AD plant breaks ground in Cambridgeshire

In the UK alternative energy company Local Generation has started building its first anaerobic digestion (AD) plant in March, Cambridgeshire.

The plant will convert 30,000 tonnes annually of both packaged and unpackaged food waste into renewable energy and will be fully operational later in 2011.

Nick Waterman, Local Generation's director, says: 'This is an exciting time for the Local Generation business. I would like to recognise the excellent support and specifically the capital grant received from the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) in helping us to progress this exciting project.'

Waterman went on to explain that the company's sustainable project provides an alternative to sending food scraps to landfill, while benefitting the region's economy at the same time. 'We are genuinely excited about providing an efficient and ethanol alternative for dealing with the region's waste,' he states.

Lord Redesdale, chairman of the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association, approves of the project. 'Independent studies have shown that AD is the best treatment for food waste – it reduces landfill and greenhouse gases, generates renewable energy, and preserves resources,' he comments.