News Industry opinion


Resource efficiency makes good business sense


It is now over three years since WRAP Cymru was established. Head of WRAP Cymru, Beth Winkley explains how the programme is working with businesses in Wales and the support it offers them.


OCS acquired Envirocomp in February and plans to establish nappy composting facilities such as the one above in the UK


Kimberly-Clark and OCS sign global agreement


INTERNATIONAL FACILITIES services company OCS has signed a global sponsorship agreement with Kimberly-Clark Corporation that gives the US headquartered manufacturer of Huggies brand disposable nappies the right of first refusal to sponsor OCS’s Envirocomp composting facilities as they are installed around the world. OCS acquired Envirocomp in


February 2011 and plans to establish Envirocomp facilities in the UK, the Republic of Ireland, Australia and mainland Europe, while expanding


Commercial film recycling in four years


CLOSED-LOOP RECYCLING of post-consumer and retail waste plastic films could become a full- scale commercial reality within four years, predicts Axion Consulting, following the outcome of feasibility trials. Refuse sacks, external hoardings,


shelving and in-store displays are among various new products that could be made from waste supermarket plastics and either sold or used within their store networks, says theManchester-based resource recovery specialist. Axion worked with three


manufacturers, CeDo, Centriforce Products and Protomax Plastics, on a series of demonstration trials of post-consumer films sourced from a retailer’s front and back of store collections. According to Axion, its research


(funded by WRAP) showed it is technically possible to manufacture commercially useful products for the retail sector from mixed post- consumer film packaging. The trial at CeDo’s Telford facility


produced refuse sacks that met existing product specifications using 100% UK-sourced recycled content from household waste. Previously European recyclate had to be used due to waste quality issues.


Making recycled Christmas gifts at Barracks Lane Community Garden as part of the activities to raise the profile of the third annual European Week for Waste Reduction


Oxfordshire sets a European example


FROM OXFORDSHIRE to Austria, Flanders and France, a programme of activities is taking place across Europe this week as part of the third annual European Week for Waste Reduction. Running from November 19 to 27, the week aims to engage large numbers of European citizens about the actions that they can take in everyday life to help reduce waste. This year is expected to be the


biggest yet with over 7000 actions planned in 20 countries. Oxfordshire Waste Partnership


is acting as one of 34 European coordinators. Eiles Robinson, waste reduction


officer from the county council, heads the coordination. She said: “We’ve taken part


in this important week since it started and this year we were asked by the organisers to take


Recycling & WA S T E W O R L D


on this important task. Cutting waste is important to us so we were happy to take a lead role in highlighting it to others.” Various awareness-raising


actions will take place in Oxfordshire and across the continent simultaneously. Focusing on waste reduction,


better production and consumption, local events will show simple ways that individuals can play their part. Community action groups


in Oxford, Wantage and Clifton Hampden held workshops on making Christmas gifts, recycled jewellery and homemade wreaths with a difference. More activities will be taking


place throughout the week. These include cooking with leftovers, swap shops and waste reduction eco days.


www. r e c y c l i n gwa s t ewo r l d . c o . u k


Reduce your problems to a manageable size


If its for Size Reduction, Confidential Destruction or Secure Peace of Mind we can offer bespoke solutions for most Shredding applications. With Shredder models available from 7.5kW up to 150kW we’re sure to have a solution to your Shredding problem.


Phone & talk to us about our range of Industrial Shredders.


For further information about Ulster Shredders, please telephone


028 9335 2526 or email info@ulstershredders.com www.ulstershredders.com


Cogry Mill, Doagh, Ballyclare, Co. Antrim Northern Ireland BT39 0PU


November 24 2011 3


operations of its New Zealand facilities over the next 18 months. Through a similar sponsorship


in 2009, Huggies brand nappies and Envirocomp established the first commercial nappy composting facility in Christchurch, New Zealand. Within the first year of operation,


the facility is said to have exceeded its business plan and processed more than 15,000 nappies a day, which were mixed with green waste supplied by the local councils that resulted in compost


suitable for commercial gardening or landscaping. OCS is installing its second plant in the Wellington region with a $700,000 grant from the New Zealand government’s waste minimisation fund. Cecil Ryan, regional managing


director for OCS Europe said: ”Kimberly-Clark has backed Envirocomp from the start, working with its founder, Karen Upston, to build the business model and grow relationships with industry, local and central government. This has been a true partnership.”


WRAP CYMRU’S ReMake programme, funded in part by the European Commission’s Competitiveness and Innovation Programme, works with SMEs in the manufacturing sector to help them become more sustainable and more profitable by introducing or increasing the amount of recycled materials in their products, packaging or processes. We offer two packages of support at no cost to recipients. The first gives recipients up to six days of technical support including


site visits, research and planning. The second gives recipients up to 15 days hands-on implementation


support, which could include elements such as life-cycle planning and material sourcing. Of course if we are encouraging manufacturers to use as much


recycled material as possible in their products we have to ensure that we can provide that recycled material in the first place. WRAP Cymru wants to be part of the debate about how best to guarantee high quality recyclate, and we want to continue to work with businesses, with reprocessors, and with central and local government to ensure that we encourage people to recycle as much as possible and that we can benefit from keeping this recyclate in Wales. The benefits of a Welsh reprocessing industry will be particularly


welcome in Wales’ convergence areas, which is why WRAP can provide capital funding of up to 40% of total eligible costs for SMEs operating in these areas. The ARID programme of support is part-funded by the European


Regional Development Fund through the Welsh government and offers three grants for eligible businesses. In addition we are proud to be working with the Welsh Government


and the Welsh Local Government Association to deliver the Welsh Government’s Collaborative Change Programme. WRAP is working to develop markets here in Wales for compost and


digestate in agriculture and landscaping. In September we issued five new reports about compost and bio-


fertiliser and in early November we held a joint workshop in a slate quarry in North Wales to illustrate how quality compost can be used in the restoration of mines and quarries. We’re also developing plans for working with other business sectors,


and will continue working closely with our partners to contribute to the Welsh government’s ambition of Wales recycling 70% of its waste by 2025 and being ‘zero waste’ by 2050.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12