The first homes in a new pilot gas project will receive gas generated from human waste. A new facility, which is now opened in Didcot, Oxfordshire, will spearhead the project, which will be the first scheme to produce renewable gas for the National Grid. The plant is expected to be able to supply 200 homes with the alternative gas. In a joint venture between British Gas, Scotia Gas Networks and Thames Water, it is hoped that the pilot could make up 15 per cent of domestic gas needs by 2020. Using anaerobic digestion the plant will produce biogas yielded from sewage waste ... Full Story

The official opening of a food waste-to-energy plant in Cumbernauld took place today. Deerdykes is now Scotland’s largest organic waste recycling plant. Operated by Scottish Water, the facility has the capacity to generate enough power for 2,000 homes per year. A groundbreaking new development, the site is the first in the UK to employ in-vessel composting with anaerobic digestion – a process that breaks down food using microorganisms. Through these techniques the food is broken down and made into gas, which is then converted to electricity. Deerdykes cost developers nearly £7.5m to build and is based at a former treatment works plant. The ... Full Story

A massive multi-million pounds scheme is being launched to help Wakefield manage its growing piles of rubbish. Set to create hundreds of jobs, the initiative will receive Government funding of up to £33m and begin later this year. The VT group was selected as the preferred bidder for the scheme three years ago, and has since been acquired by Babcock International Group plc, which is in talks with the local council to seal the deal. With the potential to create up to 350 jobs, Cllr Olivia Rowley said that initially the project saw a series of setbacks mostly due to the economic ... Full Story

The energy giant behind the proposed €350m Poolbeg incinerator is putting added pressure on the Government to pass a final decision on the plant. Covanta Energy, which has signed a contract with the Dublin City Council to build the incinerator, has described the controversial facility as the best means of handling the city's municipal waste. However, Environment Minister John Gormley has opposed the incinerator causing construction on the facility to become delayed. With Poolbeg located in Mr Gormley's constituency, the Environment Minister claims that the plant is much too large for current waste requirements. At a processing capacity of 600,000 tonnes of ... Full Story

Derby officials have begun a public inquiry into a controversial waste treatment plant proposal after residents mounted a scathing attack on councillors. Resource Recovery Solutions' proposals have been heavily criticised by officials from the Derby City Council for the Sinfin Lane facility, despite the council having signed a contract with the company for it to manage the city's municipal waste for the next 27 years. The city council rejected the firm's original planning application citing that it would harm the environment, cause traffic issues and visually disturb the local community. RRS appealed the rejection, which has lead to the public inquiry taking ... Full Story

Enfield in north London will soon house a new biomass facility in the wake of the local council approving planning permission. Irish-based Kedco, which proposed the plant to the authority earlier in the year, will now seek out funding for the 12MW power station, which will need around £45 million in financing to construct. The company has estimated that the facility can be built and operational in the next 18 months. CEO of Kedco, Donal Buckley said that the firn believes that biomass energy is on par with where wind energy was in the sector five years ago. He added that the ... Full Story

Dublin City Council is refuting the accusations that it could terminate its contract for the proposed Ringsend-based incinerator. Responding to a report on RTE's Prime Time, the council has said that there is no 'get out' clause in its contract with Covanta, which was signed in 2007 for the building of the Poolbeg incinerator. In a statement today, the council said that it remains contractually obligated to provide a waste-to-energy facility at Poolbeg in order to manage Dublin's residual waste. The Prime Time report suggested that the city council could walk away from the deal without incurring any extra costs. However, the ... Full Story

Bosses of the Manchester-based recycling plant that broke out in a blaze bringing 60 firefighters to the scene have put out a £10,000 reward for the arsonists. In what is the firm’s third time being hit by arsonists, the Armstrongs Group recycling centre caught fire after hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste was set ablaze. The plume of smoke from the burning waste was visible from several miles closing numerous roads in the area. An apology was issued by parent-company Armstrong Environmental Services to residents in the nearby area. It has since come to light that this most recent fire is the ... Full Story

The incinerator proposed for Splott in Cardiff will receive an extended deadline for residents to voice their concerns prior to the Cardiff council granting an environmental permit. Environment Agency Wales initially backed the proposed plant and but has extended the deadline for consultations by 10 days after concerns arose that residents would not have time to comment due to a school holiday. Cardiff council has already given the project planning permission. According to a statement from Environment Agency Wales, the body wants to make sure that all householders have ample time to comment and voice concerns regarding the planned facility. It also ... Full Story

Rotorua has just received a $1 million grant to construct its new human waste processing plant. New Zealand Environment Minister Nick Smith announced that the funding would be granted to the council from the Government’s Waste Minimisation Fund. Making a statement at Scion yesterday, the Minister said that the project would benefit both Rotorua and the country overall. He added that the nation prided itself in using methods that were 100 per cent pure and said that Rotorua would have a challenge in that a large portion of the population lives away from the coast. The minister further said that New Zealand ... Full Story

The green light has been given for a controversial new biomass incinerator slated to be built in Glenavy. The North’s Environment Minister Edwin Poots approved the power plant yesterday amidst strong protests from Co Antrim residents and environmental groups. Upon completion, the proposed plant will generate enough electricity to power up to 25,000 residences. Rose Energy is behind the move, which is a joint venture firm comprised of the three largest poultry producers in the area; O’Kane Poultry, Glenfarm Holdings and Moy Park. The new facility will also bring 40 new jobs into the area as well as provide construction jobs for ... Full Story

Construction began today on the world’s first ever industrial scale waste-to-biofuel facility. Being built by privately-owned Enerkem Inc, the $75 million plant will be in Edmonton, Alberta and be able to generate enough biofuel to run over 400,000 vehicles each year using a five per cent ethanol fuel blend. Canada has been taking a forefront in the internationally community in biofuel investments as a means to reduce its carbon footprint. The country will announce in September that all petrol must have five per cent renewable content. Enerkem has obtained a 25-year agreement with the local Edmonton council to use 100,000 tonnes of ... Full Story