Wales and Northern Ireland get waste and recycling funding boost
Greenwise Staff
2nd December 2008
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has moved to help two nations – Wales and Northern Ireland – improve their recycling and reprocessing sectors.
With backing from the Welsh Assembly Government, WRAP is to fund companies in Wales tackling commercial food waste.
Under, its Materials Action Programme, it will offer up to 30 per cent of the capital costs for anaerobic digestion facilities, processing waste from food factories and ready meal manufacturers.
It will also help finance the development of new or existing reprocessing facilities for dealing with construction, demolition and excavation waste in Wales.
At the same time, WRAP has announced it has awarded grants worth £425,000 to help waste and recycling businesses in Northern Ireland expand. These include a wood recycling firm, in Newry, County Down, and a firm in Toomebridge, County Antrim, manufacturing topsoil from quality compost and recovered aggregate.
WRAP said recycling and reprocessing businesses it supports in Northern Ireland have increased their collective turnover by £5.9 million.
“WRAP has helped boost the quality and innovation of recycling sector businesses which will continue to be key players in building Northern Ireland’s resource efficient economy,” said Dr Ian Garner, WRAP’s manager for Northern Ireland.
Peter Webster, Market Development manager, WRAP Cymru, said commercial food waste and construction waste were chosen for funding in Wales as they would have the biggest environmental and economic benefit to the nation.
“Food waste is potentially one of the more harmful forms of waste, rapidly turning into methane – one of the most damaging greenhouse gases in landfill,” he said. “Through anaerobic digestion, this can be captured and used to generate renewable energy, with the remaining waste offering an excellent organic soil conditioner.
“Construction waste will not create greenhouse gases in the same way, but such large quantities are produced that it can be very hard to dispose of,” he continued. “Yet, it makes economic sense to reprocess as long as facilities are close to the source of waste and the market for recycled materials.”