School visit marks 10 years of Staffordshire energy plant

Staff at the Veolia Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) at Four Ashes showed pupils from Brewood Middle School around the facility as they marked the anniversary.

During the ten years, more than 2.75 millions tonnes of waste has been diverted from landfill and sent to energy recovery to generate electricity to power 66,000 homes.

Other highlights for the partnership include the EnviroGrant scheme, where a total of over £55,000 has been awarded to Staffordshire's communities to help them be more sustainable.

All difficult to recycle or compostable waste is delivered either direct from the kerbside, the household waste recycling centres or in bulk from waste transfer stations in Staffordshire to the ERF where it is processed. This process then creates steam power from which electricity can be generated. This reduces the county’s reliance on using energy from fossil fuels.

Simon Tagg, Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet member for environment, infrastructure and climate change said: “We’re extremely proud of the 10-year partnership between Staffordshire County Council and Veolia.

“We see over 300,000 tonnes each year sent to the ERF in Four Ashes, which is a huge amount being sent to generate electricity for homes in Staffordshire.

“Reducing the amount of waste that goes into landfill is key to a sustainable Staffordshire and our commitment to reduce the county’s carbon footprint to net zero by 2050.”

Donald Macphail, the chief operating officer of Treatment UK said: “The achievements of our flagship Energy Recovery Facility in Staffordshire are staggering over the last decade.

"The effort and hard work put in by our team, ensuring the plant is operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year is astounding. Ensuring we can support our partner, Staffordshire County Council, in working to protect our local environment and handle and dispose of the county’s waste in the best way."