Recycling landmark reached in Worcestershire

EnviroSort, the specialist sorting facility based in Worcester, has processed over 1 million tonnes of recycling, since the plant opened over a decade ago.

If all the recycling was plastic bottles laid end to end, that would be enough to go around the world 20 times.

Councillor Richard Morris, Worcestershire County Council's Cabinet Member for Environment, said: "This is a great achievement. We have put a lot of work in over the years to encourage residents to think about what they're throwing away and 1 million tonnes of recycling shows that people across the county are really getting behind this message.

"The County Council's aim is to encourage residents to reduce, reuse, repair, recycle and compost more. By doing this we will use less raw materials and save energy whilst protecting natural resources and reducing carbon emissions. All of this will help us achieve our ambition of being a Net Zero Council by 2050.

"So, I'd like to say a huge thank you for supporting us towards our overall goals."

County Councillors and officers from Severn Waste Services came together to celebrate the fantastic achievement.

Severn Waste Services said: "We are delighted to reach such a major milestone for recycling within both Worcestershire and Herefordshire.  We hope that residents of both counties are proud of the positive impact their recycling is making and that together, we can continue working together to promote greater recycling rates and to further improve our environment by diverting waste from landfill to be reused."  

The EnviroSort plant was opened to sort kerbside recycling, as part of the Integrated Waste Management Contract held between the county councils in Herefordshire and Worcestershire and the plant operator Severn Waste Services.

Today, the building receives up to 40 delivery vehicles a day, produces around 260 bales of recyclable materials daily and processes over 75,000 tonnes, that's 3351 double-deckers full of material each year.

The building was built by Severn Waste Services and opened on the 1 November 2009.

EnviroSort operates every weekday from 6am until 11pm and employs around 100 people who are responsible for ensuring the quality of materials sent for recycling. Materials are loaded on to conveyor belts, where operatives hand sort the material initially to remove anything that shouldn't be there before it passes through automated machinery which separates it into glass bottles and jars; paper, card and cartons; steel cans, aluminium cans and aerosols; and plastic bottles, pots, punnets, trays and tubs. The individual materials are then baled and sent to UK based companies for further processing.

More information about EnviroSort is available on the Severn Waste Services website.