Tories see future for PFI in drive towards Zero Waste Society

Both PFI and the waste industry appear to have a good future should the Tories win the next election, judging by comments from Nick Herbert, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Addressing a JCB вЂWaste Day’, Herbert said the Tories would target commercial and industrial waste in its drive towards a вЂzero waste society’ and highlighted PFI projects as already helping to create the necessary infrastructure.

Herbert wants to shift the recycling emphasis from municipal waste, which accounts for less than 10% of total waste, to industrial and commercial which accounts for a quarter –or 75 million tonnes. He said the right framework has to be created to encourage industry to recycle more and his party supported the landfill escalator which will see the cost of putting waste into landfill rise to ВЈ48/t by 2010/11.   ADVERTISEMENT

 

He also wants incentives to encourage communities to accept waste reprocessing installations, such as cheaper electricity from a local waste-to-power plant, and is examining how the planning process could be streamlined, and cited the ВЈ700m PFI-funded energy to waste project in Greater Manchester. He is also examining what reprocessing technology is available and the market for reprocessed material.

JCB calculates that in order to meet the Governments recycling target, the waste industry will need to grown from its current £12bn to £30bn by 2025. James Richardson, JCB’s general manager for waste, recycling and demolition said the company’s Wastemaster range has the widest spread of machines (including excavators, wheel loaders, telehandlers, skid steers and ADTs) specially adapted to work in the waste industry.

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