Materials Recycling Week
19 January 2007
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£9 million Telford factory operational
After two years of planning and construction, a £9 million factory in Telford is now fully operational. The German architect of Craemer Groups new injection moulding facility has officially handed over the keys to company officials, with it seen as key to the waste bin manufacturers activities in the UK market. Members of the sales team moved into new offices at the site during November and now with the injection moulding machines inaugurated, it is all syste -
Al Gore film to be shown in Scottish schools
An Inconvenient Truth, the environmental documentary by former US Vice President Al Gore, is to be built into the curriculum of Scottish secondary schools. The Scottish Executive has announced that via Learning Teaching Scotland and Scottish Power, it will develop a package of education materials based around screenings of the film. Scottish Environment Minister Ross Finnie said: Since meeting Al Gore in September and watching An Inconvenient Truth -
BBC waste used innovatively
Waste used in producing some of the UKs most popular television and radio shows is being used in innovative ways as well as being recycled. Nordic Recycling has been responsible for waste operations at the BBC since July 2006 and now services the corporations major sites throughout the country. The contract is an example of the diversification of the company using its service partners to cater for the different waste streams and needs of various clients. -
Bedfordshire company announces sad loss
Officials of F&R Cawley have announced the death of its director and general manager after an operation at Harefield Hospital. David Watson joined the Bedfordshire-based regional waste management company in 1982 and has been involved in all aspects of the business over the years. He sadly passed away on Thursday December 28 while undergoing heart surgery. F&R Cawley managing director Jon Cawley said: We are all stunned by Daves sudden death. We are still comi -
Call for single waste authority fails to find support from MPs
A bid to set up a single waste authority (SWA) in London has failed to gain the support of MPs. Clauses on waste within the Greater London Authority (GLA) Bill were debated by the committee in Parliament this week, where Labour MP Karen Buck put forward the case for a SWA. London needs strong, effective leadership on waste management. That requires not only a clear distinction, but powers and funding to deliver it. Transport for London has demonstrated the bene -
Calling all composters
Existing or start-up composters in the Northwest are being offered a unique free service. Not-for-profit company Envirolink Northwest, which supports the environmental technologies industry in the region, wants to increase composting capacity so that more garden and food waste can be diverted from landfill over the next two years. Via its Remade Northwest project, which supports the recycling and composting industry, Envirolink can help reduce the outlay neces -
Cory submits plans for 120,000 tonnes capacity facility
Cory Environmental has submitted plans for a recycling plant capable of sorting 120,000 tonnes of residual household waste each year. An application has been made to St Helens Council for the Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility which would be constructed at its Vista Road site near Haydock. The aim is to substantially increase recycling performance within St Helens and the wider Merseyside area, reducing reliance on landfill. Using -
Free plastic bottle recycling seminars
Free seminars on improving plastic bottle recycling rates are on offer from the Waste & Recycling Action Programme (WRAP). Aimed at local authorities and their waste management contractors, the events will offer the opportunity to discuss the latest techniques for boosting plastic bottle recycling rates and the sharing of good practice. With the average kerbside scheme collecting just over 5kg of plastic bottles per household per year, WRAP wants to see this f -
Holiday Inn takes advantage of council recycling scheme
Kensingtons Holiday Inn hotel has become one of the first businesses in the London borough to have received office recycling boxes, as part of a new council initiative. With over 900 rooms and 27 floors, the hotel is the biggest in Kensington and Chelsea. The council said it was encouraged that such a high-profile business had decided to use the scheme so early on. -
Leeds set to address issues
A council operation aims to tackle waste issues alongside other anti-social problems such as drugs and school truancy. Leeds City Council (LCC) alongside West Yorkshire Police has set up the crackdown which will include a blitz on vehicle and environmental crime and has taken to the streets of the John OGaunts estate in the city under the title Operation CAVA. The move will be jointly co-ordinated by Leeds Community Safety, West Yorkshire Police and South Lee -
LGA defends its War on Waste approach
Criticisms of failing to inform local authorities of its War on Waste campaign before it hit the press have been rebuffed by the Local Government Association (LGA). LGA spokeswoman Sandra Issar said local authority members were informed of the campaign before its launch and major developments in the LGA campaign would be communicated in letters to member chief executives and council leaders. The LGA reiterated that its push for giving councils the power to char -
Lightweighting could save 65,000 tonnes of glass
A new lightweighting project could pave the way for the saving of 65,000 tonnes of glass and 48,000 tonnes of carbon emissions by 2009. This is the equivalent to taking 28,000 cars off the road and will happen if a new GlassRite Food project funded by the Waste & Resources Action Programme bears fruit. Promoting the use of innovative lightweight glass containers for food products, soft drinks and flavoured alcoholic beverages (FABs), it aims to save 20,000 to -
M&S unveil multi-million pound "eco plan"
Marks & Spencer (M&S) has announced a £200 million eco plan to reduce the environmental impact of its operations. Divided into five areas, the plans waste ambitions include becoming a zero waste and carbon neutral organisation by 2012. Dubbed Plan A, its pledges include reducing its packaging by 25% and e -
Modification of excavation waste saves developer resources and money
The developer of a 9.83 acre residential site in North London has saved 30,000 tonnes of waste going to landfill and about £1.2 million through converting excavation waste into a sub-base. Working with Keanes Environmental, St James Homes modified inert and non hazardous clay based material through a Keanemixer, creating a product it has called Trenchmod. This has been used a sub-base for the overall site infrastructure works on the former Thames Water treatment works site. -
New plant targets London and south east lamps
A new plant hopes to provide the processing capacity to deal with lamps from the South East of the country and London. With the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive transposed into law from the beginning of 2007 and set for full implementation during July, Surrey-based Enlightened Lamp Recycling (ELR) sits in a prime position to play a leading role in the area. The company had equipment installed during November last year and while repre -
New Recycle Now advert tackles glass
A new Recycle Now television advertisement focuses on the energy and resources that can be saved by making new bottles and jars from recycled glass. The animated Recycle Now family who featured in previous campaigns are again the main focus with actress Jane Horrocks narrating for the first time. Over 44.6 million people across England have seen the previous series of commercials focusing on recycling paper, aluminium and steel cans and garden waste, with it -
No AWC/rat link says Bradshaw
In defence of the supposed link between the rise in rat population and introduction of alternate week collections (AWCs), Environment Minister Ben Bradshaw said proper design of an AWC should avoid any nuisance to householders. Referring to a recent study conducted by Enviros Consulting and Cranfield University, with funding from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Bradshaw said no evidence of such a link was found. The study found t -
Paper industry welcomes energy package
The European paper industry has welcomed the energy package published by the European Commission. It also points out that the proposed unilateral approach will only be possible if a balance can be found for those sectors, such as the paper industry, which compete on a global scale. Action to address the energy markets and the upcoming review of the Emissions Trading Scheme will be crucial to this. Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) managing dir -
Priority for paper likely
Paper is likely to be prioritised by the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP), according to Environment Minister Ben Bradshaw. Responding to written parliamentary questions, he said additional work on the material was likely to be on the cards in WRAPs work and business plans for 2007/08. WRAP is commissioning a risk assessment report on the future of paper exports, which will outline the opportunities and risks associated with the export of paper. As well -
Recycled material used in surface course for the first time
The template for future roads could have been set with recycled material used in a surface course for the first time. Construction firm Hanson conducted successful trials at Junction 35 of the M4 in South Wales, with the results proving of major pertinence to local authority recycling targets. While traditionally up to 25% of the base or binder course has been constructed of re-used aggregates, a new Tuffgrip product comprising 20% recycled material has met a -
Single waste authority debate re-ignites
Calls for and against a single waste authority (SWA) for London were renewed this week with the release of new analysis from London Councils, the organisation that represents the interests of Londons 33 boroughs. London Councils said that when the 2005/06 recycling figures for London boroughs were compared with similar large urban authorities, nine of the ten top performing authorities were from London. In contrast, when compared with all authorities, no London councils featu -
The growth of an Irish plastics recycler
Northern Irelands first auto-sort plant for plastic bottles has anticipated it will soon change from being a national resource to a regional processing facility as demand for material increases. Plastics recycler Irish Polymers has credited the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) for helping it secure almost £1 million in investment to enable it to establish the facility. Managing director David Wilson said: In fact our turnover has double -
UK's first commercial plasterboard recycling process unveiled
A Midlands-based recycler claims to have developed the countrys first commercial process to totally recycle plasterboard, with the added bonus that it costs 30% less than other methods of plasterboard disposal. The new process, which has undergone years of research and testing, can recycle 100% of plasterboard. Independent recycling company Mid UK Recycling hopes the new technology will significantly reduce the amount of plasterboard that goes to landfill. Buil -
Waste pyramid helps kick-start council waste consultation
Newcastle residents were faced with a pyramid of waste representing the amount an average household produces a year. The life-sized -
West Midlands running out of space
New figures show that the West Midlands only has enough landfill space left for seven more years of waste if we continue at the current rate of disposal. In statistics compiled for an Environment Agency (EA) report, there was estimated to be approximately 78,000 cubic metres of space remaining at the beginning of 2005 or around 208 swimming pools of room. Around 7.5 million tonnes went to landfill in the area during 2004/05, with landfill deposits falling by
