WRAP launches new capital support programme
WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme) has launched its latest capital support programme aimed at increasing the production of recycled and secondary aggregates (RSAs) in England and Scotland, and reducing the amount of material going to landfill.
The programme is part of WRAP’s current business plan target to divert 1.7 million tonnes of material from landfill, or avoid extraction from primary resources, by March 2008.
While aggregates recycling is increasing generally, WRAP says its Aggregates Programme has identified a need to improve the quantity and quality of RSAs produced from waste materials that would have otherwise been landfilled. This latest aggregates capital funding support programme aims to address these issues.
WRAP is introducing two capital support programmes with slightly different criteria for England and Scotland, as Mike Falconer Hall, WRAP’s aggregates capital projects manager, explained: ‘While both programmes are aimed at increasing the production of recycled and secondary aggregates, the Scottish Executive wishes to see a broader scope for potential projects. As a result, applications for funding in Scotland may include an element of non-aggregate construction, demolition and excavation waste processing and output. In England, the focus is on aggregate output but with an aim to attract applications to produce higher-value material.’
Although the scope of the two schemes varies, the eligibility criteria are broadly similar for both Scottish and English applicants. To qualify, a company must demonstrate that its proposal requires a capital investment in plant, equipment or infrastructure that will create new (or expand existing) capacity to process the specified materials.
Applicants for both the English and Scottish schemes will also have to demonstrate that the viability of their project is dependent on WRAP support. Successful applicants will have to prove that their project is commercially sustainable in the medium to long term and will generate additional annual output for a minimum of five years. This will include demonstrating clearly defined and, where possible, secured end markets for their products.
For further information, contact the WRAP capital grants team on tel: (01295) 819900. Alternatively, the capital support application document for aggregates for both England and Scotland can be downloaded from the WRAP website link below. The deadline for applications is Monday 28 May 2007.
