Cambridgeshire's Mechanical Biological Treatment Facility

Part of a 200 hectare waste management plant, this mechanical biological treatment facility takes all of Cambridgeshire’s residual (‘black bag’) waste and separates out components for recycling and composting.

Inside the sorting hall of Cambridgeshire’s mechanical biological treatment facility. Photo by Cambridgeshire County Council.

At the facility, 20 – 25% of the waste is mechanically separated for recycling and the rest is made into compost-like material. Donarbon Waste Management Ltd, the company which runs the facility, hopes to use this for quarry restoration, growing energy crops or as a fuel.

The mechanical biological treatment facility also has an education centre which is open to local schools, colleges, community groups, businesses and the public.

The £731 million contract to create the mechanical biological treatment facility was awarded to Donarbon by Cambridgeshire County Council in 2008. It will help Cambridgeshire cut down the amount of waste going to landfill. It is a good example of waste leadership for local authorities.

Tags: waste, regions and subregions