Premier way to go green

May 20 2008 by Karen McLauchlan, Evening Gazette

PREMIER Waste, the biggest player in North-east waste management and a leading innovator in the recycling of biodegradable material, is the latest company to back the Gazette’s Renew, Reuse, Recycle campaign.

The company, which is responsible for bin emptying in Darlington, takes to the world stage on Thursday by addressing the international Alternative Waste Technologies Conference in London where it will showcase its industry-leading Parc recycling project, now operating in the north of the region.

Marc Stouph, director of regulatory affairs, said: “Reducing waste is an essential part of the drive to tackle climate change. The key is to reduce the amount of biodegradable waste going into landfill that produces methane.

“We aim to demonstrate to organisations involved in the waste industry as well as local authorities, that there is a viable alternative to landfill or incineration and aerobic digestion and recycling is a workable solution.”

Most of Teesside’s biodegradable waste ends up incinerated, Parc’s three industrial-sized compost bins handle up to 60,000 tonnes of biodegradable household rubbish from the North-east a year, converting as much as 80% into a safe, nitrogen rich, compost-like material.

The product is used as a soil conditioner or mixed with higher grade recycled green waste from garden clippings to be used as top soil.

Short rotation willow coppice grown in the material at disused Premier landfill sites across the region will eventually be returned to Teesside to power Sembcorp’s biomass generators at Wilton.

“We need to look after the landfill sites for several decades after they close, so all our short rotation coppice is grown on them,” said communcations manager Tony Hitchins.

He said the company had abandoned trials on other biofuel feedstocks, including rape.

“Apart from sugar cane, willow gives you the best bang for bucks in terms of energy efficiency,” said Mr Hitchins. “One unit of energy in produces 10 units of energy out.” Crops from the first trial sites will not be harvested until 2010.

Local authorities are under pressure from both British and European regulators to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and increase recycling. But plans for new incinerators outstrip those of ic digestors, claimed Mr Hitchins.

“Thirty-three percent of waste in a household bin is putricible - uncooked and cooked food, your half-eaten chicken biriani.

“On top of that there’s a proportion of biodegradable paper and stuff from the vac.

“Government says 65% of a household bin is biodegradable but where the Scots have said that only 25% of waste can be incinerated, the English government has simply said 65% of putricible waste must not go into landfill.

“Our main competitor in England is mass incineration and you’d be surprised how many plans there are for them,” said Mr Hitchins.

The amount of tax local authorities pay on landfill is due to increase to £48/t.

“That’s why local authorities pick heavy stuff to recycle like glass and paper,” said Mr Hitchins.

In addition, they must meet targets to reduce the amount of biological municipal waste (BMP) going to landfill to 11.2mt by 2010 and 5.2mt by 2020.

By 2010 they must recycle 40% of all waste and by 2020 50%. Currently, the North-east is recycling just 26%. “So we are way off target,” said Mr Hitchins. “But the most in England I have seen is 30-36%.”