London is to pioneer an innovative model designed to tackle the tens of millions of tonnes of construction waste generated in the UK each year, after the London Waste and Recycling Board yesterday awarded £500,000 to a groundbreaking recycling project.
The funding will back a proposal from charity BioRegional and the existing Croydon Appliance Reuse Centre (ARC) to develop the UK's first centre for the reuse of building materials.
The centre will collect unwanted building material from housing developments and DIY stores and sort the discarded material for resale to the public and members of the building trade.
The London Waste and Recycling Board said the funding would create four new jobs and support a training programme for 40 young trainees while also helping to divert 3,500 tonnes of building waste from landfill.
It is also expected to save an estimated 1,700 tonnes of waste over the first five years of the project, by diverting waste from landfill and limiting the need for new materials.
Construction material is one of the most under-reported waste streams in the UK and according to London Waste and Recycling Board chairman James Cleverly, 9.7 million tonnes of construction and demolition waste were produced last year in London alone. "Around half of this was recycled but there is still much more we need to do to tackle the rest which largely ends up dumped in landfill sites, " he added.
He praised the reuse centre as an innovative response to the problem of construction waste that would also help cut emissions and bring jobs to the capital.
Jonathan Essex, reclaimed materials manager at BioRegional, said that overall 25 million tonnes of construction, demolition and excavation waste are sent to landfill each year. He added that the charity hoped to use the centre as a template for a network of three centres across London.
The latest part in our serialisation on Green IT addresses the business challenge presented by eWaste 28 Apr 2010
Nicola Brittain reports on an innovative scheme that aims to bring reliable internet access to some of the most remote regions of sub-Saharan Africa 13 Apr 2010
Expert warns that rapid rollout of anaerobic digestion plants to address looming shortage of crucial fertiliser 14 Jul 2010
Market steady as US unveils Boxer-Kerry climate bill 06 Oct 2009
Landmark congressional reports from top scientific agency conclude "climate change is occurring, is caused largely by human activities, and poses significant risks" 20 May 2010
United Steelworkers to file trade complaint protesting against unfair Chinese renewable energy subsidies 09 Sep 2010
UN climate change chief says absence of a "sunset clause" means Kyoto will live on as a second protocol after 2012 even if talks fail 09 Sep 2010
South Korean manufacturer takes on Nissan, Toyota and the rest with first electric car 09 Sep 2010
More news
David Cameron's commitment to establish the coalition as the "greenest government ever" is already beginning to look like a looming hostage to... 09 Sep 2010
According to the CBI, 17.5GW of power is currently stuck in the planning system - BusinessGreen.com takes a look at what you could do with all that energy 08 Sep 2010
Early bird rate for How Big Is Your Footprint? lecture available for one more week 07 Sep 2010 More in-depth
