West London Composting has built a composting facility to process 50,000 tonnes of separately collected green and kitchen waste a year at Highview Farm in Harefield, Hillingdon.
The facility, which is comprised of two vessels and an open windrow area, has not been approved to process food waste under the Animal By-Products Regulations, which aim to prevent the spread of animal diseases through controls on animal waste handling.
But Sue Grundon, site manager for West London Composting, told letsrecycle.com that the company is already a member of the Composting Association and will be looking to get a permit to handle food waste in the near future. She said: “Once we are up and running we will be going through accreditation to the Animal By-Products Regulations.”
Located just inside the M25, the company is looking to take material from London boroughs and the surrounding counties.
“We are on the borders of Hertfordshire and Oxfordshire so it is not just people in west London local authorities we are targeting,” said Ms Grundon. “We are lucky we are surrounded by so many different boroughs in the area.”
Process
Material arriving at the site is shredded by a Crambo shredder before being transported to one of eight clamps that make up the 'ba;rrier one' vessel. The waste is composted in this area for seven to 11 days, reaching a temperature of 60 degrees centigrade for two consecutive days as required by the government ABPR guidelines.
The material is then transferred to the 'ba;rrier two' vessel and the process is repeated. Finally the compost is matured on open windrows for up to 10 weeks before sale.
“Initially, it will be sold as a soil improver for commercial use. It can be blended with different soils to improve their quality,” said Ms Grundon.
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