Shanks Cumbernauld Food Waste to Energy AD Plant to Double to 100,000 TPA

Waste and recycling firm, Shanks Group, and its joint venture partner, Dundee based anaerobic digestion firm, Paragon Efficiencies, are in the final stages of doubling the capacity of the Energen Biogas plant in Cumbernauld, Scotland. According to Shanks, once the £5 million expansion complete in April 2015, the plant will become Scotland’s largest AD facility. The Energen Biogas facility treats organic waste from local authorities, retail and food waste producers by maximising the amount of recyclable material recovered from food waste. The plant is expected to process over 100,000 tonnes of food waste each year, generating up to 4.8 MW of renewable energy for export to the National Grid from the combustion of around 1800 m3 of biogas per hour. The facility uses Paragon’s Top Mixed digester design, which it said has three main advantages: Intensive mixing with low electricity consumption - the installed power for a 4000 m3 digester is said to be ±25 kW Significantly reduced the potential of floating layers or settling layers in digester It allows a large range of dry solids concentration, allowing for feedstock flexibility and thus a higher loading range for the digester. Shanks said that once the upgrade work is complete, the facility, which has been operating since 2011, will be well placed to process the anticipated increase in food waste that will be produced when Zero Waste Scotland comes into effect on 1 January 2016. "By expanding our facility we are able to significantly grow the renewables industry in Scotland and improve resource efficiency,” commented Robert Etherson, operations director at Energen Biogas. “Scotland’s vision where all waste is seen as a resource is one we are firmly aligned with and we are pleased we can contribute to making a Zero-Waste Scotland a reality," he added. Read More £60m Fund for Biogas, Landfill Gas-to-Energy & Community Scale Renewables in UK A new investment of £60 million by the UK Green Investment Bank and the Strathclyde Pension Fund will provide equity funding for a range of community-scale projects including biogas plants such as anaerobic digesters and landfill gas. Organic Waste a Huge Opportunity for New UK Bioplastics & Products Trade Body In a bid to better connect government, the waste and chemical industries and agriculture, a new trade association is on the verge of forming in the UK to represent the biobased products industry. VIDEO: Great Food Waste Documentary – Dumpster Diver Rob Green Close Up A short documentary published by Full Frame CCTV America follows dumpster diver and food waste campaigner, Rob Green as he highlights the quantity of perfectly edible food discarded by major retailers in the U.S. each day.