Amey, the UK subsidiary of Ferrovial Services, has commenced full operations at its waste treatment plant in Allerton. The facilities will turn 320,000 tonnes of waste generated by residents in North Yorkshire and the city of York into energy for supplying more than 60,000 homes every year. Moreover, the plant will reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and increase recycling rates.
Following three years of building works, the plant entered its final stage of commissioning on March 1 and is to remain operational for 25 years. During this time, it will be subject to strict inspections and tests which will be carried out by independent institutions.
The project has been implemented through a public private partnership between Amey, the British Government, York City Council and North Yorkshire County. Amey, in association with Equitix and the Pensions Infrastructure Platform, has been in charge of construction of the plant and will manage and operate it for the next 25 years.
The Allerton waste treatment plant combines three of the most modern technologies known to date in one facility: automated treatment, anaerobic waste digestion and energy generation from waste. These technologies increase the amount of material that can be recycled and thus reduce the amount going to landfill by 90%.
Andy Milner, Amey CEO, said:
“Allerton Waste Recovery Park is unique and demonstrates Amey’s practical capabilities in consulting, engineering and construction to deliver complex better infrastructure for our society”.And he added: “It’s a significant milestone. A decade ago we were not in this market. Now we have one plant live, two on the way in Milton Keynes and the Isle of Wight, and one planning application submitted in Cambridgeshire. I am also pleased we have made a positive impact on local employment with close to 100 employees working on the site recruited from the local area. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Yorkshire councils and making a positive environmental impact on how the county’s waste is managed”. The Allerton waste plant has the capacity to treat 1,400 tonnes of waste per day. In a first stage, biodegradable and recyclable waste is mechanically separated, with the latter continuing along the recycling process and the former passing to the anaerobic digestion stage. After this second stage, remaining waste is processed in the Energy from Waste facility to generate electricity. During this process, an air filter system controls gas emissions, with the 74,000 tonnes of ash generated each year being recycled as building materials.
