Grundon Waste Management and Viridor have submitted a planning application to West Sussex County Council for a state-of-the-art Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) and Waste Sorting and Transfer Facility (WSTF) at Ford Circular Technology Park (CTP).
The proposed facilities will be able to process up to 295,000 tonnes of waste a year, diverting from landfill and helping to close the current waste management capacity gap in West Sussex. The ERF will generate 28MW (net) of energy, enough to power around 68,000 homes – equivalent to a town the size of Bognor Regis and Littlehampton combined.
If approved, the two facilities will provide 80 permanent jobs, creating 56 new jobs and safeguarding the existing 24 jobs currently at Ford CTP. The project will also create apprenticeship, graduate and management training scheme opportunities.
Ford Energy from Waste Director Philip Atkinson said: “Today’s submission is a key milestone for us and a crucial step towards delivering this important scheme.
This combined development will make a valuable contribution to both resource and energy efficiency. It will also close a local capacity gap which has – until now – meant waste produced locally either goes to landfill or travels a great distance for processing – sometimes overseas
“Finding ways to manage the waste we produce in a more sustainable way is vital. This combined development will make a valuable contribution to both resource and energy efficiency. It will also close a local capacity gap which has – until now – meant waste produced locally either goes to landfill or travels a great distance for processing – sometimes overseas. Managing this waste locally is not only a more effective way of treating waste but allows us to significantly reduce carbon emissions and put non-recyclable waste to work to generate energy.
“Grundon has operated a waste transfer station on this site since 2015 and Viridor has operated a Materials Recycling Facility nearby on behalf of West Sussex County Council since 2009. We believe the site itself is well-located and ready for development. We would like to thank everyone that took part in the consultation and we look forward to the next stage of the process.”
Grundon Waste Management and Viridor held a public consultation on the proposals for the two facilities in March and April 2020 and used the feedback to help finalise the application.
West Sussex County Council will now carry out its own statutory consultation, providing a further opportunity for the public to comment on the plans.
