Recovering value from our waste

LondonWaste EcoPark, Edmonton, Enfield
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Whether you buy oil, gas or coal, buying fuel costs money. Recently energy prices have risen, and been subject to volatile pricing. As the UK’s energy supply has become more dependent on importing gas and oil from elsewhere in the world, concerns have grown about the stability of energy supply nationally and for particular energy consumers.

As well as helping north London to recycle more, our procurement will help us to recover value from your waste that cannot be recycled or composted by creating energy.  This benefits local council tax payers and also allows us to dispose of it in a much more sustainable way.SRF in hands

The plan is to do this by treating this “residual” waste to create a dry, stable fuel which can be used instead of fossil fuel, such as coal, or other forms of energy production. This is a much more sustainable alternative to sending it to landfill, which is both expensive and more environmentally damaging.

The fuel, called Solid Recovered Fuel or SRF, will be created using a residual waste treatment and fuel preparation technology, such as Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT), and produced to a specification based on a European standard.

An energy solution based on SRF that is produced in London reduces London’s and the nation’s exposure to these energy price fluctuations.

Comment

"The generation of renewable power from waste that cannot be re-used, recycled or composted, ideally involving Combined Heat and Power (CHP), is a vital part of the high quality environmental solution we are seeking.

Accessing the subsidies that are available for green power generation is also vital to minimising the cost of waste disposal to local council taxpayers."

Cllr Clyde Loakes, Chair, NLWA, 8 April 2011