Express ProductsGreen aviation fuel plant receive £1bn investment; Royal Mint to turn WEEE into gold; Veolia trial single line recycling; £30 million boost for plastic packaging reuse and recycling innovations; West Northamptonshire Council agree to net zero pledge; Cawleys launch battery recycling division.
In this month’s roundup, we pull together our pick of the latest environmental news and innovations from the last month.
Green aviation fuel plant to receive £1bn investment
BBC News. (16/03/2022 )
A plant in Teesside that will convert household waste into aviation fuel is to receive a £1bn investment.
The funding looks to create 700 jobs while constructing the Lighthouse Green Fuels Project and a further 240 jobs when operational.
Aiming to create 180 million litres of fuel a year, the plant hopes to generate aviation fuel that produces 80% fewer greenhouse gases.
Royal Mint to build plant to turn WEEE into gold
Lets Recycle. (22/03/2022 )
The Royal Mint has announced its plans to build a WEEE plant in South Wales.
Purpose-built to recover gold from WEEE, the Royal Mint hopes to begin construction this month.
Set to open in 2023, the facility expects to generate hundreds of kilos of gold each year from processing UK-sourced circuit boards.
Adopting a patented new chemistry process, the facility will target and extract the gold from WEEE circuit boards.
Veolia trials single line recycling to boost the circular economy in Wales
Circular Online. (01/03/2022 )
Veolia moves to help make Wales greener by increasing recycling and working towards a circular economy.
Saving resources and money, Veolia’s approach will also cut carbon emissions and contribute towards the net-zero target.
Single line separation will also help to optimise operational efficiency.
With the Welsh government’s 100% recycling goal and zero waste by 2050 target approaching, the country will require organisations and businesses to separate waste into individual streams: paper and card, metal and plastic, glass and food.
West Northamptonshire Council signs up to net zero pledge
BBC News. (01/03/2022 )
West Northamptonshire Council pledges to cut carbon emissions and reach net zero by 2030.
The pledge also seeks to reduce the emissions of residents and businesses to net zero by 2045.
The council’s target is five years earlier than the government’s 2050 net-zero goal.
To help them achieve their goal, the council are developing a sustainability strategy to analyse its carbon footprint.
£30 million boost for plastic packaging reuse and recycling innovations
Circular Online. (02/03/2022 )
The UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging (SSPP) Challenge announce £30 million in funding for plastic packaging.
Available to 18 ground-breaking collaborative projects, the funding seeks to support the achievement of the UK’s Plastics Pact.
It also aims to create recyclable and refillable packaging that uses more sustainable materials.
The funding marks the largest government investment in waste management and sustainable plastic packaging.
Cawleys launches battery recycling division
Lets Recycle. (01/03/2022 )
Cawleys launches a lithium battery recycling division.
Based in Luton, the waste management company’s new battery recycling division will focus on the collection, transportation, disassembling and recycling of lithium-ion batteries.
The company’s latest division will sit alongside their general waste collection, glass, organics and hazardous waste recycling and skip hire services.
