Specialist PET (polyethylene terephthalate) recycler Enviroo has had its planning application approved for its first plastic recycling facility in the UK. The firm says the facility will be able to re-use 100% of the PET it takes in and help recycle some of the 4.9 million tonnes of plastic waste created in the UK annually.
The successful application means the plastic recycling facility will be operational in Summer 2022 at Peel NRE’s 54-hectare strategic energy and resource hub, Protos, near Ellesmere Port, Cheshire.
The facility will take PET – the main material used for food and drinks packaging such as plastic bottles and certain food packaging – and convert it into the raw material for new food-grade packaging. It will see an investment of around £20 million into the local economy and create 50 new, permanent jobs.
Enviroo will use proven technology to sort and wash the waste, before creating r-PET (recycled -PET) pellets that can be used by packaging manufacturers to create new packaging products. This technology is able to re-use 100% of the PET it takes in.
This will become increasingly important from this time next year, when a new law will see any packaging that contains less than 30% recycled PET taxed. Some manufacturers have gone further, pledging to include up to 50% recycled material in their packaging under the UK Plastics Pact. The facility will therefore help to meet growing UK demand for recycled PET.
Ahmed Detta, CEO & Founder of Enviroo, said:
“We are delighted to have our planning application approved. After a positive consultation with the community, we now look forward to being able to get down to business and deal with plastic waste here on our shores and importantly help to create a greener North West. Our first facility will hopefully be one of many as Enviroo look to provide a solution for packaging manufacturers who are preparing for the upcoming plastic tax legislation. Our facilities will provide the recycled PET manufacturers need in their products, while reducing the amount of virgin plastic.”
Enviroo’s first facility is at the £165m Plastic Park at Protos, which will cluster together plastic recycling and recovery technologies to create value from plastic waste, helping to avoid it ending up in landfill, exported overseas or in our oceans.
Jayne Hennessy, Development Manager at Peel NRE, part of Peel L&P said:
“Less than one third of all plastic waste in the UK is recycled. We are creating the UK’s first Plastic Park at Protos which will increase recycling rates, reducing landfill and the export of waste. This will be done by clustering together different technologies, including Enviroo’s PET recycling facility and the plastic to hydrogen facility also consented at Protos. We will be able to use technology and improved infrastructure to process many types of plastics collected by local authorities. Hopefully giving them the confidence to collect a wider range of plastic in the future”.
The successful application was led and submitted by leading planning and environmental consultancy AXIS.
Andrew Russell, Director at AXIS said “We’re delighted to have secured the planning consent for this groundbreaking development, which will help reduce the levels of plastic waste generated in the UK each year. The North West is really leading the way in enabling the UK to meet our climate change obligations as part of achieving NetZero by 2050.”
