We are delighted to be this years’ recipients of the WEEE Innovation Award at last Thursday’s prestigious MRW Recycling Awards event at the Park Lane, Hilton.
It has been WasteCare’s aim since the introduction of the Waste Battery Regulations in 2010 to build a portable battery treatment facility in the UK. Demand for such a plant has been delayed due to the ongoing “discrepancy” in lead acid evidence. Despite the EA’s efforts to reduce the problem two year’s ago, with the introduction of the 4kg weight limit, the overhang persists.
Last year, 9,520 tonnes of portable batteries were claimed to be processed whilst only 1,701 tonnes were apparently placed on the market. Nonetheless, WasteCare has gone ahead with their investment to build Britain’s only portable battery treatment plant. Based in Elland, near Halifax, the plant is capable of processing the UK’s entire output of waste alkaline batteries. These currently represent over 80% of all portable batteries collected.
“We are proud to be winners of this year’s WEEE Innovation Award. This is recognition of the efforts of all my colleagues in our Development Team”, stated Peter Hunt, Chairman of the WasteCare Group. “Before we embarked on this project we needed to be sure it was going to be commercially viable. Although the ongoing Lead acid issue is still of concern, the direction is clear; the UK needs to collect and recycle all the portable batteries it can find within these shores.
“The new plant is currently capable of processing over 10,000 tonnes per annum of alkaline batteries. This award is testament to the commitment and hard work from our in-house development team, headed by Graeme Parkin, Operations Director of the WasteCare Group. We have already commenced work on a Lithium battery recovery process, which we plan to have operating in Q2 2019.”
The MRW National Recycling Awards 2018 aims to recognise and celebrate best practice and innovation in recycling and waste management. Andrea Lockerbie, Associate Editor of MRW, said: “This year’s winners showcase the innovation and creative thinking being applied by those who are leading the way in the field of resource and waste management. There is a lot that others can learn from them.”
