New metal recycling facility opens in Jersey

Jersey’s newest metal recycling facility, EMR Jersey, has opened in La Collette Recycling Park.

The new purpose built facility was officially opened with a ribbon cutting by Minister for Infrastructure, Deputy Kevin Lewis, on Friday (18 October), after the company relocated from its previous site at Bellozanne.

Minister for Infrastructure, Deputy Kevin Lewis, said: “I was really pleased to officially open the new site for EMR Jersey, which now brings all our main solid waste and reuse and recycling facilities into one location at La Collette.”

EMR Jersey works in partnership with the Government of Jersey, who helped to facilitate the relocation.

The move to the new site has enabled EMR Jersey to improve its ability to segregate various grades of metals; it can now accept materials that it previously couldn’t, such as refrigerators and other cooling appliances.

Director of EMR Jersey, Bob Garwood, said: “EMR Jersey is not just a metal recycling facility, it is also a community partner you can rely on. We put a great deal of importance on supporting the communities and groups that are close to our sites.”

The depot at La Collette Recycling Park is now open to the public.

Re-Gen Waste invests £5m to produce fossil fuel alternative

Re-Gen Waste has invested £5m in the development of its existing processing facility to produce a high specification replacement for traditional fossil fuels, for use in cement kilns and power stations.

Re-Gen provides mixed dry recycling and municipal solid waste collection and processing services for public authorities and private companies across the island of Ireland and the UK.

The company already exports 80,000 tonnes of solid recovered fuel annually, but will manufacture higher calorific value pellets and baled material for the cement and steel industries, which will be shipped to Europe through local ports.

Joseph Doherty, Managing Director of Re-Gen Waste said: “This is an incredibly important area of our work, as our ‘throw-away’ society is generating in excess of 27 million tonnes of mixed household waste per year, in the UK.

“All the materials that come into our lives will be one day discarded and there are ultimately two choices we can make; they can be treated as waste and end up in landfills or be treated as a resource and reprocessed to find a home in our economy.”

Worldwide substitution of coal and oil, in the Cement Industry now averages 13%, in Europe that figure is 26% and 60% in Germany and Austria respectively. There is also significant growth potential in Africa, South America and East Asia.

Mr Doherty said; “We’re helping local councils find a positive outcome to their landfill problem. We all generate waste and we all, especially recyclers, have to work out the right way of handling it, so that it does not end up in landfills or suffocating our rivers and oceans.

“Finding at least a second life for every type of waste material, is what we are striving for.”

Turnover boost for Keenan Recycling following expansion

Scotland’s largest organic waste recycling company has reported that it will achieve a turnover of £10 million, just over 12 months after expanding into England.

Keenan Recycling is forecasting to grow turnover to £30million and double the workforce in the next five years as a result of capitalising on the market opportunity in England.

The company, which now operates across Scotland and England, reduces the amount of waste going to landfill. Processing more than 100,000 tonnes of organic waste a year and turning it into premium grade compost or generating electricity through anaerobic digesters, Keenan Recycling works with a growing number of customers in England.

Initially set up as a garden composting business in 2001, Keenan Recycling launched its commercial food waste collection services in Scotland in 2009. Following a £2.2million investment from BGF in 2015, the company has invested significantly in its expansion plans including the move into England.

Keenan recycling now employs more than 90 people across their operations in Scotland and England.

Managing director, Grant Keenan explained: “Unlike Scotland, there is not yet a legal requirement in England to recycle food waste but with the increasing focus on green sustainability and the need to dramatically reduce landfill, this is changing and we are already working with a range of cafes, restaurants and hotels who are voluntarily choosing to make the right choice about managing their food waste.

“As a result, we will be well-positioned to expand our services and capitalise on the bigger opportunities when new legislation comes into force.”