The Kelso facility is one of eight Biffa plans to build to bulk recyclable bottles and cans collected via Scotland’s deposit return scheme (DRS), which goes live next August.
Biffa announced that Circularity Scotland, the scheme’s administrator, had awarded it a 10-year contract to provide logistics, sorting and counting services for the Scottish DRS by in July (see letsrecycle.com story).
Under the contract, Biffa will collect bottles and cans from around 30,000 locations across Scotland and build and operate eight bulking stations and three counting centres.
A Biffa spokesperson told letsrecycle.com: “We’re progressing our exciting and ambitious plans as the official logistics partner for DRS in Scotland, which will develop new recycling infrastructure in the country.
“Our engagement with the Scottish Borders council to develop a presence in the area is ongoing and we look forward to progressing in the weeks ahead as we continue to prepare for the scheme going live from August 2023.”
The DRS is designed to be capable of processing up to 3 billion containers per annum, Biffa says.
Bulking station
According to documents submitted alongside Biffa’s planning application, the Kelso facility will bulk recyclable bottles and cans collected from establishments in the surrounding area, prior to transportation to the counting centre the company plans to develop at Grangemouth.
Earlier this year, Biffa closed its plastics sorting plant in Grangemouth to revamp it so it could cope with the surge of material expected once the DRS comes into force (see letsrecycle.com story).
The Kelso bulking station will handle approximately 4,700 tonnes of material per year, Biffa says, which equates to an average of 13 tonnes per day.
This equates to approximately 40,000 glass containers, 60,000 cans and 42000 PET containers per annum. Biffa estimates that the material split by volume will be 42% cans, 33% glass and 25% PET.
Biffa says the facility will generate up to 29 full-time on-site jobs. These roles, which Biffa says it would seek to fill “locally”, range from shop floor operators to drivers, office staff and logistics personnel.
DRS
From 16 August 2023, if a premises sells drinks to consumers in Scotland then it must provide a return point to accept empty bottles and cans.
Under the DRS, consumers will pay a 20p deposit when purchasing a drink in a single-use container made from PET plastic, steel, aluminium or glass. The deposit will be refunded when the empty container is returned.
Biffa says it will collect the containers in sacks or tote boxes, which will be picked up by a van or small HGV and taken to a bulking station. From there, they will be transported in larger capacity HGVs to a separation centre and one of three counting centres, Biffa says.
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