Northacre Resource Recovery Centre now operational
Major project to build and commission Wiltshire’s first mechanical biological treatment plant is completed
THE Northacre Resource Recovery Centre, set within the Northacre trading estate in Westbury, has been issued with a completion certificate, which marks the end of the commissioning phase and sees the centre move into normal day-to-day operations.
It also marked the official start of a 25-year contract between Hills Waste Solutions, the site’s operators, and Wiltshire Council for 60,000 tonnes of the county’s household waste to be processed at the centre and turned into a solid recovered fuel (SRF) instead of being sent to landfill.
The plant took nearly eight years in planning, 18 months and £24 million to construct, and just over 10 months to commission.
Mike Webster, group director for Hills Waste Solutions, said: ‘We have reached a significant milestone in Wiltshire’s overall waste-management strategy. The Northacre RRC provides a long-term solution for waste by diverting material away from landfill, extracting recyclables from it and then creating a valuable fuel source.’
The fuel produced is currently being exported to Europe where it is used to generate energy. Hills are also looking into the options to secure a more local solution for use of the fuel where the benefits of that energy value could be retained in the county.
