Shropshire, UK - Veolia has signed the long term integrated waste management contract with the Shropshire Waste Partnership (SWP) within 2 months of being appointed the preferred bidder by the Authority.
This means that the County Council has hit its target to start the contract from the 1 October and from that date the Shropshire Waste Partnership will be responsible for managing household waste and recycling services on behalf of Bridgnorth District Council, North Shropshire District Council, Oswestry Borough Council, Shropshire County Council and South Shropshire District Council.
However Shrewsbury & Atcham Council continues to cater for its own waste and recycling collection services as the council is not a member of the SWP.
Veolia Environmental Services has taken on the responsibility for collecting, reducing, recycling, recovering and disposing of household waste on behalf of the councils in SWP, under the contract expected to last for 27 years.
Veolia’s Marchwood ERF, Hampshire (Photo – Veolia)
Shropshire produces around 180,000 tonnes of refuse per annum yielding considerably over 1 tonne per household. In 2006/2007 Shropshire residents recycled or composted 38 per cent of their household waste which is well above targets set by central government.
Veolia proposes a capital investment of more than £100m in waste infrastructure over the period of the contract and has put forward a number of proposals to enhance waste services across the four districts in the waste partnership.
The company intends to reduce the amount of household waste that is sent to landfill from 65 per cent in 2005/6 to just five per cent by 2015 and intends to increasing Shropshire’s recycling levels to more than 50 per cent by 2012.
A kerbside plastic bottle collection service is to be introduced in all four districts within the SWP by 2010.
Infrastructure
Veolia proposes to construct two new integrated waste management facilities in Oswestry and Bridgnorth which will include household waste recycling centres and waste transfer stations. Subject to receiving planning permission, the Oswestry facility would be open by April 2009, and the Bridgnorth facility by April 2010.
The company also intends to construct an in-vessel composting (IVC) facility, which will treat all compostable wastes, including all food waste producing a valuable, peat-free compost whilst increasing landfill diversion. A proposed site for the facility is yet to be agreed.
An Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) is to be provided at the existing waste complex at Battlefield Enterprise Park in Shrewsbury that will produce enough electricity from residual waste to power over 10,000 homes each year. It should process 90,000 tonnes of Shropshire’s residual household waste and generate up to 8MW of electricity.
The new ERF would be designed to a high architectural standard and Veolia has already won awards for two of its plants under Project Integra in Hampshire.
The Battlefield ERF is also to be specifically designed around achieving high levels of recycling and composting, and would be designed to “complement and not compromise them”, according to SWP.