London Airport Aims for 85% Recycling Rate : DHL Supply Chain Brings10 TPD Waste to Energy Plant Online at Gatwick Airport
A new waste to energy plant to process category 1 and food waste has been commissioned at London’s Gatwick Airport by DHL Supply Chain.
DHL claimed that the £3.8million plant, which proseses Category 1 waste such as food and packaging and other organic wastes, makes Gatwick the first airport in the world to convert airport waste into energy onsite.
The company explained that Category 1 forms the majority of waste from non-EU flights and is defined as food waste or anything mixed with it, such as packaging, cups and meal trays from international transport vehicles.
“Disposing of Category 1 waste can be very costly and time-consuming, but our new waste management and recycling system is a huge step forward,” said Martin Willmor, senior vice president, Specialist Services, UK, DHL Supply Chain.
The plant processes waste to produce a dry-powdered organic material, used as fuel to heat the site and dry the waste for the next day. According to DHL it will save £1000 per day in energy and waste management costs.
Gatwick currently treats 2200 tonnes of Category 1 waste each year, around 20% of the total generated at the airport (10,500 tonnes). The facility will process around 10 tonnes per day, whereas all Category 1 waste was previously processed offsite.
With the objective of boosting the airport’s recycling rate from 49% today to around 85% by 2020 – said to be higher than any other UK airport - the plant includes a waste sorting centre to maximise recycling onsite.
DHL said that by concentrating all activities in one location the team is able to transport waste four times more efficiently than before, reducing local traffic and carbon emissions.
The company added that the plant has also been designed with the future in mind and has the capacity to produce additional energy that could one day be used to power other areas of the airport.
“Our ambitious plans to develop in the most environmentally responsible way possible are driven by a set of rigorous targets. I’m delighted to say our strategy is working and, despite passenger numbers doubling, our environmental footprint is better today than it was in the early 1990s,” commented Stewart Wingate, Gatwick CEO.
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