Recycling rate soars at construction site

UK Power Networks recycle 97% of building demolition rubble during substation redevelopment work

A UK Power Networks construction site in Whitechapel has managed to recycle 97% of the building demolition rubble taken off the site during the redevelopment of an electricity substation.

The company, in partnership with demolition specialists Erith Contractors Ltd, recycled 18,000 tonnes of waste – equivalent to 967 lorry loads – during demolition of the existing turbine hall, basement, store rooms, offices and garage in preparation for the construction of a new substation.

Clive Steed, sustainability manager at UK Power Networks, said: ‘We believe in working with our contractors to try to minimize our environmental impact and reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill.

‘While we cannot achieve this level of recycling with all our construction projects, this case highlights our commitment to sustainability and shows what can be achieved.’

In February UK Power Networks announced that they had reduced the amount of waste sent to landfill sites from road excavations carried out by their maintenance contractors from 80% to just 3%.

This followed a major drive lasting four years by the company’s streetworks department, working with local authorities, recycling plants and recycling agents to use recycled materials to fill in excavations.

The final 3% consists mainly of contaminated materials which cannot currently be recycled, which is also the case for the residual waste which could not be recycled from the site in Whitechapel.