Recycling firm signs agreement with Yorkshire Water for third composting facility
| BY Wastewise
Leading Yorkshire based recycling company, Wastewise, has entered into a new agreement with Yorkshire Water for the operation of an open windrow composting facility at its Esholt wastewater treatment site, near Bradford.
Wastewise will operate the seven-acre Esholt site for an initial three-year period to enable the recycling of circa 50k tonnes per annum of household garden waste from the surrounding West and South Yorkshire areas.
Earlier this year Leeds City Council and Bradford Council each awarded garden waste treatment contracts to Wastewise as part of a 12-year Dynamic Purchasing System with an initial call-off contract for three years. The 15,000 tonnes of waste from Leeds is delivered directly to the treatment facility and 18,000 tonnes from Bradford is collected by Wastewise from two transfer stations. An additional 16,000 tonnes is transported to the site for treatment under a separate three-year contract with Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council.
The addition of the Esholt site means that Wastewise now handles in excess of 220ktpa of household organic waste across its various operations.
Wastewise’s managing director James Landau, said: “We have opened two new treatment facilities so far this year which demonstrates the exceptional growth that our business is currently experiencing and which we expect to continue as new legislation is introduced to mandate the separate collection of organic waste.”
Michael Poole, Operational Land Manager at Yorkshire Water, said: “We are delighted to be working with Wastewise to make optimum use of our existing asset at Esholt whilst jointly investigating further development opportunities at this and our other sites to deliver positive outcomes for the environment and the communities we serve.”
Previously run by SJB Recycling, Wastewise has employed five new staff members and invested in various items of recycling equipment to manage the facility, which is permitted for up to 75kpta of garden waste. The company has re-certified the site to BSI PAS 100 and Compost Quality Protocol standards and is already looking into ways to enhance and expand the existing operation.
Future opportunities may involve the development of an IVC facility in the region, similar to the sites already operated by Wastewise in Hull and Crewe, for the treatment of commingled garden and food waste as Local Authorities consider possible changes to their waste collection systems.
Yorkshire Water’s Esholt wastewater treatment site is located on a 32-acre site of the former Esholt Hall and services 750,000 people in Bradford and North Leeds. It is Yorkshire Water’s second largest wastewater treatment plant.
Following a successful period of growth, Hull-based Wastewise continues to seek opportunities to broaden its waste-processing infrastructure, which includes composting, materials recycling, biomass and alternative fuel production facilities.
