A waste treatment partnership between three councils in North East Scotland was formally agreed yesterday (26 October) which will see them work together on the procurement of an energy from waste plant.
Moray and Aberdeenshire councils joined Aberdeen city council in voting to approve a secondary stage Inter-Authority Agreement.
An artist’s impression of the Aberdeen EfW plant, which was awarded planning permission this month
The agreement means all three authorities will jointly work on initial project and procurement development of the £150 million East Tullos incinerator, to be built in the south of Aberdeen.
The facility will treat up to 150,000 tonnes of waste per year, handling all household residual waste collected from the three council areas. Planning for the plant was approved by Aberdeen city council earlier this month (see letsrecycle.com story).
All the councils had previously entered the three-way Inter Authority Agreement at the end of 2015, but the secondary stage vote means initial work can now commence.
The councils hope that construction of the plant will begin in January 2019, with full operations to be launched in 2021 in time for the Scottish Government’s ban on biodegradable municipal waste to landfill.
At present, more than half of household waste in the north east of Scotland is sent to landfill sites.
Suez
Suez is currently contracted to provide disposal services on behalf of Aberdeen city council until 2025, but the council maintains an option to exit the arrangement for residual waste at any time.
The council had previously optioned the continued use of refuse-derived fuel (RDF) export to Europe, and last year Suez submitted planning for a joint RDF plant and materials recycling facility on the city’s Altens East Industrial Estate (see letsrecycle.com story).
An artist’s impression of the Suez Aberdeen RDF facility, which had been previously optioned as an interim arrangement for Aberdeen
A council-owned firm has been set up to handle the energy output of the proposed EfW plant.
‘Important’
Councillor Jenny Laing, Leader of Aberdeen city council, said: “This is an important project for the north-east and it means that, with our Aberdeenshire and Moray council partners, we can commence in securing contractors who will develop the facility.
“The energy from waste will complement our new recycling initiatives to create a truly circular economy and achieve our ambitious plans for a Zero Waste Aberdeen and delivering affordable heat to people in Torry.”
Councillor John Cowe, who chairs Moray council’s Economic Development and Infrastructure Services committee, added: “Moray council is delighted to have reached the next key milestone in the development of the energy plant in partnership with our neighbouring authorities.
“By approving the Inter-Authority agreement for the next phase, elected members have underlined the council’s commitment to this project and ultimately to the delivery of a long-term and sustainable waste solution for the north-east of Scotland.”
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Source: letsrecycle.com Waste Managment
