Multi-million waste infrastructure to stop South Tyneside waste going to landfill

The launch of a £176 million waste infrastructure project will put an end to decades of burying Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland’s rubbish in landfills.

A new energy-from-waste (EfW) plant on Teesside and three local waste transfer stations are set to start operating this week, following a three-year build programme.

The facilities have been developed by SITA UK on behalf of the South Tyne and Wear Waste Management Partnership which comprises Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland councils.

The contract, which is worth £727 million, includes the construction of the facilities and the cost of operating them over the next 25 years. Sixty-six new operational jobs have been created.

The multi-million pound investment means 190,000 tonnes of rubbish collected from 284,000 households each year will now be treated to generate power for over 30,000 homes. This is a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly alternative to sending waste to landfills.

Each of the council’s bin wagons will take waste to the three new transfer stations which are situated at Wrekenton in Gateshead, Middlefields in South Tyneside and Hendon in Sunderland. Once there, the rubbish will be sorted to remove some recyclable materials and put onto larger vehicles for onward transportation to the £160 million treatment facility in Teesside.

The new arrangements will save 64,000 tonnes of carbon per year compared to sending waste to landfills – this is the equivalent of taking 21,700 cars off the road.

Project director of the South Tyne and Wear Waste Management Partnership, Tony Alder, said: “These new developments are the realisation of our very ambitious plans to significantly reduce our reliance on landfill and provide our residents with a greener waste management service.

“Thanks to these new facilities, we are proud to be able to say that we now divert 95% of our waste away from landfill and, instead, put it to good use – either by recycling it into new products or treating it to produce electricity.”

Tim Otley, general manager for SITA UK, said: “The South Tyne and Wear Waste Management Partnership’s investment in new infrastructure and modern technology is an effective illustration of how local authorities can begin to meet their commitments on diverting waste from landfill by delivering more energy from renewable sources. SITA UK is delighted to be a part of this more sustainable future.”

Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland councils teamed up back in 2007 to find better ways of managing their collective waste. The partnership aims to increase recycling from 30% to 50% by 2020.

A successful new kerbside recycling scheme was introduced across the partnership area in 2010 and has increased the amount of materials recycled by 20%.

The South Tyne and Wear Waste Management Partnership was awarded £73.5m of PFI funding from Defra in July 2008 to go towards the development of a treatment solution for the amount of residual waste that cannot be recycle

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