News Editorial


When Defra director takes social media a step too far


I WONDER how much it’s going to take before the waste management industry’s patience runs out with Defra. Surely, there can be only so much neglect the sector will put up with.


The latest governmental shenanigans comprise the offhand manner in which Defra director for waste policy, Colin Church, announced last Friday evening that Defra has no plans after all to publish its eagerly anticipated guidance on technically, environmentally, and economically practicable recycling, usually referred to as TEEP. For those of you who


haven’t heard of TEEP, it refers to guidance for both the MRF Code of Practice and collection methods for the four recyclables (plastic, paper, glass and metal) demanded by the European Union Waste Framework Directive from January 1, 2015. Without the guidance, it is feared local authorities will not know the criteria they need to satisfy. So did Defra announce they are not going ahead with the TEEP


guidance through the traditional route of a press conference? No. Instead Church opted for a tweet. Call me old fashioned, but I would compare such an offhand gesture with leaving a post-it note for an ex-partner-to-be saying ‘You’re dumped’. What no explanation? No softening of the blow? This comes only weeks after new resource minister, Dan Rogerson’s letter to the waste sector saying the industry has to ‘go it alone’. Despite such cavalier treatment, waste management bodies responded politely by offering “to work closely with Defra to help turn this situation around.” In terms of behaving courteously and gallantly, there are no prizes for guessing who comes out best in this scenario, is there?


Dorset Waste Partnership gets go ahead for Bridport


THE BRIDPORT area is going to have a new waste management centre. Dorset County Council’s planning committee has granted planning permission to the Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP) to build a combined household recycling centre (HRC) and waste transfer station off the A35 West of Bridport. Bridport has been without a dedicated waste management facility since the Bothenhampton landfill site closed in the 1990s and the hunt for a suitable waste management


site began 12 years ago. The existing Bridport HRC on South Street opened on a temporary basis in 1998 and is said to be heavily constrained due to its small size and town centre location.


The new £8m facility will consist of a modern, split-level recycling centre and a transfer station where materials collected from West Dorset households will be bulked up before being sent for recycling, treatment or disposal. At present, materials have to be transported to


transfer stations in the East of the county. The new waste management centre will return to full, seven-day opening times; accept more types of materials, such as wood and glass; mean residents will not have to climb steps to throw materials into skips; have separate operational and public areas and will mean waste lorries will no longer need to travel through Bridport


Construction is set to begin on site next month with the centre expected to open in Autumn 2015.


Scottish kitchens urged to comply with new regs and avoid fines


Geraldine Faulkner January 23 - January 29 Issue No. 874


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Welsh composting facility gets warning


NATURAL RESOURCES Wales has reported serving a formal warning and an enforcement notice on the Bryn Compost waste treatment facility in Gelligaer.


This is said to follow a breach in its permit conditions which resulted in strong odours affecting people living in both the Gelligaer and Nelson areas.


After concerns were raised by local people, officers from Natural Resources Wales carried out an investigation at the site which found that the company was exceeding the volume of waste it is permitted to keep on the site per year. According to Natural Resources


Wales, this increase in waste is likely to have been responsible for


2 January 23 2014


the increase in odour problems at the site.


The Bryn Compost waste treatment facility now has to make sure it does not exceed its waste input limits over the next 12 months to so that this type of breach does not happen again. In addition to this, Natural


Resources Wales said it is also stepping up its regulation of the site to make sure the company is doing everything it can to reduce odour problems at the site. Gareth O’Shea, from Natural


Resources Wales, said “We will be increasing inspections to make sure these latest improvements are made to reduce the impact of odour on people living in the area.”


Emerald Biogas unveils schools food waste campaign across NE


EMERALD BIOGAS, which opened its food waste plant last year, is launching a schools campaign across the region called Waste Warriors: Food for Thought to tackle the growing problem of food waste. The company, which manages a commercial anaerobic digestion facility in Newton Aycliffe - said to be the first of its kind in the North East - is enabling schools in the region to become ‘waste warriors’. In the North East alone over 800,000 tonnes of food waste is reported to be generated every year, with over 80,000 tonnes generated by schools in England every year. Adam Warren, director, Emerald Biogas, said: “As part of the project we will work with the pupils to help them understand the growing impact of food waste disposal and the environmentally friendly solutions that are available. Food waste to


www.recyclingwasteworld.co.uk


landfill is a growing concern, with over 80kg thrown away on average in a primary school each week. “Through our initiative, pupils will have the opportunity to understand the problem of food waste and our innovative solution which also results in the production of green energy,” added Warren. Five schools are already said to be on board, with St Edwards School in Middlesbrough, Coxhoe Primary School and Barnard Castle Prep School in County Durham, Hurworth Primary School in Darlington and Woodham Burn Community Primary School in Newton Aycliffe looking forward to getting started. Stephen Jones, headteacher, Coxhoe Primary School, said: “The idea that we can use food waste to create energy is intriguing and I am sure will appeal to all of our pupils and further develop their


understanding of active citizenship and our responsibilities to take care of the planet by seeking alternative and renewable energy sources for the future.”


Pupils will work through a workbook that aims to encourage collaborative working, creative design, problem solving and mathematics among other core skills. There is also a chance for the schools to win a £250 voucher by taking part in a poster competition.


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BUSINESSES IN Scotland must act now to avoid falling foul of a criminal conviction and being fined up to a £10,000 if they have “no reasonable excuse” for not complying with the new Waste (Scotland) Regulations, according to used cooking oil collector, Olleco. The firm, which specialises in collecting organics waste, believes that this change is an opportunity for kitchens to realise potentially huge cost savings, including reducing their waste collection charges by up to £500 alone. An Olleco company


spokesperson said: “The new Waste (Scotland) Regulations came into force earlier this month with very little fanfare and, if anecdotal evidence is to be believed, not many


organisations affected have put the new practices in place.”


The used cooking oil specialist warned that thousands of commercial kitchens across Scotland are now risking higher collection charges and penalties from their current dry waste supplier because of contaminated waste and also possibly hefty fines and convictions if prosecuted through SEPA. “Yet, few are looking at how this change could become a unique opportunity to achieve cost efficiencies for their business,” continued the company. By law, all non-rural food


businesses which produce over 50kg of food waste per week now have to segregate their food waste into separate bins to ensure it doesn’t end up in the general waste bin


and ultimately into landfill. Olleco said it is keen to flag up the fact this doesn’t mean that businesses will automatically be burdened with added cost. “We believe that it can even offer the opportunity to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill whilst earning businesses significant savings on uplift and landfill tax costs,” said a spokesperson.


Andy Warren, director of Emerald Biogas with Waste Warrior mascot


Recycling &WASTE WORLD


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