NLWA explores next steps as construction ramps up at Edmonton EcoPark
Significant progress has been made at Edmonton EcoPark as the North London Heat and Power Project redevelops the site into a sustainable waste management hub. North London Waste Authority (NLWA) are now looking at the next steps and investigating the decommissioning and demolition of the current energy-from-waste plant.
After four years of construction at the EcoPark, LondonEnergy Ltd, the company owned by NLWA, is preparing to take over the new recycling facilities at the south of the site. The new recycling facilities, which will manage up to 135,000 tonnes of recyclable materials a year, are a key landmark as contractor, Taylor Woodrow, works to complete the Resource Recovery Facility and EcoPark House.
In the northern part of the EcoPark, excellent progress has been made on the construction site of the replacement Energy Recovery Facility. The lead contractor, ACCIONA, gained access to the site in September 2022 and is well into the first phase of ground works, receiving the complete footprint for the Energy Recovery Facility last week.
Now that construction of the new facility is well underway, NLWA is exploring the next stage of redeveloping the site. Decommissioning and demolition strategies for the current energy from waste facility are being considered with early market engagement planned in the Autumn.
In the meantime, the Resource Recovery Facility is undergoing testing and commissioning. Once complete the facility will process bulky, food and garden waste, as well as hosting a new Public Reuse and Recycling Centre. The centre will allow north London residents and businesses to drop off their recyclable and non-recyclable waste at the EcoPark for the first-time ever. A key feature for the building includes the EcoPark Array - 2,235 solar panels that enable EcoPark House to be completely off-grid.
Across the coming months, the site is welcoming north London borough officers on tours to understand how food waste, garden waste and caged bulky waste collection vehicles will access the site to drop off materials for recycling and processing.
ACCIONA’s civils subcontractor, Byrne Brothers, started onsite in May and formation of a bottom ash bunker is currently underway. Once completed, the new Energy Recovery facility will treat up to 700,000 tonnes of waste and have the best environmental controls to improve emissions from the waste to energy process. Waste processing will also be much more efficient, enabling district heating for up to 60,000 local homes.
As the new facilities have progressed, over 36 apprentices have joined the project with 152 training placements delivered onsite, with trainees learning essential skills and gaining knowledge of work in construction and on major projects.
In line with the project aims to benefit the local community, ACCIONA have been delivering their RE-Power Communities Scheme with 15 successful organisations already benefiting from volunteer support and community grants this year. A second round of the scheme has been launched this summer which is open to all north London boroughs and closes on 29 September 2023. Community organisations interested in applying can do so on the RE-Power Communities page.