Veolia is helping in the drive to make Wales greener by increasing recycling moving towards a circular economy.
As recycling typically saves between 30 and 80 per cent of the energy used to extract and process virgin resources, the approach will also cut the carbon emissions, and make a valuable contribution to the net-zero carbon target. By targeting single line separation for all non-domestic producers of waste, the company will be able to optimise operational efficiency ahead of imminent legislation.
The Welsh government has a goal to have a circular economy and achieve 100 per cent recycling and zero waste by 2050, and the change in legislation will require organisations to separate waste into paper and card, metal and plastic, glass, and food. Veolia is inviting businesses to participate in the single line project, by providing all the necessary internal bins and recycling bags needed to manage separated waste. Backing this initiative will be Veolia’s collection services and specialist recycling and treatment infrastructure, and the capability to support customers with even further source-segregation including textiles, electrical and electronic equipment, and hazardous materials.
To ensure compliance the legislation means that any organisation which does not separate their waste in this way will be liable to penalties and waste companies will be unable to collect bins if waste is not segregated correctly. Any other waste in general waste bins can be used to generate low carbon energy through energy recovery facilities.
Keith McGurk, the managing director of Veolia’s commercial division, says: “In Wales the amount of waste recycled has risen from 5 per cent in the late 1990s to 65 per cent in 2020, which is strong progress. But there are still valuable resources in mixed recycling that fail to meet the quality needed for recycling due to contamination.
“The solution is single-source recycling. If we can collect, transport and treat waste as a single stream we can increase the amount that can be recycled. This preserves natural resources and cuts carbon, marking another important step towards the net-zero carbon goal and a real circular economy”
Organisations interested in finding out more about the trial, including the range of containers available, and parties with concerns about how the imminent legislation will impact business should contact Veolia.
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