BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Case study: Wembley City goes underground
In 2007, Envac was commissioned by Quintain to design and install the UK’s first automated waste collection system. The project saw the Envac system integrated into Wembley City’s Forum House development to manage the waste of 4,200 residential units.
Residents now separate their waste in specially designed bins installed in each home. Waste is then disposed of in readily accessible portals next to the building’s exits. Here, the bags sit on a closed storage valve. The inlets are emp- tied a few times a day and automatically if the inlet’s sensor picks up that it is full.
Waste is transported at speeds of up to 70mph via a system of underground pipes that uses fans to build up a vacuum. Waste at the collection station is sucked through a cyclone, where it is separated from the transport air. The waste then falls down into a compressor where it is compressed and fed into a sealed container. When full, the container is taken away by waste removal trucks.
Between 40-45% of all waste is now recycled – higher than Brent’s 2006-7 figures. The need for heavy waste transpor-
in the near future. But should existing areas be overlooked at the expense of new developments and technology, or is it still possible to increase recycling levels for the benefit of the environments in which these buildings occupy? With a few changes to current customs and practice, the UK could see a radical increase in recycling levels within existing dwellings coupled with a reduction in carbon emissions. With improving technology in our newer material recy- cling facilities, particularly those serving our urban areas, managing mixed dry recyclables as a single waste stream is becoming the choice of many local authorities. This reduces the need for residents to separate waste and store in multi- ple containers, making recycling easier and more accessible. Recycling rates can increase significantly too. Waste col- lection is also much simpler, with fewer refuse collection vehicle movements and less disturbance to residents. Perhaps more important is the Government’s approach to encouraging residents to recycle. Local authority resources would be better spent on employing education officers to educate people about recycling rather than employing enforcement officers to punish those who do not. Companies such as RecycleBank, where users are financially rewarded for recycling their waste, have demonstrated how successful incentive schemes are.
Councils are also looking at how to improve food waste recycling and investing in education could play a greater role here. Expecting residents to purchase their own bio- degradable bags is unrealistic, particularly during a time of high inflation and where the public’s spending power has been significantly reduced. Supermarkets typically charge £2 for a roll of 10 bags, so can we really expect residents to pick up this cost? Councils that are rolling out food waste
Between 40-45% of all waste is now recycled at Forum House
tation in the area has also been reduced by around 90%. This means that there will be 400 fewer tonnes of C02 per year com- pared with conventional waste collection and that collection activity is minimised and the proportion of waste to landfill is reduced. It has also minimised the space and time required for waste collection and stores waste in an odour-free way.
collection programmes would generate better results if these bags were given out free of charge.
Additional barriers to carbon reduction include the large numbers of collection vehicles that operate in city centres during peak hours. The waste industry is trialling hybrid vehicles to improve efficiency. But there are over 300 local authorities in the UK. Would it not be better to establish recycling and collection partnerships between authorities? This has proven successful with disposal contracts, where the financial and environmental benefits are clear. Waste management strategies hugely influence the plan- ning process and this has encouraged new products and
The Envac system provides a glimpse of how the waste management landscape could look in the near future
“
technologies to appeal to the architectural profession, which now considers this as an essential component of their build- ing design and an innovative alternative to conventional waste collection. The days in which the only consideration given to waste provision was where to put the bins once the buildings were built seem to be over.
”
This still leaves us with a high percentage of buildings where waste management and recycling levels can and must be improved. The need for more efficient approaches to waste management are required for financial and environ- mental reasons, both of which can be achieved through a greater level of education and by creating a culture of reward and not one of punishment.
Julian Gaylor is managing director at Envac UK
April 2011 Local Authority Waste & Recycling 11
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56