roundtable 43
done by people on a whim. The proper planning was put in place and it was massively subsidised by successive governments, Labour and Conservative.
“If Waste to Energy stations, for example, are to be part of our coherent UK energy strategy going forward then they need to be given proper support in order for them to be put in place.” (Grundon Waste Management currently has plans for a Waste to Energy site at Chieveley, Berkshire.)
Why are we exporting our waste abroad?
Grundon revealed that because of planning permission log-jams, UK companies are now exporting up to one million tonnes of waste per year because they don’t have enough disposal plants in the UK. “And, we are being charged by the Germans and Dutch to burn that waste. I liken it to the Germans paying us to take their coal to burn in our power stations to make our electricity. It is insanity that we are exporting our fuel to another country and paying for that privilege, while they make electricity for their own industries.”
“So we are paying for them to have a stronger economy,” Murray concluded.
Reel supported Grundon: “Neil’s right. It is an underlying problem. In my field too (plastics), 736,000 tonnes of waste is going overseas. That’s a resource for this country. We have imported the raw materials, manufactured the products, used them, gathered them and then we ship the waste around the world to have it burnt. That’s not efficient usage. I’m not a fan of burning anything, it’s a last resort solution, but that’s where we are because there is only so much landfill left. We are exporting a key resource and we shouldn’t be.”
Grundon revealed that some glass waste is also being exported to Europe.
“We send glass to Day Aggregates in Brentford to make glass-sand which is used as a replacement aggregate, and where they can, they send it for re-melt. Most of the green glass goes off by train to wine-producing countries like Spain who produce the bottles.
Prior: “I got involved in trains to Spain and stopped pursuing the project because dealing with the authorities like British Rail was near impossible, which made the Barking terminal project barking. The idea itself was probably sound. Access was very good from the M25, and East London Road."
Grundon: “The Government needs to get real about waste. It is going abroad because they are not giving permissions. The problem is that our career politicians are media managers not decision- makers. We are not seeing any of them coming forward, owning up to the effects of their actions.”
Alex Zachary
Williams agreed: “They just want to be popular, that’s the problem.”
Well done, Maggie Thatcher . . .
Grundon said other countries did not have the problems of the UK because they had already put ‘green’ infrastructure in place. “They understood the issues and resolved them.”
He suggested ironically that Margaret Thatcher had done more to advance the green cause in the UK then any other politician when she closed down coalmines. “She saw that they were geologically difficult and very expensive to dig and we could import cheap coal from elsewhere. The Germans never bit the bullet and are still exploiting mines that are difficult and very expensive, so when the green Germans saw this, their suggestion to build infrastructure to burn waste became a very green and cost-conscious argument,” he explained.
“As a business decision, I can give £79 per tonne to the UK Government in Landfill Tax (LT) or send my waste to Germany more cheaply. So we now export our excess waste to Germany.”
What’s being done to reduce landfill?
Diane Yarrow THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – OCTOBER 2012
“Not granting any new permissions helps,” said Grundon wryly. “The die is now cast as far as landfill goes but there are still waste companies with a lot of landfill assets. If
we were in a proper economy those businesses would die because they would not be able to sweat those assets to help make cheap repayments on cheap loans.” Landfill gate-prices have fallen steadily over the years to £3-4 per tonne, he added.
Reel said increasing Landfill Tax rates had unintentionally placed a significant burden on SMEs. Landfill volumes had reduced but now “£470m of LT is falling on SMEs at just the time when they need momentum to generate jobs and grow.”
“It’s also falling on consumer households through Council Tax,” Grundon added. “If SMEs are producing waste for landfill, which they shouldn’t be if they are a lean operation, then they have to be prepared to pay for it.”
Williams: “SMEs are being hit with LT but I don’t think it is causing them too much pain in terms of undue cost to their business, but they are looking at the options carefully.”
Grundon said the future of the environment sector was being challenged on two levels:
• Investment in new UK facilities is being hampered by available waste being exported, and landfill owners still sweating their assets for cash.
• Legislation and planning regulations making new technology progress difficult.
Prior admitted gate-prices at his Holsworthy anaerobic digestion (AD) plant had halved in the past three years,
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