-fired steam-raising plant. Off-gases from the auger will be cooled in a condenser, with the resulting water being discharged to a sewer.
Any residual gases are transferred through the abatement system with the off-gases from the shredder system.
Stericycle
Formerly known as SRCL, Stericycle was founded in 1989 and is based in Bannockburn, Illinois. In December 2017 SRCL announced it was adopting the name Stericycle, by which its global parent company is known, in the UK.
The company first entered the UK market in 2004 with the $64 million acquisition of the Leeds-based medical waste specialists White Rose Environmental (see letsrecycle.com story).
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