£3m Anaerobic Digestion plant opens on farm
18 May 2010
The venture, at Lower Reule, which has received a £750,000 grant from WRAP, currently has capacity to process 15,000 tonnes of waste per year. However, it will be able to process 30,000 tonnes by the autumn when a second phase of development is completed.
Most of the waste will come from food waste collected separately at the kerbside by Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, plus food waste from supermarkets and food manufacturers. The AD plant will also process 1,000 tonnes of pig slurry and 1,250 tonnes of maize silage each year from the farm on which it is based.
The AD plant is run under the name Lower Reule Bioenergy and has provided a new venture for the farm, which keeps pigs and grows a variety of arable crops, including maize, barley, wheat and oats. The farm also supplies approximately 1,400 tonnes of strawberries per year to supermarkets.
The biogas will be burnt through a Combined Heat and Power Plant (CHP), which produces equal amounts of heat and power. Approximately 1.3MW per year of power will be supplied to the National Grid and the AD unit will produce enough electricity to run itself.
A number of options are being considered for the heat, which may be used to heat the strawberry tunnels on the farm to extend the growing season or to grow asparagus on heated beds.
The nutrient rich biofertiliser, which is an end result of the AD process, will be produced to the national specification - BSI PAS110 and used as a fertiliser on grassland and arable land at Lower Reule Farm and on neighbouring farms.
Ian Critchley, Director of Lower Reule Bioenergy, said: “The AD plant offers a very exciting diversification opportunity for the farm. Not only do we have products to use and sell in the form of power and biofertiliser, we also have excess heat available to extend our existing strawberry business or possibly set up another enterprise.”
Louise McGregor, Supply Programme Manager at WRAP, said: “Lower Reule Bioenergy provides a perfect example of the scope and versatility of AD as a sustainable business opportunity. WRAP is committed to supporting this technology, which will not only help to divert millions of tonnes of biodegradable waste from landfill, but also help the UK deliver on climate change and wider environmental objectives.”
Trevor Nicoll, Head of Waste Strategy at Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, said: “We’ve had a great response to our separate collections of food and garden waste with recycling rates jumping from 27 per cent to 53 per cent in the month they were introduced. One of the reasons for this tremendous support is that people understand how their food waste is being recycled in the local area to create valuable resources and they are very supportive of the scheme.”
Editor's notes
- WRAP helps individuals, businesses and local authorities to reduce waste and recycle more, making better use of resources and helping to tackle climate change
- Established as a not-for-profit company in 2000, WRAP is backed by Government funding from England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
- Working in seven key areas (Construction, Retail, Manufacturing, Organics, Business and Markets, Behavioural Change, and Local Authority Support), WRAP’s work focuses on market development and support to drive forward recycling and materials resource efficiency within these sectors, as well as wider communications and awareness activities including the multi-media national Recycle Now campaign for England.
- More information on WRAP’s work can be found on http://www.wrap.org.uk/.
WRAP Press Office
Tel: 01295 819695
press.office@wrap.org.uk
