The ‘Murf’ moved for environmentalists
Members of Bexhill Environmental Group's waste and recycling group on a visit to the Materials Recovery Facility at Hollingdean, East Sussex. January 2012
WASTE amd recycling group members from Bexhill Environmental Group (BEG) visited Veolia’s £6.5 million Materials Recovery Facility in Hollingdean, Brighton, to see for themselves how 60,000 tonnes of East Sussex waste is sorted and recycled every year.
Known as “the Murf”, from the abbreviation MRF, the plant separates recyclables from general rubbish at the rate of 10 minutes per truckload. And that’s just working at half its full capacity.
Nick Hollington, for BEG, said: “It’s amazing to see just how much can be recycled nowadays and how much the eventual ‘recyclate’ is worth. Paper fetches up to £140 a ton, cardboard £180, mixed plastics £160 and aluminium a staggering £1,500 per ton.”
Barbara Rogers representing both BEG and BALI, Bexhill Against Landfill and Incineration, said: “What particularly pleased us was that nothing going into the Murf comes out and goes to landfill.
“But one thing we should all now try to do is avoid putting plastic bags into our rubbish, as these have to be picked out by hand.”
A surprise for the group was that all shapes and sizes of plastic containers can be recycled - though ideally of Grades One to Three as marked on the label - contrary to Rother District Council’s assertion that only ‘bottle-shaped plastics’ can be accepted.
Trip organiser Chris Ashford, who is planning further visits to the Energy Recovery Facility at Newhaven and a new composting facility at Whitesmith, said: “BEG plans shortly to discuss with Rother how best to recycle both domestic and commercial waste.”
• For further information or to join such trips, e-mail BEG at info@bexhillenvironmentalgroup.org.uk or tyelephone 07989 781199.
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Weather for Bexhill-on-Sea
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 14 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: South east
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Temperature: 12 C to 22 C
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