Bristol council plan to send zero waste to landfill

Filed in Waste News by on March 10, 2011 12 Comments
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Bristol council are aiming for zero waste to landfill

Bristol council are aiming for zero waste to landfill (gorgeous illustration from http://www.sallyelford.co.uk)

I just picked up this story from “This is Bristol”.

Apparently, Bristol council has plans to stop putting rubbish into landfill sites!

Have a read of the story and let me know what you think – is there anyone on the site living in Bristol? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

BRISTOL is poised to become one of the most environmentally – friendly cities in the UK after announcing ambitious plans to quit dumping its rubbish in landfill sites.

The city wants to achieve its zero waste target within three years by working with two recycling firms.

A new treatment plant is being opened in Avonmouth which will sort the thousands of tonnes of rubbish thrown out in the city every year.

Bristol has always had a reputation for being one of the greenest cities in the country but the new deals will mean it will be leading the way when it comes to dealing with its waste.

here are around 160,000 households and in Bristol and thousands of businesses which between them generate around 176,000 tonnes of waste every year.

At the moment 38 per cent of the city’s rubbish is recycled but, thanks to a series of initiatives, the total is increasing all the time.

From June a new recycling centre run by New Earth Solutions in Avonmouth will process 53,600 tonnes of the rubbish collected from Bristol’s homes. The centre will also deal with rubbish from other local authorities in the former Avon area.

The city council has also signed a £15 million deal with waste disposal firm Sita – which will see another new centre built in Avonmouth. The firm will deal with the rest of the rubbish generated in the city. The five-year contract is due to start next month and for the first two years the rubbish will go straight to landfill.

Read the rest of “We’ll get rid of all our landfill: Bristol council makes three-year pledge on rubbish

About the Author ()

I am a long time supporter of the Green and Sustainable lifestyle. After being caught in the Boscastle floods in 2004, our family begun a journey to respect and promote the importance of Earth's fragile ecosystem, that focussed on reducing waste. Inspired by the beauty and resourcefulness of this wonderful planet, I have published numerous magazine articles on green issues and the author of four books.

Comments (12)

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  1. Sooz says:

    Oh thats so exciting! I knew I liked Bristol! I’ll be interested to see how this works out!

  2. Nick Palmer says:

    Achieving “zero waste” by methods that involve significant burning is just greenwash. Not sustainable.

  3. Julie Day says:

    Well done Bristol. Wished I lived there. I just hope that other councils take note and follow them.

  4. Teresa Lewis says:

    @Julie Day: Bristol does lead on environmental concerns and doesn’t just jump on bandwagons or compete to be first in only in one area so they can claim to be ‘green’ as many councils do. There is a strong alternative culture there and Sustrans and the Soil Association have their HQ’s based there.

  5. Sandy says:

    well, are they burning or really recycling I wonder.admittedly they are good at recycling, but what about the waste companies produce when wrapping our produce, how are they going to deal with all this.?

  6. Mrs Green says:

    @Sooz:
    @Sandy: How do you feel about the last bit of the story Sooz and Sandy “The remaining material will then be shredded, baled and exported to be burned at plants on the Continent.”?

    @Nick Palmer: Agreed. It’s a shame they don’t state a rough percentage of how much they think they will have to bale and burn

    @Julie Day: I think they are part-way there, but am concerned to see incineration featuring as part of this zero waste solution

  7. Poppy says:

    @Mrs Green:

    I’m with you Mrs G. It all sounds wonderful until you get to the incineration bit 🙁

  8. Colleen says:

    Now that is what I call progress. I sincerely hope they succeed.

  9. Sandy says:

    out of sight out of mind, no I dont agree with this at all, there must be something better than burning, surely ?

  10. Jane says:

    We HAVE to reduce the amount of waste being produced and not just spend all our time sorting it and trundling it around the world. I suppose it is going to be incinerated in one of the continental incinerators which they have built too many of and which they now don’t have enough waste for to run properly. I guess that is better than building another one here and having the same thing happen when the amount of waste drops as legislation takes effect and people realise how much unnecessary and unrecyclable packaging they are getting and how much easier it is to live with less.

    We HAVE to encourage better and less packaging. Let’s keep hearing of new and better ideas.

    How does a machine using magnets take out all metal? Send him back to school!

  11. mrsbris says:

    I think the aim is a great one. Surely incineration would be a retrograde step. So I too would be worried about the final methods of disposal. It would be interesting to see this broken down. Does anyone know where you can find this?

    We have had pretty good recycling facilities, although fairly behind in plastics and tetra packs, in Bristol for some time, but I wonder how committed everyone is to it. There was a great outcry to moving to fortnightly collections of rubbish bins when the move to food waste bins kicked in (taken weekly). Couldn’t understand that myself.

    However I still find it frustrating to shop without having to bring home a load of plastic. Now we do have local facilities to recycle plastic I’ve found it overwhelming the amount of plastic there is in food packaging. It means making choices about where you shop, but this isnt possible for everyone, especially when everyone’s pool of money is increasingly stretched.

  12. Mrs Green says:

    @mrsbris: Hi 🙂 THanks for leaving a comment. I’m not sure where you could find out more, but if you’re in the area, perhaps you could call the council for more information. I was under the impression Bristol was very ahead of the game in terms of recycling; it’s a pity to hear about the plastics and tetra pak cartons. And yes, food packaging can be a real issue, especially when you’re on a budget…

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