Based upon a mapped catchment area, related to road delivery drive times and other local transport infrastructure, waste feedstock arisings can be effectively modelled, with waste derived from commercial, industrial and/or municipal sources. This assessment is based upon arisings data gleaned from a variety of public domain sources including WasteDataFlow, various Environment Agency datasets, and C&I survey data, much derived from previous primary survey work.

The model also has the flexibility to model different scenarios. Individual competing plants can be excluded or included in the overall model based on the user’s requirements, as can particular waste sources or catchment scenarios

The model is designed to be used in the development of feasibility studies, supporting data for business planning and risk evaluation and for use by funders in due diligence.

The aim of the project is to:

• Estimate the arisings of waste aerosols in the North West.
• Understand the current purchasing and disposal habits of producers of aerosol waste.
• Assess how the mobile technology service could reduce disposal costs for the producers of aerosol waste. 

A dedicated team of experts is contacting businesses and organisations within the North West to carry out short telephone interviews.  The purpose is to gather information about the current purchase and disposal routes for aerosol waste and to seek opinions about the introduction of a new mobile system of treatment and disposal for aerosol waste.

The Aerosol Recycling System

This mobile aerosol recycling system has been developed to meet the needs of all types and sizes of companies handling a wide range of aerosols. The system processes aerosol waste on site, removing the need for companies to pay for transport and separate waste management arrangements. 

As the system is capable of recycling the full range of aerosols from the very large (e.g. building foams) to the very small (e.g. inhalers), the waste producer is able to benefit from any value from the recovered metals and gases. 

The system has been designed to generate the smallest carbon footprint possible. This makes the system cheaper and safer to operate than some alternative systems. 

The system works the same way for all sizes of aerosols; sealing the individual can, piercing the can at both ends to release both the propellant and contents and flushing to leave a clean can. 

All effluent, including any flushing agents are captured and stored for disposal or further treatment.  

For further information about this work please contact James Horne, Urban Mines.  01274 699400 or alternatively, email to james.horne@urbanmines.org.uk. 

The workshop, kindly hosted by Huddersfield University, was chaired by Barry Sheerman, Local MP for Huddersfield, Chair of Urban Mines and Chair of the Select Committee for Children, Schools and Families.

The event, organised by Urban Mines, featured 3 prominent speakers:

• Rob Moore, Renewable Strategy Manager for Energy & Utility Skills Ltd.
  Download a recent report on Low Carbon Skills national assessment by clicking here.
• Bev Foster, Skills Development Manager for Yorkshire Forward.
  View her presentation by clicking here.
• Carol Carr, Senior Funding and Investment Officer for Kirklees Council.
  View her presentation by clicking here.

The group, set up by Urban Mines, is asking the following questions:

1. Who is already delivering courses to meet the low carbon economy needs?

2. Who is thinking about preparing a course, is worried about a skills gap and shortage, or wants to champion a particular area?

3. Who wants to work in partnership and exchange information across the informal forum?

Watch the film link for a drop of inspiration (click here - you will need "Realplayer" installed to view this)

We welcome your views – please click here to give us feedback.

Grateful thanks to all who attended the morning session and please continue to visit this webpage for future information.

The aims of the research:-

• To identify the environmental needs of businesses and the criteria used/barriers to selecting and employing an environmental consultant. 

• To identify the environmental consultants in the region and the range of services they currently provide to businesses.

• The results to aid the future direction and services of the Green Business Support Organisation (GBSO) supported by CO2 Sense.

For an opportunity to become involved and have your say, please click on the appropriate link below:-

Consultants    -    http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/J6VSQLV

Business         -    http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JBXNZ2W

Our thanks in advance for your valuable input and time in completing our questionnaire.  

For any further enquiries about the research, please contact Jill Sykes, Urban Mines.  01274 699400 or alternatively, email to jill.sykes@urbanmines.org.uk

All manufacturers are different, which is why our specialised help is totally flexible to meet your needs. We can provide free and subsidised practical, hands-on support in all aspects of manufacturing.

Our offer to you

FREE Manufacturing Review - a diagnostic of your business delivered on-site providing a concise written report outlining the practical steps you can take to implement improvements (1 Day totally free of charge valued at £600 excl. VAT).

Focused Waste Intervention - examining the potential to reduce your waste and energy costs with a full written report (5+ Days 75% funded at a cost of £150 per day excl. VAT).

Manufacturing Improvement Project - providing in-depth, practical support to operational or strategic change, helping your company to achieve measurable performance improvements. We can help you to find the right solution including noise and health & safety issues (Up to 10 Days 75% grant subsidised payable at a cost of £150 per day excl. VAT).

Consultancy Services - to train client staff, or for what ever support your company needs (at a chargeable rate)

For further information please contact:

Ron Twyford: ron.twyford@urbanmines.org.uk  T: 0127 4699400

Laura Bramley: laura.bramley@urbanmines.org.uk  T: 0127 4699400

The examples and the guidance have been developed through consultation with a range of organisations and individuals. These have included different types of local authority, bidders, contractors, third sector organisations and wider stakeholders such as Defra. A Steering Group including representatives from the above groups also provided valuable support to the process.

Eco-Friendly Approach to Graffiti removal

The National Grid Approval Letter with item limitations and requirements.

The table below compares the amount of fuel used and the CO₂ emissions for one day and one year, based upon 255 Working Days for five separate Compressor sizes.

*based on £0.90 per litre

The System has been classified as “Best Practice”. 

FREE Demonstration Event 18^th March 2010 

Envirolink will be holding a Graffiti Romoval Demonstration Event on Thursday 18th March 2010, Warrington, where you will be able to see a working demonstration of the DORIS System and how well it cleans graffiti from a variety of surfaces.

Click here for further information.

To book a place on the demonstration event please contact Jill Sykes Telephone 01274 699400 or email Jill.sykes@urbanmines.org.uk  

Case Study and Press Articles

• DSGL Case Study: MARINE WAY BRIDGE
• Nelson Man Invents Graffiti Buster
• DORIS Helps Clean Up

Following the calculation of the amount of waste produced by businesses in the East of England Region as part of the National Study into Commercial and Industrial Waste Arisings, further analysis was carried out in a study by Urban Mines.

This study analysed how much waste of each type arises within each Waste Planning Authority Area as well as movements of waste between these areas. The databases used for this analysis included WasteDataFlow for municipal waste and the Environment Agency’s “RATS” databases for total waste managed, including hazardous waste. In addition to this, a telephone survey of sites with an exemption from waste licensing was carried out in order to fill the gaps in the available information. The final study therefore encapsulates an analysis of the total amount of waste that requires management with the East of England, including estimates of the sources and type of that waste.

The work highlighted the considerable data gap in commercial and industrial waste arisings, showing poor correlation between data collected from licensed facility reporting such as RATS and the remodeled data derived from the Urban Mines survey of C&I waste in the North West in 2006.

For the full report on the EERA website, click here

Latest update: July10

(1) includes Halton Borough Council

(2) London Boroughs of Croydon, Kingston, Merton and Sutton

(3) Plymouth, Devon and Torbay

(4) Gateshead Council, South Tyneside Council and Sunderland City Council

(5) Project Transform

(6) Bristol, Bath & North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset

(7) Cardiff Council, Caerphilly County Borough Council, Monmouthshire County Council, Newport City Council and Vale of Glamorgan Council

(8) Ballymoney, Coleraine, Derry, Limavady, Magherafelt, Moyle and Strabane

(9) Armagh city and district; Banbridge; Cookstown; Craigavon; Dungannon and South Tyrone; Fermanagh; Newry and Mourne; and Omagh.

(10) Seven North London local authorities - Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Islington and Waltham Forest

Data Sources - Input from a number of publicly available sources including:

http://www.defra.gov.uk/http://projects.4ps.gov.uk/http://www.letsrecycle.com/http://www.edie.net/ plus other published sources and local authority websites. Although we do try to check information used, we therefore cannot take responsibility for the accuracy of information collected and collated in this way. Please let us know if you see any errors or omissions.

The funding from Working Neighbourhoods Fund, administered by the City Council is aimed at the most deprived areas in Birmingham and focuses on the 25 priority neighbourhoods within the city.

Urban Mines will be working closely with Neighbourhood Managers to identify SMEs in these areas. 

However, the support is also available for other areas providing the organisation qualifies as an SME which is a business having less than 250 employees and a turnover of less than approximately £40 million.

The project aims to engage with businesses and make them aware of ‘quick wins’ to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill therefore reducing greenhouse gas emissions and costs.  Other resource efficiency advice will be provided, covering areas such as water and energy, which will help cut costs and reduce CO2 emissions.

For further details please contact Ron Twyford at our Birmingham office by telephone – 0121 250 3830 or email ron.twyford@urbanmines.org.uk

The work was supported by a steering group made up of GMGU and officer/council representatives from local authorities in Greater Manchester (Manchester, Rochdale, Stockport, Trafford, and Wigan)

The model so developed by Urban Mines brought together data appropriate to a number of waste streams from a variety of sources, including the Regional C&I waste survey carried out by Urban Mines in 2007. Other key data sources were from the municipal waste management strategy reviews of Greater Manchester and Wigan WDAs together with updated arisings data from 2006/7, the survey of construction demolition and excavation waste in the north west region and the Environment Agency data for hazardous and radioactive waste. Also included was data on 430 waste sites, plus 57 licensed sites without planning information, plus 19 recent planning applications.

The Greater Manchester Forecasting Model (GMFM) was used with the above surveys to forecast future waste arisings based upon the social and economic growth patterns and utilised factors such as the number of projected households and number of jobs by industrial sector. Recent and anticipated developments in national and regional legislation, policy and strategy were reviewed in order to identify impacts which should be reflected in the model. The needs assessment also took into account the policies included in the draft North West Regional Spatial Strategy (NW RSS) and the Regional Waste Strategy (RWS).

The initial modelling took three waste management scenarios ie Baseline (which reflects the current status and forward planning position), maximised recycling and recovery of C&I and CD&E wastes (utilising the Northwest C&I survey data on the amount and types of waste currently not recycled), and a median level of increased recycling and recovery. From this, data was generated on the gap in processing capacity, by waste type, and sensitivity analysis on the causes of the gap, and hence the number of new facilities that could be developed in order to meet the gap by 2020 was identified.

The resultant model was constructed to create a level of detail and consistency that has not been previously available. The model provides an understanding of waste management, in terms of who is producing the waste, the material streams and the waste management destinations. The model also includes data on which materials have the potential for recycling or energy recovery by waste stream and producing sector. Together with the modifiers used provide a forecasting of future arisings and disposal scenarios if the aim of managing waste more sustainably and towards the top of the waste hierarchy is to be achieved. This is important in practical terms as these elements of the modelling output show where specific changes in waste management practice will have to occur. Further runs identified which commercial and industrial sectors are generating those wastes which could be more productively managed.

For more information contact Gill Tatum on 01274699400 or at gill.tatum@urbanmines.org.uk

Based in Chorley, Brothers of Charity supports over 200 people with learning disabilities and as part of this operates a small dry recyclables collection round. This round gives service users access to job experience as well as helping to recycle more of Chorley’s business waste.

Global Renewables has supported Brothers of Charity in the past and wished to do so again through funding a feasibility study focussing on the potential for expanding the collection round to increase job experience opportunities and the diversion of waste from landfill.

The study included analysis of material prices, legislation, collection vehicles, types of collection round and potential customers concluding that the outlook was positive for expansion.

Project Manger for the work, James Horne commented, "This was an extremely interesting piece of work because not only were we set the challenge of establishing if Chorley could accommodate an expanded service, we also had to consider the requirements of the individuals working on the round and the triple bottom line that Brothers of Charity was taking into account."

We are interested in the waste your company produces and what currently happens to that waste - whether you are a big waste producer or not!

In delivery of this survey, companies throughout the region will be selected at random, contacted by phone and invited to take part. The survey itself will be delivered via face-to-face interviews at your site using trained independent surveyors. This webpage is designed to help companies invited to take part in the survey, understand what the survey entails, why it is being carried out, and how the data collected will be used.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is this survey being carried out?

This data is required to help assess the progress in diverting waste from landfill in the Region, and the move to recycling and reuse, and also to help identify market gaps and the need for new waste recycling or treatment facilities. The information collected in this survey will be used to project what types and size of new waste facilities will be required for the future management of commercial and industrial wastes in the North West and to help plan facilities regionally and support planning applications locally. This survey could well help to provide you with local waste management facilities to help you manage your waste in a more sustainable manner, and reduce your waste costs.

Who is doing this survey?

This survey is being carried out by trained independent surveyors who are delivering this survey on behalf of and contractors to the local authorities of the North West and 4NW (formerly the regional assembly). Introductory letters from some of these bodies are given in "Linked Doucments" below. The surveyors are not Council employees and cannot deal with other Council matters.

How was I selected?

We need to survey 1,000 commercial or industrial companies. To be able to give results which are statistically valid, companies who take part in this survey are selected completely at random, based upon their size and type of business. You have therefore been randomly selected from basic contact data provided by the Office of National Statistics.

What does the survey entail?

We need to collect basic information about what waste you produce, quantified as much as possible (ie. in tonnes), and what happens to that waste. To be able to aggregate this data properly, we will also need to check the size of your company against the data we have, and your type of business. To achieve this, a surveyor will visit your site at a mutually agreed time and date, to conduct a survey interview and take a short tour of your facilities, to spot any materials which you may not consider waste, or are insignificant to you but important to the survey. The surveyor will enter this data on a laptop on site.

Will my confidentiality be compromised?

No. We take Data Protection and Commercial Confidentiality very seriously. Your company details will only be used by the personnel booking the visits and those carrying out the survey. Information collected from you will only be used for the purpose of this survey, and will be aggregated so that it will not be possible to identify individual company data. The survey will culminate in an analysis at regional and national level, and only aggregated data will be used for this.

Will my data be passed on to my Local Authority, the Environment Agency or other Government Agencies for any other purpose?

No. Your data will only be used for the purpose of this survey. It will be kept secure and will not be passed on to anybody not connected with delivering the survey. The independent surveyors used are not government employees, they are not interested in how you run your operations or looking for infringements of waste legislation, and are not permitted to use the data they collect for any other reason than to deliver the survey. Company or waste data or observations made during the survey visit, will not be forwarded to or used by any Government Agency.

What is expected of me?

If you prepare for the visit of the surveyor, then he/she will be able to complete their survey in an effective and timely manner, and leave you to get on with your real work! If you are able to collect appropriate consignment notes, transfer notes or invoices or other documents which evidence waste quantities, this would be very useful. Before the survey we will supply a hard copy of the survey form. If you look through this, this should help you identify any other information you may need to complete the survey.

How long will the survey take?

This will depend on your company’s size and complexity. We aim to have most surveys complete within half an hour, for larger sites it may take longer than this.

Where can I find out more?

Check our website at www.wastesurvey.com, email us at info@wastesurvey.com, or call Jill Sykes on 01274699400.

Linked Documents

Click on the title of the following supporting documents to view and download (Adobe Acrobat Reader required)

North West C&I Waste Arisings Survey 2009 - Frequently Asked Questions

North West C&I Waste Arisings Survey 2009 - Sample Questionnaire

North West C&I Waste Arisings Survey 2009 - Key Points for Preparation

Introductory Letter 4NW

Introductory Letter Lancashire County Council

The Previous NW Waste Arisings Survey

The last survey of commercial and industrial (C&I) waste arisings carried out in the North West region was delivered by Urban Mines in 2006-7 on behalf of the North West Regional Technical Advisory Board.

The statistically valid survey of 981 companies, when grossed up to estimate arisings for the whole region, revealed:

• 7,532,289 total tonnes arising in the region of which:
• 27% were non-metallic wastes such as plastics, paper and other potentially recyclable materials, 24% of mixed wastes, and 19% of chemical wastes.
• The results also showed that at that time 47% of total wastes were recycled in the region, but that at least 29% was still landfilled.
• The work also revealed that there was a potential of 3.27 million tonnes of waste which could be recycled.

This new survey is intended to repeat the 2006 survey using similar methodology so that trends can be identified and progress towards more sustainable methods of waste re-use and disposal measured.

The full report for this work can be obtained by following the link below, or by clicking here. 

Survey Delivery

This survey is being delivered by a consortium of specialist environmental consultancies Urban Mines Ltd, Groundwork Pennine Lancashire and Black & Veatch.

Links

Links to other recent C&I arisings Surveys:

Principles

This survey has been commissioned and funded by NWDA, 4NW, Envirolink NW and local authorities in the North West Region:

Project Report

This project is now completed. The final project report is available from the Environment Agency by clicking here

Background

UK wide waste strategy in the past has focused on household waste, and in this area performance is improving considerably with increasing recycling rates, reduced landfill rates and the delivery of new waste treatment facilities through the PFI financing programme. Through WasteDataFlow, the Defra managed information system, there is a wealth of high quality data available on which wastes are generated where, and what happens to them – but only of course for municipal waste.

Recently the Governments of the UK have started to focus more on the greater volumes of waste generated by the private sector – particularly commercial and industrial companies. Although traditionally larger recyclers than local authorities, companies still landfill huge volumes of waste. Although this situation is thought to be improving as landfill tax increases, we don’t really know because there is no up to date national data on what companies produce which wastes, and what currently happens with them. Data sets which are collected routinely by the Environment Agency, such as that collected from regulated waste sites, contains little information on arisings and has significant data gaps. Yet planning authorities and private investors need this information before deciding where new waste facilities are required, and for building the business case to deliver them

The last national surveys were carried out by the Environment Agency for England & Wales in 2002-3, before that 1998-99. For Scotland the most recent postal survey was in 2006, in Northern Ireland 2003. Much has changed since then!

The two most recent comprehensive and statistically rigorous surveys carried out on Commercial and Industrial Waste Arisings in the UK have been carried out by – Urban Mines.

North West C&I Survey 2006 (delivered 2007-8)

By surveying 987 companies via a structured face to face interview based survey, Urban Mines with local partners, delivered a regionally focused C&I waste survey for the North West Regional Assembly, in a statistically valid manner. Delivered to time and budget, the use of Urban Mines developed survey management and data collection software, and use of the internet for data collation and error screening, delivered the completed survey in a much more timely fashion and considerably cheaper than previous surveys. The focus on regional waste arisings also allowed the effective generation of data to local Waste Planning Authority level, by industrial and commercial sector and company size.

Wales Industrial & Commercial Survey 2007 (delivered 2008-9)

By further developing the methodology used in previous EA surveys and that developed for the North West England survey, Urban Mines have just completed an extensive survey of the waste arisings of 1,500 companies throughout Wales, in a time-frame originally conceived for 1,000 surveys. Again using a developed sample frame based upon population data supplied by the Office of National Statistics, with whom we work closely in delivery of these surveys, companies were selected and recruited in a statistically valid manner to allow robust grossing of the data to provide waste arisings at national and regional level, by company sector and size. This work too was delivered to time and budget

Urban Mines Expertise

Urban Mines has the in-house expertise and local survey partners, plus developed methodology, software and systems, to be able to deliver effective commercial and industrial waste arisings surveys across the UK.

Our Environmental Economist and Statisticians ensure an effective design of the survey to prescribed confidence limits, working with the Office of National Statistics for population and company data. We have internal data management and data security systems which meet the exacting requirements of the ONS.

Our Environmental Scientists work closely with the Statisticians to develop the questionnaire structure and train the surveyors.

Our Software Developers fine tune our proprietary software which drives the recruitment of companies in a statistically valid manner, collects the data, screen incoming data for errors and inconsistencies, and collates the final data for grossing. And all this in a manner which ensures full data confidentiality and security.
 

Our Tele-booking team recruits companies for the survey in a manner which matches the statistical requirements of the sample frame, whilst ensuring effective visit rates for the surveyors and minimal driving time between appointments – without sacrificing statistical integrity. Convincing companies to take part in a survey which does not directly benefit them is no trial task – our team delivers outstanding recruitment rates day after day throughout the survey period.

Companies being surveyed are informed of the purpose of the survey and on developments by our dedicated website www.wastesurvey.com

Our trained and experienced Surveyors visit the companies to collect the waste arisings data via a structured interview, using well tried survey software which screens entries for errors on site.

And finally our Project Manager and Survey Support Personnel ensure that the survey is delivered effectively and efficiently to time and budget, while keeping the client up to date with progress and fully informed.

For more information on how Urban Mines can help you deliver effective surveys, contact Peter Scholes on 01274 699400 or at peter.scholes@urbanmines.org.uk

Allowing the contractor to concentrate on the areas which he/she specialises in, Urban Mines can take care of the sustainability, education and none core activities of a complex PFI tender and contract delivery.

Support in developing a compliant tender and meeting sustainability and environmental requirements, can include:

• Triple Bottom Line (social, environmental, economic) modeling and assessment of proposals
• Partnership Management, covering local, regional, national and other sector specific bodies
• Method Statement development for specific service delivery
• Training for project personnel on sustainability elements in building and operation

Urban Mines can also give practical support during the PFI delivery phase, and can be a delivery partner using Urban Mines resources and staff. This can include:

• delivering site waste audits and developing site waste management plans, for the construction phases
• engaging with the local community and stakeholders
• engaging with social enterprises, and developing their business model to a state where they can sub-contract for part of the service delivery
• developing and delivering visitor centres 
• for waste contracts, developing and delivering waste minimisation and waste education programmes
• developing and delivering recyclate market development programmes
•  for "Building Schools for the Future", developing learning materials related to sustainability, resource packs, INSET training and teacher training

Urban Mines can prepare or support submissions throughout the PFI process, including writing method statements, developing delivery plans and delivering aspects of the PFI using Urban Mines staff.

For more information contact Peter Scholes on 01274699400, or at peter.scholes@urbanmines.org.uk

Stakeholder engagement is complex and demanding associated with developing and building new waste infrastructure and meeting the demand to enable waste materials to move up the waste hierarchy.

We have first hand experience with this through promoting our own Sustainable Growth Park concept and encouraging multiple waste management activities all on one site! Urban Mines are committed to sustainable solutions for waste management and champion the identification of integrated proposals and making the benefits add up locally for community, environment and economy.

Clients include: top 5 Waste Management Companies

Products

• Stakeholder consultation (formal and informal) connected to waste infrastructure proposals and changes in waste management
• Stakeholder engagement and communication strategies & implementation facilitation
• Stakeholder surveying (formal and informal) connected to existing and proposed waste facilities
• Economic/socio-environmental multiplier assessments to measure wider benefits associated with new waste investment for the collection, transfer, recycling/reprocessing, treatment and recovery of waste materials.
• Specialist assistance coupled with waste planning applications covering SGP concept and assessing wider socio-economic and environmental benefits

For more information, contact Gill Tatum on 01274 699400 or gill.tatum@urbanmines.org.uk

In total over seventy businesses were assisted with a mixture of one day of support or five days direct consultancy.   The range of work included waste audits and assistance with legislation including packaging waste and hazardous waste regulations.  Companies were given in depth information about recycling opportunities including a cost benefit analysis for the introduction of recycling equipment e.g. balers and compactors.

A wide range of support was required for companies in the recycling industry including leaflet design and distribution for fledgling businesses.  Market research for existing businesses was provided to assist developing existing and new markets. 

Many companies were seeking funding for plant and equipment or training.  Whilst this activity was not a core requirement of the project, we were successful in securing £100,000 of funding for refurbishing a redundant building, in order to recycle materials.  We also identified funding opportunities for WAMITAB training.

The project was successful for safeguarding sixty full time staff and creating employment for an additional three, along with a new recycling business being established.  Also, there are strong indications that additional jobs will be created since the project finished which will come into fruition over the coming months.  Detailed below is a table showing the wide range of work completed.

Company	Type of Assistance
Accord	Waste Audit
Advantage Waste Solutions	Market Research for alternative materials
Agricycle (Midlands)	Market Research for farm waste
Akristos	Market Research for markets for non fired clay bricks using secondary materials
ALO UK	Recycling and Legislation Advice
Anochrome	Waste Audit and IPPC Training
Arrow Environmental	Process flow improvement for oil/water separation
Aston Manor Brewery	Waste Audit and cost benefit analysis for introducing waste compaction
B. Mason & Sons	Waste Audit + ISO 14001 Pre audit assistance
Baker & Finnemore	Waste Audit
BCR Global Textiles	Research into utilising vehicle capacity and incorporating vehicle telematics
BG Plating	Waste Audit
Bin Men	Market Research for development of household recycling bin
Bloomfield Composting	Assistance with WRAP application for capital grant funding
Bloomfield Recycling & Skip Hire	Assistance with WRAP application for capital grant funding
Blythe Valley Innovation Centre	Recycling & Legislation Advice
Botany Bay Nurseries	Research to identify suitable plastic recyclers and composter
Breakwells Glass	Waste Audit
Brownhills Glass	Waste Audit
Brumcan (Community Interest Company)	Leaflet Design
Brumcan (Community Interest Company)	Glass recycling for hospitality sector
Busch UK	Waste Audit
BVH	Software development for Hazardous waste reports for Environment Agency
CAB Automotive	Research to identify recycler and market prices for plastics and Woodstock Fibre
Capricorn Mouldings	Waste Audit
Charlton & Jenrick Ltd	Waste Audit Assistance with packaging waste regulations
Chequer Foods	Market research for alternative solutions  to landfill for difficult waste streams
CRASH  IT (Community Interest company)	Assistance with WEEE regulations in relation to IT equipment
CRH Plant Hire	Recycling & resource efficiency advice
Crown Skip Hire	Market research for alternative uses for chipped wood
Downings Waste Recovery	Research for funding WAMITAB training
DP Recycling	Research & advice for potential new  recycling business
ECD	Research for recycling waste materials in relation to repair  of  mobile phones
Envirowarm (Community Interest Company)	Feasibility study to develop a white goods refurbishment facility
Estech (Europe)	Research into R & D funding for alternative uses of by-products from autoclave process
Expo Distribution	Research into recycling various plastics & establishing market prices
Greenfields (Organic)	Research to identify suitable site for composting to meet EA regulations
Greenskys Recycling	Leaflet distribution in Shrewsbury  for this new recycling business
Howard Group	Assistance with Environmental Legislation
Humphries Demolition Ltd	Assistance with WRAP application for capital grant funding
JME Glass	Glass recycling for hospitality sector
Kingsbury Pallets	Feasibility study to develop paper manufacture from wood waste
Ladywood Furniture Project	Research to introduce training provision to generate NVQ qualifications for  refurbishing  electrical products
Lawrence Skip Hire	Research into funding for new recycling facility
Mercian Housing Association	Assistance with measuring carbon footprint
Moorland Green (Composting)	Research for compaction equipment suitable for compost for retail market
Oswestry Furniture Project (Community Interest Company)	Assistance with contract negotiation with Veolia and Shropshire Waste Partnership for new bulky goods collection service
Oswestry Furniture Project (Community Interest Company)	Develop marketing document for this enterprise to promote the value the organisation provides to the community to engage with stakeholders etc
Paperchasers Ltd	Marketing & Leaflet distribution for this new business (Business created by Urban Mines)
Paperchasers Ltd	Assistance with WEEE regulations
Paperchasers Ltd	Market research for pallet recycling
Paperchasers Ltd	Market research plastic recycling
Parkwood Leisure	Assistance with recycling plastic containers
Phoenix Abrasives Ltd	Waste Audit
Plastic Recycling International	Market development
Plastil UK Ltd	Waste Audit & Research into rainwater harvesting
Polymer Recyclers Ltd	Market research into potential markets for reprocessed technical rubber(s)
Polymer Recyclers Ltd	Market research into feedstock of technical rubber for reprocessing
Regus	Waste Audit & assistance with energy consumption
Shropshire Real Nappy Network (Community Interest Company)	Research into funding opportunities
Solar Horizons	Market research into potential niche markets, plus research into geographical supply of natural gas
Solar Horizons	Market research for potential new recycling business
South Shropshire Furniture Scheme	Assistance with contract negotiation with Veolia and Shropshire Waste Partnership for new bulky goods collection service
System Seating International	Waste Audit
The Big Lottery	Waste Audit
The Network (Community Interest Company)	Research into funding opportunities
Tyre Barrier Solutions	Research into potentially using tyres as barrier protection
Wellpak Ltd	Research into potential outlets for unsalable fresh fruit e.g. zoos
Worcestershire Resource Exchange	Research into funding opportunities
Wrekin Recycling	Research into markets for baled plastic waste from farms
Wye Valley Brewery	Waste Audit plus assistance with packaging regulations

The companies that are taking part in the project are Veolia Environmental Services in Telford, JMC Glass in Wolverhampton, Brumcan in Birmingham and City Services in Coventry.

The information will also appear on the website www.pubrecycling.org.uk so that a wider audience can benefit from the project. Other organisations such as the British Hospitality Association and the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) will also feature the details on their websites. Enterprise Inns, which have approximately 550 establishments in the area, will distribute the leaflets internally, as well as include it on their website.

The Hospitality sector is under immense pressure at the moment, including an increase in legislation such as the smoking ban, which has affected their business. The message to the sector is that recycling glass avoids landfill tax and is easy to introduce, as dedicated bins are provided. It is also good for the environment and is a very cost effective way of enhancing their image. Overall, with very little change to their in house procedures they can achieve immediate and long term savings as well as improve their environmental performance.

Urban Mines will work alongside the glass collection companies to monitor the increase in recycling activity within this sector and report the findings to WRAP. Within the scope of the project we will be seeking a minimum of two case studies too showcase the benefits of recycling glass and demonstrate how easy it is to implement.

This has included SME support programmes with new recycling business development, infrastructure development, market surveys and assistance with new product or new market development.

Urban Mines has also in the past developed its own recycling businesses, such as ‘End of Life Computers’ (http://www.extended-life-computers.co.uk/) a PC recycling and training venture in Halifax, which have been spun off as viable commercial concerns.

Urban Mines can therefore offer specialised and expert support in the areas of:

• Market Surveys and Capacity Surveys – recyclers, reprocessors, waste management facilities, gap analysis; who does what, where, using which materials, with plants of what capacity… using telephone, face to face or other survey techniques

• New Business Development – supporting the development of new recycling businesses, including business plan development and assistance in finding markets, customers and funding support

• New Product Development – with help in identifying technology partners, potential markets, issues with use specifications and identifying public funding and support opportunities

• Collection Trials - working with private and public partners to test collection and recycling opportunities with hard to reach groups, such as SMEs

• Materials Sourcing – assistance in sourcing secondary materials of suitable quality for manufacturing or energy applications

• Market Sourcing – identifying markets and customers for products made from secondary materials

• Infrastructure Development – identifying sites for new recycling or waste infrastructure, and identifying planning and community issues, identifying funding and support sources, encouraging clustered development.

• Sustainable Procurement – sourcing sustainable products for organisations and construction projects, supporting regional “Buy Recycled” programmes.

• Strategy Development – support with developing market development strategies, particularly in relation to public procurement PFI opportunities

Urban Mines Ltd, as part of the ReMaDe Network, has sister organisations in regions throughout the UK, and can deliver regional and multi-regional projects and initiatives working with these partners. These include:

• ReMaDe North West
• Enviros
• Belfast City Council
• Recycling Action Yorkshire
• London Remade
• ReMaDe Essex
• ReMaDe Kent and Medway (ReMaDe South East)
• ReMaDe Scotland
• ReMaDe Wessex
• UK CEED (ReMaDe East of England)
• University of Northampton
• Wales Environment Trust
• WRAP

More information on the Network is available at http://www.remadenetwork.org.uk/

The survey will focus mainly on food waste but will also incorporate green waste as well. Our surveyor, James Horne, will require access to bins and to be able to discuss waste disposal at your site with somebody who has responsibility for it. The survey will take no longer than one hour of your time and will cover:

• Quantity and type of organic waste disposed of
• Current method of disposal 
• Current cost of disposal 
• Predicted future organic waste arisings 
• Ability and willingness of the organisation to segregate organic waste 
• Overall interest in separate collection

The sites we aim to survey are a mixture of current and ex-local authority run sites as well as a number from the private sector. All sites have been selected because of the likelihood of them having good quantities of organic waste.

If the survey concludes that there is enough suitable waste available the next step in the process will be to assess the economic viability of establishing a collection round and introducing anaerobic digestion facilities into the city. It is hoped that this will lead to lower cost collection services to producers of organic waste, reducing overall company costs for waste disposal. In addition, amongst the advantages of anaerobic digestion, is its ability to produce power. Therefore, not only will it provide a less expensive and environmentally superior disposal option, power will be generated that can be fed back into local organisations or the national grid.

This survey work has the full support of Sheffield City Council.

Assurance

This is a confidential process and details specific to individual organisations will not be released.

Results

 Summary results of the survey will be available on this web site from mid June.

Further Information

For further information on this survey please contact:

James Horne, Market Development Manager, Urban Mines on 01274 699 406 or at james.horne@urbanmines.org.uk

Waste Management, Sheffield City Council on 0114 2037621 or at

wastemanagement@sheffield.gov.uk

Mark Baker, Project Manager – Markets, RAY on 0113 2378423 or at

mark.baker@recyclingaction-yorkshire.org.uk

www.recyclingaction-yorkshire.org.uk

Environmental issues and the consequences of failure to manage them feature heavily in the news today. Put these into a context to commerce and industry and the list seems endless, for instance:-

• Legal compliance issues

• Waste disposal and pollution

• Energy consumption

• Climate Change

• Sustainability

• Reporting obligations

• Corporate Social Responsibility

• Employee satisfaction

to name but a few! Together they add up to risks for business in three crucial areas:-

• Legislation and compliance, there is a large and expanding range of environmental legislation aimed at preventing pollution and reducing waste, it applies to everyone and ignorance is no defence. In many cases individual directors are personally responsible for their company’s performance, so you need to be aware of everything that might affect you.
• Financial pressure, costs are rising over and above inflation. To reduce waste and encourage resource efficiency landfill tax is now rising at £8/ton/yr, by 2010 every ton of land-filled waste will cost £48 in tax alone, more than double today’s rate. Energy costs also continue to soar.
• Reputation, today’s consumers want to deal with companies they perceive as being environmentally and ethically responsible and good staff want to work for good companies. Supply chain initiatives mean this type of pressure is being applied to businesses many stages removed from public consumption and business that are slow to react will start to lose sales.

Currently many companies and organisations are doing great things in specific areas like waste, energy consumption and site management. Those that coordinate their efforts through an environmental management system get the most benefit. Simply put an EMS Brings together all the individual initiatives on policy, waste energy etc. in a structured, documented and provable approach to managing environmental performance and responsibilities. The immediate benefits are:-

• Legislative compliance

• Cost reductions and efficiency improvements

• Enhanced reputation with customers, staff, suppliers, insurers, banks

• Increased sales potential and protection of existing business

• Greater competitive advantage

• Increased employee motivation

In recognition of the rapidly changing nature of environmental management in business we at Urban Mines can work with you to design and implementation EMSs to ISO14001 or BS8555 standards. By taking a holistic approach and working in detail with clients we are helping a number of companies by bringing together the good work they are doing to yield triple bottom line benefits of Economic, Social and Environmental improvements.

Cymraeg

Introduction

The survey, managed by the Environment Agency Wales (EAW), will survey the waste arisings from 1,500 commercial and industrial companies in Wales over the following months (ending January 2009), covering a wide range of industry sectors and company sizes.

This work is required to:

• generate statistics to report to the EU (as part of the EU Waste Stats Regs reporting)
• monitor performance against National Waste Strategy targets on waste minimisation and diversion from landfill
• identify what is needed in terms of new recycling and waste treatment facilities around Wales
• assess progress in waste re-use and recycling

Delivery

WAG and EAW have commissioned the independent, not for profit consultants Urban Mines to deliver this survey, in partnership with Groundwork Bridgend & Neath Port Talbot, and Menter Môn in Llangefni. Companies will be selected at random to take part in the survey, which is voluntary, and telephoned to arrange an appointment. The survey itself will be carried out face to face, where the trained surveyor will log data on all waste streams generated, and what currently happens to them. All data will be held under strict confidence (Urban Mines is registered under the Data Protection Act) and will only be used in aggregated form for the delivery of this survey.

For more information on confidentiality and for a more detailed explanation of the survey, please click the FAQ link below.

Survey Results

The aggregated survey data, along with grossed up data to give a picture of waste arisings throughout Wales, and subsequent interpretation, will be presented in a final report due April 2009.

Contacts

For more information on this survey, its delivery and use of data, please contact:

• Jill Sykes at Urban Mines on 01274 699400, email jill.sykes@urbanmines.org.uk
• Fran Machin at the Environment Agency Wales on 02920 466154, email frances.machin@environment-agency.wales.gov.uk

Related Documents

Please click on the links below to obtain related documents, presented for those companies taking part in the survey:

• Data Confidentiality and other FAQ
• Survey Structure and Questions

Other Links

Other links which you may find useful:

Wales Public Sector Waste Production Survey 2008

Welsh Assembly Government - Waste & Recycling

Environment Agency Wales - Last I&C Survey 2002-3

Urban Mines Ltd

Delivery partners:

Arete Business Services

Groundwork Wales

Menter Môn

Note this webpage at www.wastesurvey.com can also be accessed through the Urban Mines website at www.urbanmines.org.uk

English

Cyflwyniad

Fe fydd yr arolwg, a reolir gan Asiantaeth yr Amgylchedd Cymru (AAC) yn arolygu’r sgil-gynhyrchion gwastraff a ddaw o 1,500 o gwmnïau masnachol a diwydiannol yng Nghymru dros y misoedd sydd i ddod (diweddu Ionawr 2009), ac yn rhoi sylw i ystod eang o sectorau diwydiannol a meintiau cwmnïau.

Fe fydd gofyn i’r gwaith hwn:

• Greu ystadegau i adrodd i’r UE (fel rhan o adrodd i Reoliadau Ystadegau Gwastraff yr UE)
• Monitro perfformiad yn ôl targedau Strategaeth Wastraff Genedlaethol
• Adnabod anghenion o ran cyfleusterau ailgylchu a thrin gwasatraff o gylch Cymru
• Asesu cynnydd mewn ail-ddefnyddio ac ailgylchu gwastraff.

Gweithredu

Mae CCC ac AAC wedi comisiynu Urban Mines, yr ymgynghorwyr annibynnol nid er elw i weithredu’r arolwg hwn mewn partneriaeth â Groundwork Bridgend & Neath Port Talbot, a Menter Môn yn Llangefni.  Caiff cwmniau eu dethol ar hap i gymryd rhan yn yr arolwg, sydd yn wirfoddol, ac fe drefnir apwyntiad dros y ffôn. Caiff yr arolwg ei hun ei chynnal wyneb yn wyneb ble bydd syrfewr hyfforddedig yn cofnodi data ar bob ffrwd o wastraff a greir, a beth sy’n digwydd iddyn nhw ar hyn o bryd. Caiff pob data ei gadw yn gyfrinachol (mae Urban Mines wedi ei gofrestru o dan y Ddeddf Diogelu Data) a dim ond fel cyfanswm y caiff ei ddefnyddio er mwyn gweithredu’r arolwg hwn.

Am ragor o wybodaeth ynglyn â chyfrinachedd, ac am eglurhad mwy manwl o’r arolwg, cliciwch ar y linc Cwestiynnau Cyffredin isod.

Canlyniadau Arolwg

Fe fydd data cyfun yr arolwg, ynghyd â’r data gros yn rhoi darlun o sgil-gynhyrchion drwy Gymru a dehongliadau dilynol yn cael eu cyflwyno mewn adroddiad terfynnol a gyhoeddir ym mis Ebrill 2009.

Cysylltiadau

Am ragor o wybodaeth ynglyn â’r arolwg hwn, ei weithrediad a defnyddio data, cysylltwch â

• Jill Sykes yn Urban Mines - 01274 699400, ebost jill.sykes@urbanmines.org.uk
• Fran Machin yn Asiantaeth Amgylchedd Cymru 02920 466154, ebost frances.machin@environment-agency.wales.gov.uk

Dogfennau Perthnasol

Cliciwch ar y dogfennau isod i gael dogfennau perthnasol, wedi eu cyflwyno ar gyfer y cwmniau hynny sy’n cymryd rhan yn yr arolwg:

• Cyfrinachedd Data a Chwestiynnau Cyffredin eraill
  

Cysylltiadau Eraill

Cysylltiadau eraill allai fod o ddiddordeb:

Wales Public Sector Waste Production Survey 2008

Llywodraeth Cynulliad Cymru - Gwastraff ac ailgylchu

Gwastraff Masnachol a Diwydiannol (MaD) yng Nghymru 2002-3

Urban Mines Ltd

Partneriaid Trosglwyddo:

Arete Business Services

Groundwork Cymru

Menter Môn

This briefing explains how this North West survey was delivered, and how the same methodology and delivery plan can be applied to other Regions too.

Why this survey is needed (taken from tender)

It is the role of Regional Bodies such as the Regional Technical Advisory Body (RTAB) to assemble relevant waste data and provide advice on options for the management of waste in their Region. The recently issued PPS10 and accompanying guidance places a significantly increased burden on such regional bodies to collect, collate and publish data and information on waste management within the region. This information will be crucial for the development of strategic plans and local development frameworks and also to provide the necessary numeric context to individual planning applications and appeals.

Major deficiencies have been highlighted in the available information for C&I waste arisings and management methods. The available data is from surveys carried out by the Environment Agency for 1998/99 and 2002/3 respectively. Whilst these surveys achieved a precision of +/- 5% at a 90% confidence level for total industrial and commercial waste, users are advised to treat the information provided as the best estimate from a range and should not, for example, read too much into small differences between sectors or detailed comparisons with results from the previous (1998-9) survey.

Therefore, the level of information that is currently available is thought inadequate to make reasonable projections for what type and capacity of waste management facilities will be required for C&I waste in the future. This information gap can only be filled by the commissioning a regional survey of these waste types.

Urban Mines Regional Survey delivery in North West England

Urban Mines, working with local delivery partners, completed a comprehensive survey of commercial and industrial waste arisings in the North West of England, using a combination of data from face to face interviews, and from PPC submissions. The use of a rigorous and effective methodology drawing on lessons from previous survey experience provided the most sound and accurate regional commercial and industrial waste arisings data generated to date.

Estimating commercial and industrial waste arisings is a non-trivial task and should not be undertaken by the faint hearted! However, Urban Mines demonstrated that applying fundamentals such as:

• well thought out procedures;
• well trained survey personnel;
• electronic data gathering and collation; and
• effective error trapping and data cleaning methodology

a high quality complex survey can be delivered cost effectively.

Persuading businesses to take part in such a survey is difficult and requires well thought out systems to minimise rejection rates and persistence is a pre-requisite. The focus of the survey data was to collect information on waste material types that was both consistent with previous survey classification but also simplified and meaningful to both waste producers and final survey users.

Reducing the cost (relative to previous Environment Agency surveys) may provide potentially one of the biggest benefits in that it might be possible to repeat the survey at regular intervals, thus leading to a time series data set. The lack of such time series data sets has thus far been a significant information gap in developing the trend analysis required to underpin planning for waste management infrastructure.

The North West C&I Survey delivered over 800 face to face interviews of companies spread geographically around the region, selected at random based upon a survey matrix derived from data supplied by the Office of Nation Statistics. Particular sectors important to the economy of the region were stressed in the development of the matrix, making the translation of the data to other regions not straight forward.

To adequately take into account larger waste producers, data from PPC submissions was included in generating the final database, giving a total dataset of some 4,500 lines and around 1,000 companies.

What was Surveyed

• 981 Commercial and Industrial companies within the North West, including retail, representatively distributed by company size, industrial sector and location
• All wastes produced on a company’s site and sent off site for treatment, disposal or recycling, recorded by waste type and annual tonnage produced
• Hazardous and non-hazardous wastes
• The waste management method used for each waste e.g. landfill, recycling etc, and contractor used. This is termed in later tables as “destination”, referred to in earlier EA surveys as “fate”
• The possibility of the waste to be recycled or energy recovered ·

What Data was Generated

The NWRTAB was supplied with: A raw dataset of some 4,500 lines of collected data Grossed up figures for regional and sub-regional (by local authority area) arisings, including arisings by sector and company size, by waste type, by destination (ie waste management method (also by sector and waste type).

Data was also generated for:

• Extent of recycling and potential to recycle Extent of energy recovery and potential to recover
• Hazardous waste arisings
• Waste exports (from the region)
• Contractors used and
• Sources of Collected Data

Repeating Surveys in other Regions

The developed methodology and tools are eminently reproducible in other parts of the UK, including other Regions. Urban Mines working with local partners to deliver the surveys, will provide the expertise, train the surveyors, develop the survey matrix, collate and clean the collected data, gross up the data for a regional view, and manage the full project.

For more information contact Peter Scholes on 01274 699400 or peter.scholes@urbanmines.org.uk

Attached Figures (click on icons below)

Figure 1: North West Regional C&I waste arisings by sector

Figure 2: North West Recycling Opportunities

For the full final report, from Cheshire County Council website, click here.

Postal and email surveys are just not cost effective – the return rate is usually so low that it is impossible to have confidence in the data collected.  This is why we now always aim to collect survey data either by telephone survey or face to face discussion.

Urban Mines has delivered a wide range of specialist surveys and consultations for clients including regional bodies, local authorities and private companies.Our specialist staff, supported by expert call centre personnel are able to ensure our clients get the data and feedback they need, at best value by routinely cracking the two main barriers to effective surveying: we can guarantee both high survey participation rate and high response data quality.

Our in-house statistical and analytical expertise ensures the survey is designed correctly before delivery, to define appropriate confidence limits, intervals, and sample size, to cut down the collection of irrelevant data, and to maximise response rates. The types of surveys undertaken includes

• Householder attitude and participation surveys e.g. to their local waste collection service, the local recycling centre or the new local waste strategy
• Waste Arisings Surveys e.g. detailed surveys of company waste generation, in or across sectors
• Reprocessing Capacity Surveys e.g. ascertaining from reprocessors, recyclers and waste management companies about the capacity they have for reusing waste within their region, to identify market gaps
• Market Surveys e.g. identifying and quantifying markets for new waste derived products or waste materials to feed new reprocessing facilities

How it works

Telephone Surveys

By combining the skills of our sector experienced staff and the specialist expertise of call centre personnel, we are able to deliver detailed mass telephone surveys, talking to companies, public bodies or householders.

Using a conversational telephone call-flow, we are able to achieve impressive participation rates whilst collecting the maximum useful data from a minimum call time. Nobody likes unnecessary phone calls, but people do like their opinions to be heard, and by understanding this, we can make their experience as painless and inclusive as possible.

Data Management Systems

Urban Mines have developed a suite of integrated, multifunction, MS Access applications to support the collection of client’s survey data. “EVCall” manages operators’ call logs, delivering contact details (randomised or according to criteria set), logging responses & scheduling call backs. “EVSurvey” leads operators through the survey questions, offering call script prompts & drop downs for fast data entry. Calculation tools are provided, for example for volume-tonnage conversion for common waste containers & waste types. The system also checks data for internal consistency and completeness.

Doorstep Surveys and Interviews

Using in-house staff and surveyors from partner organisations, Urban Mines is able to offer focused door-to-door household surveys or detailed face to face interviews, with whenever possible electronic data collection to ensure data quality at best value.

Focus Groups and Public Consultation

We are also able to arrange and facilitate public meetings, research and focus group sessions to elicit collective feedback, consultation and review of subject such as waste strategy, planning application, quality of services and other similar issues

Surveying Ethnic and Hard-to-Reach Groups

Using local experience and specialist knowledge of communicating with hard to reach communities we are able to offer telephone surveying and focus groups in different minority languages

Presentation of Results

Using in-house statistical expertise, we are able to offer a comprehensive impartial analysis of all data collected by individual surveys, and are able to use such data to model potential outcomes or test attitudes or hypotheses.We can apply a range of techniques to the data including GIS digital mapping, econometric modeling, GAP analysis, isochronic mapping, Monte Carlo simulations as part of the data interpretation package.

Data Protection

We operate our surveys in a highly confidential manner. We are registered under the Data Protection Act 1998 for handling the data collected in such surveys, and we have an audited server security set-up to ensure confidential data access is restricted to only those directly engaged in a specific project.

Case Studies

Ribble Valley Householder Survey

North West Commercial & Industrial Waste Survey

For more information

contact us on info@urbanmines.org.uk or call Peter Scholes on 01274699400

Web Access

This introductory page is also accessed via domain addresses wastesurvey.com and wastesurvey.org. During periods when surveying is in progress, these simple domain addresses direct users to survey specific data and forms, to help support recruitment and providing those being surveyed with useful background information.

The Sustainable Growth Park (sometimes called "Resource Efficiency Park") co-locates waste management facilities, recyclate users and reprocessors, and education and skilling facilities all on one site. Clean, modern and well managed, the SGP aims to

• Reduce the amount of resources we use
• Recover waste and recycle into new products
• Regenerate derelict land and create new jobs

We are working on SGP developments in the North and the Midlands. Follow the attached link for more information:

SGP

Latest News: South Kirkby Site given Outline Planning Permission (October 2007)

For more information and to register your interest in being located on this site, click here

WDA’s in England have been allocated permits that allow them to landfill BMW up to the number of permits they hold. To landfill more BMW than permits held the WDA will need to purchase more permits or face the possibility of a fine at the end of the fiscal year to the tune of £150 per tonne landfilled in excess of permits held. Permits in excess of the amount of BMW landfilled can be sold to other WDA’s.

Participants in this market, public sector Waste Disposal Authorities, are currently poorly equipped to manage the risks, costs, and opportunities entailed in trading. DEFRA have provided authorities with a model (M-BEAM) that allows the calculation of net permit positions for each year of the scheme. The model provides deterministic point estimates that can only incorporate different scenarios through multiple versions of the model. 

Urban Mines have developed a method that adjusts the M-BEAM allowance calculator and adds Monte Carlo analysis to allow the uncertainties and risks to be examined and managed within a stochastic framework.

Urban Mines can support local authorities in:

• Advice on the operation of the scheme
• Developing LATS strategy
• Developing Trading Strategy and Tactics
• Advice on individual trades, forward purchasing and exercising options
• Evaluating residual waste treatment options against long term trading of LATS permits

Follow the link below for more detail:

Urban Mines LATS support packages for Local Authorities

Also see:

LATS

Glyn Jones, Chief Environmental Ecomist, gives his views on LATS after it's first year of operation

The aim of the Resource Efficiency Network (REN) is to help companies to reduce their waste by promoting:

• Better use of materials and energy
• Use of industrial wastes as a source of chemicals, fuels and other valuable materials
• Recovery and processing of waste from one site, for use as a resource elsewhere

The main services provided by REN are delivered through an on-line information portal (www.resource-efficiency.org ), and through the support of a dedicated team of Knowledge Transfer Managers.

Membership is free and applications are welcomed from individuals and companies with a bona fide interest in increasing the resource efficiency of any aspect of UK industry or commerce. The Resource Efficiency Network builds on the success of the Mini-Waste Faraday Partnership. It is managed by C-Tech Innovation, a leading technology development and consulting company which provides innovation services to companies, universities, and government bodies.

Urban Mines is specifically working on helping firms in the retail and commerce sectors engage with the REN. This work will involve looking at energy usage, waste management, recycling and environmental training.

These include:

• Waste auditing to reduce your waste costs.
• Reuse and recycling waste rather than landfilling
• Environmental systems development.
• Mentoring and new recycling business start-up support.

This support is extended to a wide range of businesses within the Advantage West Midlands Regional Development Area (AWM-RDA), which broadly speaking covers the Area from Staffordshire down to Hereford and Worcestershire and across from Shropshire to Warwickshire. The project is partly funded by the European Regional Development Fund and Advantage West Midlands. Every company that partakes in the project is eligible to 5 days funded work, in return for an agreed amount of involvement to assist in each review and a nominal payment. Qualifying businesses will have less than 250 employees and a turnover of less than £24million.

To find out if your business is eligible for this valuable help DO NOT HESITATE contact us on ron.twyford@urbanmines.org.uk or call your regional office on 0121 250 3830/1 NOW and speak to Ron Twyford or Chris Gillett.

Each review can be tailored to specific requirements but typically have 4 main sections:-

• An examination of waste streams and disposal arrangements, looking for opportunities to save money.
• A look at how waste related environmental legislation affects the business and how to avoid the pitfalls caused by breaches.
• A review of the way the company manages it’s environmental impacts to make sure it’s maximising the opportunities presented.
• A list of recommendations to improve performance and increase profits.

If your company isn’t eligible for ERDF/AWM support DO NOT WORRY there may be other funds we can call on to help.

 ACT NOW! CONTACT THE EXPERTS TO FIND OUT WHAT FUNDS ARE AVAILABLE AND LET US DO THE REST

Click here for case study examples of the support we have given other companies in the Midlands and the North.

Currently we're running a scheme to improve the environmental performance of  Yorkshire & Humber companies. In the right circumstances the scheme allows them to carry out a 2-3 day environmental review with costs subsidised by MAS. Qualifying businesses will have recognised that reducing their impact on the environment makes good business sense.

To find out if your business is eligible for this help contact us on Info@urbanmines.org.uk or call 01274 699400.

The reviews themselves can be tailored to specific requirements but typically have 4 main sections: -

• an examination of waste streams and disposal arrangements, looking for opportunities to save money 

• a look at how waste related environmental legislation affects the business and how to avoid the pitfalls caused by breaches 

• a review of the way the company manages it’s environmental impacts to make sure it’s maximising the opportunities presented 

• a list of recommendations to improve performance and increase profits

If your company isn't eligible for MAS support there may be other funds we can call on to help.

go to case histories for examples

Based upon a mapped catchment area, related to road delivery drive times and other local transport infrastructure, waste feedstock arisings can be effectively modeled, with waste derived from commercial, industrial and/or municipal sources. This assessment is based upon arisings data gleaned from a variety of public domain sources including WasteDataFlow, various Environment Agency datasets, and C&I survey data, much derived from previous Urban Mines primary survey work.

The model also has the flexibility to model different scenarios. Individual competing plants can be excluded or included in the overall model based on the user’s requirements, as can particular waste sources or catchment scenarios

The model is designed to be used in the development of feasibility studies, supporting data for business planning and risk evaluation and for use by funders in due diligence.

Video Demonstration

The video demonstration of this model is based around a notional EfW facility located in Birmingham, around which catchment areas have been developed. All data and competing facilities are fictitious - this has been developed purely to demonstrate what is possible. When viewing the video, for each screen read the information box in the lower half of the screen, highlighted below by the red arrows, for an explanation of the model and the process being demonstrated.

To access the video click here: Feedstock Availability Video

 or on the "Demonstration" icon below

 Most computers will run this video directly, but if you have problems you will need Adobe Flash installed which can be downloaded from here

Why use Urban Mines?

• We have collected first hand much of the data on which commercial and industrial waste assessments are based, having delivered large scale surveys for the likes of the Environment Agency and the Welsh Assembly Government, so we know the data in detail and how it can be used, its strengths and weaknesses
• We have extensive practical experience of working with the whole range of other waste datasets, from the Environment Agency, Defra and other sources
• We have the in-house skills from software developers to waste consultants to waste statisticians to be able to develop such robust models, and have done so for a range of public and private sector clients, including regional planning bodies, local authorities and waste operating companies.
• Being not-for-profit we can offer this type of bespoke expert support at very competitive prices.