EIMissue2

MANAGING WATER FLOODS RAINWATER HARVESTING RWM 2009 RECRUITMENT JOHNNY BALL JULY/AUGUST 2009

CONTENTS Pages 4 - 14

News Pages

Pages 15

Steve Grant Column - You really couldn’t make it up

by Steve Grant “please remove my name. What you have done is totally unethical”

Pages 16 - 17

UK Sustainably Development Association – Introduction to the association

by Tony Marmont “with very great pleasure UK-SDA has announced its new media partnership with Environment Industry Magazine”

Pages 19 - 22

Managing Water – Emerging Models for International Action

by Margaret Catley-Carlson “Disaster events are inevitable: high death and destruction tolls are not”

Pages 24 - 25

Floods – Issues with flooding?

by Josh Taylor “the flooding was severe enough to merit the deployment of 40,000 sandbags”

Pages 26 - 28

Rainwater Harvesting – A Strategic Solution to Water Shortages

by Alex Stephenson “very little of the water falling as rain finds its way into the mains supply”

Pages 30 - 32

SUDS – Greening Urban Drainage

by Geoff Gibbs “In the UK about one third of the water used in our houses flushes our toilets”

Pages 33 - 39

Green Roofing – Skyrise Water

by Dusty Gedge “The positive effects of green roofs in reducing floods has long been recognised in Germany”

Pages 45 - 47

Legal – Energy from wastewater...it’s a no brainer

by Kathryn Lucas & Dave Annells “In addition to the reclamation of water, energy can also be recovered from wastewater treatment”

Page 49

Environment Agency Prosecutions

Pages 50 - 54

Invasive Weed Species – Should I care about non-native species?

by Huw Irranca-Davies “Invasive species can also be a serious problem for our infrastructure” – Management of invasive plants

by James Macfarlane “Cornwall is often cited as having a particular

Page 52

problem with the plant”

Pages 56 - 68

RWM - Improve, inform, inspire exhibitor index p60 - 62, notes p63, floor plan p64 - 65, who can I see there p66 -68

Pages 73 -76

Education – Environment Industry Education

by Katrina Pierce “Now that we are in the midst of a truly global recession”

Pages 78 - 79

Recruitment – How the recession is affecting environmental careers

by Joe Heppenstall “So how can we be positive about the environmental sector given all this gloom and doom?”

Pages 80

Famous Last Words – What a load of rubbish?

by Johnny Ball “Even when we pop our clogs, we have to be disposed of”

EnviroMedia Limited, 254a Bury New Road, Whitefield, Manchester, M45 8QN

Alex Stacey Tel: 0161 3410158 Fax: 0161 7668997 Email: alex@enviromedia.ltd.uk

Cover image courtesy of Clearly Ambiguous.Images on pg 50 courtesy of Jim Linwood, Bladeflyer, Paul & Jill, Net Efekt, Smoobs and Surrealis UK. Johnny Ball’s article first appeared on the "Triple Science Programme Community Network.”

Environment Industry Magazine is proud to be the official media partner for the UK Sustainable Development Association.

Every effort is made to verify all information published, but Environment Industry Magazine cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions or for any losses that may arise as a result. Opinions expressed in articles do not necessarily reflect those of EnviroMedia Ltd. Environment Industry Magazine welcomes contributions for publication. Submissions are accepted on the basis of full assignment of copyright to EnviroMedia Ltd unless otherwise agreed in advance and in writing. We reserve the right to edit items for reasons of space, clarity or legality.

INTRODUCTION FROM THE EDITOR So here we are, issue two of Environment Industry Magazine.

It seems only yesterday I was working through FA Cup Saturday desperately writing the introduction to the first issue of the magazine. This time I am sitting in my dining room on a wet Sunday afternoon a day before going to press, again desperately trying to pen my introduction (although it is incredibly difficult to concentrate with a team of proof readers in the room next door arguing grammatical semantics).

Before I continue I would like to point out that, although I missed the entire FA Cup final, I did get to hold the infamous silverware a few weeks later. An irony not entirely lost on me. However the FA Cup does make you look thinner!

Writing at this time seems somewhat fitting as this issue we are focusing on water. Back in July 2007 the UK was practically submerged by a constant summer downpour; the rain had been so persistent the land was waterlogged.

It was then that we were hit by a one in five hundred year rainfall event; our overstretched resources, both natural and artificial, were overwhelmed causing so much devastation and disruption that the living conditions of those affected resembled the Neolithic. No drinking water, no sanitary facilities and in many cases no electricity.

In fact a great many people were left homeless (and some still are).

We are deliberately distributing this issue of Environment Industry Magazine to coincide with the second anniversary of those devastating floods. We have editorial from industry leaders across the water sector giving a holistic view of storm-water management and discussing what has changed in terms of legislation, funding and flood attenuation and also what measures could be used to alleviate future problems: • Margaret Catley Carlson – Chair of the Global Water Partnership, Chair of Water Resource Management Advisory Committee, Board of Trustees Intl Water Management, Commissioner of Water for the 21st Century and UN Secretary General Task Force on Water is writing about global water issues.

were others which were problematic to start with my builder’s knowledge of both eco techniques and materials was either extremely limited or nonexistent, also the building inspectors were reluctant to pass a building utilising non-traditional building methods. For example I was unable to have a greenroof on the extension on the side return of my house because it was too close to my neighbour’s fence and could be a fire risk. If a fire was damaging enough to cause the greenroof to destroy the fence it wouldn’t matter if it was made of asbestos. I am not saying that greenroofs are non-flammable but equally they are not particularly prone to spontaneous combustion either. We need more education and training in the building sector and we need Government to give clear guidance and commitment to any changes in regulations. Even in a depressed economy we are still building around 100,000 new homes every year. These still have no legal requirement to utilise environmental technologies such as: greenroofs, combined heat and power boilers, air / groundsource heatpumps, passive infra red Switches that turn off when the room is vacant, LED lighting and photovoltaic panels.

It is feasible to now develop a property which is only minimally reliant on utilities without reducing the quality of life; in fact the quality of life for the residents would probably be improved. The added benefit of this would be that economies of scale would reduce the cost of these technologies making them accessible for retrofitting in existing housing stock. This in turn will reduce the drain on the utility services and therefore the requirement for new large scale energy production.

Finally before I go, I would like to say thank you to a couple more people for their support in developing Environment Industry Magazine that should have been mentioned in issue one (I got carried away in the moment and overlooked them) So many thanks to Carl Hadley, who developed the brand and logos for EnviroMedia Limited and Environment Industry Magazine, and to Carole and Michael Mellors and Rachel Stacey (again) for many hours proof reading the magazine (if you find any mistakes blame them!)

• Josh Taylor – Director of UK Flood Control – will be analysing the 2007 floods in the UK.

If you have any comments, questions or input regarding the publication please feel free to contact me alex@enviromedia.ltd.uk.

• Kathryn Lucas and Dave Annelis - Dynes Solicitors are writing about producing energy from waste water.

Enjoy this issue of the magazine and we will be back in September so have a great summer!

It is comforting to know how much innovation is going into developing new techniques for producing renewable energy.

It would be nice if there was more commitment from Government in funding research and offsetting the cost of implementing these technologies, rather than their continual and almost singular commitment to wind and wave energy. Maybe we should instigate more robust policy to reduce consumption of energy before we discuss how to produce more? I have just had an extension built on my house and obviously because of my job I wanted to utilise as many eco techniques and technologies as possible.

Some of them were just prohibitively expensive but there

Alex Stacey Alex Stacey Managing Editor

www.envirovehicles.co.uk Soothing your green conscience.

Inflaming your driving passions!

NEWS SDC: STOP DECLINE IN UK FOOD PRODUCTION 7 POINT PLAN TO CREATE SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM The Sustainable Development Commission has published its recommendations to Government for a sustainable food system in the UK. The SDC’s paper calls for a new definition of food security in order to feed everyone sustainably, equitably and healthily. The SDC calls on the Government to make a clear statement of intent to encourage maximum levels of appropriate and sustainable food production in the UK. The current food system is failing sustainability by only focusing on food being affordable, accessible and available. Rocketing food prices last year, accelerating climate change and a growing number of environmental crises have shown that sustainability is the only basis for food security.

SDC Commissioner Professor Tim Lang said: “In recent years, governments have relied on big food retailers to deliver low prices in the name of a ‘cheap food policy’. Rocketing food prices last year have shown how volatile this system is. Government must now put resilience and sustainability at the heart of its food policy. Focusing on sustainability in this way will integrate economic, environmental and social outputs.

Cheapness and sustainability should never be confused. The way we are feeding ourselves today will seriously compromise future generations' ability to feed themselves. We need a more ambitious sustainable food policy from Westminster and the devolved administrations. The SDC would like to see Government taking the initiative to explore how EU's Common Agricultural Policy can shift in a sustainable direction.”

Measured against the goals of sustainability, the current UK food system fails: it is a major source of greenhouse gases, pays little attention to soil quality and water intensity, and is responsible for one in four lorry trips on UK roads, half of which are empty.

ENVIROS RECOGNISED AS A MARKET LEADER IN UK ENERGY CONSULTANCY In research recently undertaken by Verdantix, Enviros has been found to be one of the UK’s market leaders in energy consulting.

The research aims to help buyers of energy advisory services to shortlist consulting firms that are best positioned to meet their needs in areas such as energy procurement, on-site generation, energy audits, carbon footprints, bureau services, energy efficiency and low carbon regulations.

The Verdantix report, ‘Green Quadrant Energy Consulting UK’, identifies Enviros as a market leading provider of onsite renewable and low carbon energy generation, energy audits and reporting and bureau services.

The report identifies four critical factors that establish them as one of the few firms to be recognised as leaders: high technical expertise in energy audits for both commercial and industrial customers, their focus on new disciplines, integration of offering across service lines and synergies across group capabilities.

The research was based on interviews with 15 customers and 12 practice leaders and executives. The report ‘Green Quadrant Energy Consulting UK’ is available online at www.verdantix.com. Verdantix is also running a webinar on the findings.

Leading Role for Cardiff in National Sustainable Energy Research Re-thinking the National Grid, electric vehicles and biomass heating are among the issues in a major new sustainable energy research programme led by Cardiff University. Having won funding for a further five years of research, the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) has chosen Cardiff to lead the energy supply theme.

There are only five theme leaders in UKERC’s overall programme - an indication of Cardiff’s strength in this field. The aim of the overall programme is to provide world-class energy research to inform Government and other stakeholders, ensuring that the energy sector moves along a path compatible with climate policy goals, energy security, the wider international framework and environmental, social and economic needs .

HP Printing just got Greener HP today underlined its commitment to the environment with the launch of its first range of HP Deskjet Printers made of recycled materials for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) market. Combining a significant proportion of recycled plastics and full Energy Star®-compliance, the three new printers offer solutions that are good for customers and good for the planet. The launch of these new HP Deskjet Printers reflects the company’s ambitious environmental leadership goal of using 46 million kilograms (100 million pounds) of recycled plastic in printing products by 2012 (cumulative from 2007).

To provide perspective, this is the equivalent of diverting 4 billion plastic water bottles from going to landfill.

Allen & York win UNEP Award Allen & York have been recognised as one of the first 100 participants of the Climate Neutral Network (CN Net) an initiative led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). As global leading specialist environmental recruitment consultancy, Allen & York recognise and understand the importance of protecting the environment and promoting best practice. They are committed to continual improvement in their environmental performance and minimising adverse environmental impacts.

The next generation of RDF processing has arrived...

WHAT IS RDF? Refuse-derived fuel (RDF) is a fuel produced by shredding municipal solid waste (MSW). Once the non-combustible materials such as glass and metals are removed the RDF material consists largely of organic, plastic and biodegradable waste. The residual material can be sold in its processed form or it may be compressed into pellets, bricks or logs and used for other purposes either stand-alone or in a recursive recycling process.

RDF can be used in a variety of ways to produce electricity. It can be used alongside traditional sources of fuel in coal power plants. In Europe RDF can be used in the cement kiln industry, where the strict standards of the Waste Incineration Directive are met. RDF can also be fed into plasma arc gasification modules, pyrolysis plants and where the RDF is capable of being combusted cleanly or in compliance with the Kyoto Protocol.

The UNTHA TR The TR-series has been specifically developed to deal with alternative and secondary energy sources. The increased rotor diameter of 1100mm demonstrates that UNTHA has taken secondary-shredding to another level. The resultant increase in screen surface area facilities high output volumes of up to 15t/h.

The TR series can process all kinds of mixed household refuse in preparation for thermal processing in mono and co-combustion systems. A homogenous end product is achieved taking into account the combustion system (fluidised bed or rotary kiln) in operation.

The immense diameter of the rotor and the special geometry of the shredder housing enable the rotor to pull in the materials independently. The materials to be reduced are shredded and the screen perforation size determines final granule size. An optional feature for materials with a low specific density is the hydraulic press system.

The rotor blades are mounted onto a cutter holder system and the entire system can be replaced in a approximately an hour rather than the usual 8 hours taken other machines on the market, by removing just 1 screw. The actual change of the blades is done outside the shredder itself in the workshop while a substitute cutter set is used in the meantime. This enables users to enjoy high machine availability.

The gap between the rotor and the cutting bars is freely adjustable enabling the operating life of the knives to be prolonged immensely. Wear costs are reduced to an absolute minimum as the cutting blades can be turned and repositioned up to four times.

The all new UNTHA TR will be unveiled to the UK market at this years RWM exhibition.

Or please call us for a demonstration

0845 450 5388 15 - 17 September 2009 NEC Birmingham Stand No. 1056

Tel: 0845 450 5388 Web: www.wastemachinery.co.uk

WOODLAND TRUST TO GENERATE NEW WOODLAND WITH FUNDS FROM TK MAXX CARRIER BAGS The Woodland Trust has announced it is to plant 30,000 native trees on a site in Essex, funded by TK Maxx from the profits generated by sales of its core plastic carrier bags.

The trees will be planted on a fifteen-acre site in Elmstead Market, near Colchester, Essex.

The bag profits will go towards preserving existing ancient woodland as well as towards increasing the biodiversity of this corner of Essex and creating new homeland for animals that are on the UK priority biodiversity action plan list.

Victoria Wright from TK Maxx discussing the learning area the company is funding with Elmstead Primary School headteacher Clive Middleditch and pupils (from left to right) Jack Berry, Ellie Fowler and Charlotte Crockett.

TK Maxx began charging customers for core plastic carrier bags in August 2008 as part of its commitment to reducing waste. Since the policy was introduced TK Maxx has experienced a 73% reduction in plastic bag usage and saved no fewer than 27 million plastic carrier bags ending up in landfill sites.

Janette Wickens from the Woodland Trust said: “Trees are vital for life - yet the simple fact is that the UK has only 12% woodland cover (and Essex only 5.7%) compared to 44% in the rest of Europe. The generous support of TK Maxx and its customers is enabling us to improve that picture. Its contribution will help the Woodland Trust to turn Elmstead Market in Essex into a thriving habitat for the benefit of people and wildlife for years to come.”

TK Maxx is committed to helping the Woodland Trust protect and restore our native woods.

 Occupational Hygiene Analysis?

GREEN SOLUTIONS FROM MAPEI FOR NHS Mapei (UK) products have been specified for the £553m, state of the art Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham.

The hospital will centralise local acute facilities on a site of 100,000m2+, and is due to open progressively from June 2010. With a highly developed range of eco-friendly products, a reliable reputation and a proven track record of providing successful solutions for similar projects, Mapei UK were top of the list.

Ecodan® helps Osborne House achieve level 4 of the code Mitsubishi Electric’s award-winning, low carbon Ecodan® residential heating system is to be fitted to the Osborne Demonstration House on the BRE Innovation Park, to bring the house up to level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.

A 5KW unit was initially installed at the house in time for the BRE Insite exhibition, held at the beginning of June 2009 and the unit could be plumbed into the eco-home to replace the condensing boiler currently in the kitchen, freeing up further space for wall units.

4 in one easy step,” explained Max Halliwell, product manager for Mitsubishi Electric Heating Systems.

Ecodan is a modern air source heat pump that can provide all the heating and hot water a home needs. It uses advanced inverter-driven technology taken from the air conditioning industry, to deliver efficiency levels that are 300% greater than a gas condensing boiler. It also works with both radiators or underfloor heating systems and can be retro-fitted into properties that have been thermally upgraded.

The Osborne House was designed by Baily Garner Architects as an example of a flexible, contemporary, adaptable and economic home. It was built in one and a half days in July 2006 on the Innovation Park, near Watford.

“Ecodan harvests renewable energy from the surrounding air so that for every 1kW of electricity it consumes, 3kW or more of heating energy is supplied,” explained Halliwell.

The house is currently heated by underfloor heating and has heat recovery ventilation and solar thermal hot water circulation, electric skirting board heating and temperature control taps.

It can help lower an average home’s CO emissions by up to 50% and reduce running costs by at least 30% over modern gas boilers. Savings are even greater over older gas boilers, oil, LPG and direct electric heating systems.

“This is already a very sustainable home but adding an Ecodan air source heat pump takes it from code level 3 to

NEWS

LAW AND YOUR ENVIRONMENT website launched Although it aims to protect the environment and prevent human harm, environmental law suffers from its complexity. Environmental protection is often hindered because people simply don’t know what their rights are or how these might be enforced. At last an attempt is being made to fill this knowledge gap with the launch of a new online resource to help people understand their environmental rights and responsibilities. Law and Your Environment is a new website launched in June of this year.

To produce this website, the UK Environmental Law Association (UKELA) teamed up with the ESRC Centre for Business Relationships, Accountability, Sustainability and Society (BRASS) at Cardiff University. Beginning with an initial survey of the need for a website, the project has taken almost five years to devise.

The Aarhus Convention of 1998 requires the UK and other member countries (including all States of the EU) to facilitate public access to environmental information. This specific objective of the Convention has been implemented in the UK by the Environmental Information Regulations (EIRs) 2004. The United Kingdom Environmental Law Association (UKELA) supports this objective and other goals of the Aarhus Convention such as access to environmental justice and public participation in the environmental decision making process.

UKELA therefore commissioned (BRASS) to conduct a scoping study and desk-based research study on the need for a public access online resource on environmental law information. Findings from this study showed that the United Kingdom needed to do more to provide a free and

accessible e-library that would help members of the public understand their environmental rights and obligations.

Although information for business is available from the Environment Agency through their NetRegs service (www.NetRegs.gov.uk) the survey found no readily available equivalent for people facing environmental problems.

Based on the study findings, BRASS then produced Law and Your Environment - a free, public access, on-line library on environmental law in the United Kingdom.

The information on the website covers a range of urban nuisances as well as more rural issues such as rights of way or biodiversity protection. It seeks to promote a culture of environmental citizenship by not only providing helpful information on environmental rights but also stressing environmental responsibilities in areas such as climate change or waste minimisation. It encourages people to engage in environmental decision-making and shows how this can be done. As well as providing straight forward accounts of the law, the site offers practical advice and links to further sources of assistance.

Currently the site covers England only, but resources are being sought to extend the coverage to all parts of the UK. To this end, UKELA has launched an endowment fund to pay for the development and upkeep of Law and Your Environment. The endowment is named The Lord Nathan Memorial Fund for the Environment and seeks to raise £285,000 to yield a sum of £10,000 annually to keep the site up to date and so help generations to better protect their environment.

To access the site go to: www.environmentlaw.org.uk

MIND YOUR PEAS AND CU(CUMBER)S Consumers will now be able to see fruit and vegetables as nature intended.

Strawberries or apples for making jams and pies at home - which in the past might not have been available because of cosmetic imperfections - should now be easier to spot on the shop shelves.

New EU marketing regulations come into force on 1 July which clarify the rules relating to wonky fruit and vegetables good news for anyone keen on curvy cucumbers or partial to out-ofproportion plums.

Until now, there has often been a misconception that anything which does not look “perfect” can’t be sold by retailers. But the new rules simplify how retailers can market produce without misleading consumers – whether it’s polished, knobbly, or bent.

Food and Farming Minister Jim Fitzpatrick said: “The new marketing regulations will help supermarkets and greengrocers

label their fruit and vegetables correctly, and will provide more choice for people who aren’t bothered by the shape of their fruit.

It also means that producers and suppliers won’t be stuck with as many leftovers, so there’ll be less food waste.”

Twenty six types of fruit and vegetables which were covered by Specific Marketing Standards will now instead be covered by the General Marketing Standard (GMS), which is below the old ‘Class 2’ standard.

Retailers will be able to market these fruit and vegetables without giving the impression that the produce is imperfect.

So long as it is clean, free from pests or diseases, is not rotten, and is labelled with the country of origin, retailers will be able to market it as they see fit.

Ten other types of produce remain subject to Specific Marketing Standards (SMS) which are stricter but there is an allowance for the fruit and vegetables covered to be marketed for processing (such as into jams or pies) if they fall below the SMS.

£10 MILLION FOR RIVER IMPROVEMENTS AND GREEN JOBS England’s rivers, lakes and canals and the wildlife that calls them home will get a facelift through funding for a range of projects, announced Environment Minister Huw Irranca-Davies.

An extra £10 million is being invested over the next year in improving the quality of water around the country, which will in turn help our native wildlife, flora and fauna to flourish. The projects will also create or sustain up to 130 ‘green’ jobs over the next year.

Currently only 21% of our water bodies are assessed as being of Good Ecological Status under European requirements and the extra funding, in line with the requirements of the Water Framework Directive, will help to improve that.

Defra will work with the Environment Agency on a range of projects aimed at:  Restoring wildlife habitats in rivers;  Restoring and protecting wetlands;  Researching where river pollution comes from to help target future action;  Improving river routes to help fish migrate;  Removing invasive non-native species from some sites;  Tracing pollution from urban sources such as chemical waste and taking action against polluters; and  Helping rivers and lakes to adapt to the effects of climate change, such as protecting them from pollution from higher rainfall.

Mr Irranca-Davies said:

“This funding will be a really welcome boost for our rivers, lakes and canals and the wildlife that needs them to thrive and I look forward to seeing the results over the next couple of years.

I would also encourage our partners, like the Association of Rivers Trusts, to think creatively about how we take this work forward and maximise the impact of this new funding.

I’m delighted that these projects will create jobs for several local communities around the country.”

Dr Paul Leinster, Chief Executive at the Environment Agency, said:

“Improving the quality of rivers and lakes is a top priority for the Environment Agency. They are an important part of the environment for both people and wildlife. The extra funding will support local projects which will help bring life back to waters across England.”

The Environment Agency will work closely with the Association of Rivers Trusts who will be carrying out much of the river restoration work. The Environment Agency has been consulting on River Basin Management Plans which will set out our future actions to help improve water quality across the country, with final proposals due later this year, and the funding announced will help to take some of that work forward.

Liebherr-Great Britain Adds Another Depot to the National Network

Liebherr-Great Britain’s new earthmoving division depot will be located at the group’s impressive Sunderland site.

UK AT FOREFRONT OF A LOW CARBON ECONOMIC REVOLUTION A comprehensive plan to move the UK onto a permanent low carbon footing and to maximise economic opportunities, growth and jobs has recently been published by the Government.

The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan plots out how the UK will meet the cut in emissions set out in the budget of 34% on 1990 levels by 2020. A 21% reduction has already been delivered – equivalent to cutting emissions entirely from four cities the size of London.

Transforming the country into a cleaner, greener and more prosperous place to live is at the heart of our economic plans for Building Britain’s Future and ensuring the UK is ready to take advantage of the opportunities ahead. By 2020:  More than 1.2 million people will be in green jobs  7 million homes will have benefited from whole house makeovers  40% of electricity will be from low carbon sources, from renewables, nuclear and clean coal  We will be importing half the amount of gas that we otherwise would  The average new car will emit 40% less carbon than now.

The Transition Plan takes a cost effective route to reducing

carbon and keeps the overall impact on the consumer to a minimum. The plan will not increase average energy bills by 2015. By 2020, the impact of ALL climate change policies, both existing and new, will be to add, on average, an additional 8% - or £92 - to today’s household bills. Since 2000 £20 billion has been spent tackling fuel poverty, assisting millions of households in the UK. The Plan includes greater powers for the regulator Ofgem to protect the consumer and, following new legislation, new resources for discounts off the bills of some of the most vulnerable households.

The Transition Plan is the most systematic response to climate change of any major developed economy, and sets the standard for others in the run up to crucial global climate talks in Copenhagen in December.

The UK Low Carbon Industrial Strategy, published alongside, sets out a series of active government interventions to support industries critical to tackling climate change. It puts workers and businesses in the UK at the forefront of massive global opportunity by targeting key industries and regions where the UK has competitive or commercial advantage, including offshore wind, marine power and carbon capture and storage. This includes the first allocations from the £405m funding for green industry and technology announced in the Budget.

The Earthmoving Division of Liebherr-Great Britain Ltd will open a new depot at the Liebherr Group’s Sunderland site, scheduled to be operational in late summer. Liebherr-Sunderland Works Limited was established in 1989 for the manufacture of maritime cranes and cargo handling equipment at Deptford, which is strategically located by the River Wear estuary. The 70,500m2 facilities lend themselves well to accommodating an after sales operation for earthmovers alongside the crane and cargo handling equipment manufacturing operations, which recently received the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the International Trade category – the UK’s top award for business performance.

This new depot is part of the Liebherr’s long-term investment strategy, continuing its total commitment to provide the best possible after sales product support in the UK for its excavators, loading shovels, bulldozers and industrial rehandling equipment.

The establishment of a North-East England depot for the Earthmoving Division is indicative of the growing Liebherr machine population and steadily increasing customer base in the region. The new depot will be fully staffed, including an after sales supervisor, spare parts administrator and a team of factory-trained service engineers – recruitment is in the final stages. Fully equipped modern workshops will be augmented by a substantial spares holding and a plant stock will also be held on site.

Liebherr-Great Britain Ltd, headquartered in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, now has earthmoving equipment depots in Aberdeen, Bathgate, Wigan, Sunderland, Cannock and Weston-super-Mare, with Liebherr-Ireland located in Rathcoole, Co. Dublin.

FOOD & DRINK SECTOR GETS TEETH INTO 2020 WATER TARGET Almost 500,000 cubic metres of water - equivalent to nearly 200 Olympic swimming pools - have already been saved as thirty six of the UK’s leading food and drink manufacturers report their first full year progress on the voluntary Federation House Commitment (FHC) on water efficiency. This marks the sector’s first step towards achieving a 20% reduction in water use by 20201 compared to 2007, working with sustainability experts Envirowise who jointly launched the initiative with the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) in January 2008.

Companies including Cranswick Food Group, Dairy Crest, Greenvale AP, Mars UK, R&R Ice Cream, United Biscuits, Walkers, and William Jackson Food Group have contributed to a collective reduction in water use of 1.7% during 2008.

Together signatories will have saved almost £500,000 in the purchase of water alone2, not including the cost of water treatment and effluent disposal.

Water-saving measures being implemented by FHC members include improving water recovery and re-use, rainwater harvesting, cleaning-in-place and dry cleaning operations – as well as domestic changes such as fitting more efficient taps and toilets.

The FHC is open to all companies in the food and drink manufacturing sector and more information can be found at www.fhc2020.co.uk 1

As outlined in Defra’s Food Industry Sustainability Strategy. The 20% reduction does not include water embedded in products

2

Assuming all savings are towns water and an average of £1.05 per cubic metre is applied

A THIRD RUNWAY AT HEATHROW WOULD ADD £30 BILLION TO UK ECONOMY, SAYS NEW STUDY Building a third runway at Heathrow would add £30 billion to the UK economy, according to a new study published today by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

The report, entitled Economic Impacts of Hub Airports, forecasts that building a third runway at the airport would deliver between £8.6 billion and £12.8 billion in increased productivity, and approximately £20 billion in wider economic benefits, such as higher levels of employment. Some 60% of this benefit is predicted to be outside London and the South East.

The research, which was conducted by leading economics and transport consultancy Colin Buchanan on behalf of the BCC, reveals that each year the building of a third runway is delayed, the country loses between £900 million and £1.1 billion.

By reducing delays and increasing the frequency of flights, a third runway would save business passengers time and increase their productivity. Passengers would also benefit from flights to new destinations, removing the need to wait for transfers at airports outside the UK. The wider economic benefits include direct and indirect increases in employment and gains to London as an international business location adding to its ability to recruit highly skilled people from around the world.

The £20 billion of wider economic benefits over 60 years compares with the £3.8 billion forecast to arise from the High Speed 1 rail line (the Eurostar line) and the £10 billion estimated for high speed rail (High Speed 2) from London to the North of England.

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Green Innovators Struggle for Finance New, vital environmental technologies are struggling to attract financial support to reach the marketplace, according to a new survey conducted by The EIC Environmental Investment Network. The survey found that the environmental sector is vulnerable to recessionary pressures. 57% of respondents have been affected by the economic downturn and confirmed that a funding gap exists, where financial support is lacking to commercialise environmental technologies.

The vast majority of respondents are heavily in favour of equity investment - only 8% of respondents would initially approach the Government for financial support today.

But respondents articulated that banks and many equity investors are becoming increasingly risk averse and are not supporting new technologies. Overall, 69% of respondents are adamant the Government is not doing enough to incentivise the sector suggesting support today is insufficient.

Seambiotic & NASA Glenn Research Center Signed Agreement for Large Scale Microalgae Process Optimization Seambiotic, a global leader in the development and production of marine microalgae, has announced that its U.S. subsidiary, Seambiotic USA, has entered into an agreement with NASA Glenn Research Center to develop an on-going collaborative R&D program for optimisation of open-pond microalgae growth processes.

“Under a Space Act Agreement, NASA is partnering with Seambiotic USA to model growth processes for microalgae for use as aviation biofuel feedstock. The goal of the Agreement is to make use of NASA’s expertise in large scale computational modeling and combine it with Seambiotic’s biological process modeling to make advances in biomass process cost reduction.” said Prof. Ami Ben-Amotz, Chief Scientific Adviser to Seambiotic.

Parish Leads the way on New Sustainable Innovation Hadlow Down Parish Council and St Marks Church have joined forces to demonstrate a new innovation to provide a series of 'carbon free' lights on village paths. The new sustainable lights made by Uckfield firm NiteSafe Ltd give out a gentle light to guide users along dark paths in the churchyard.

THREE KEY INDUSTRY EVENTS IN TWO DAYS -

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REMEDIATION INNOVATION AWARDS 22 September, Grange City Hotel, London

Now in its fifth year, the Brownfield Briefing Remediation Innovation Awards recognise best practice in remediation and use of remediation technology by UK-based companies.

• The gala dinner will be held on the evening of Tuesday 22 September, Grange City Hotel, London.

• Our host for the dinner will be Naomi Cleaver and Our guest speaker for the evening will be Huw Irranca-Davies the minister for the natural and marine environment, wildlife and rural affairs.

For more information , entry forms and bookings visit www.brownfieldawards.com or call 0208 969 1008

CONTAMINATED LAND AND BROWNFIELD REMEDIATION 22 September, The Novotel Hotel, Tower Hill, London

Brownfield Briefing’s annual remediation conference takes a timely look at all the major policy, legislation and economic factors influencing remediation strategies in the current economic climate • How is the downturn influencing demand for remediation and selection of remediation techniques?

• Case studies on best practice remediation, focusing on affordability, sustainability and innovation.

Book today, telephone: 0208 969 1008 visit: www.brownfieldbriefing.com/conferences

CONTAMINATED LAND RISK ASSESSMENT 23 September, 2009 at The Novotel, Tower Hill, London

This year the annual Brownfield Briefing risk assessment event will focus on re-thinking the entire strategy for the current economic climate - ensuring pragmatic and appropriate risk assessment.

• with house building at it’s lowest level since records began in 1976 there is even more emphasis than ever on risk assessment Book today, telephone: 0208 969 1008 visit: www.brownfieldbriefing.com/conferences Sponsored by:

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Dinner host: Naomi Cleaver

EARTH EXCHANGE® WINS PRESTIGIOUS ‘GREEN HERO’ AWARD Earth Exchange® has been awarded a prestigious award in recognition of the innovative way Earth Exchange® is making a big difference to sustainable construction and is helping to reduce construction wastes sent to landfill and significantly reduce costs for its members.

Now in their seventh year the Northwest Business Environment Awards are the annual showcase of the best examples of environmental practices in industry and the public sector and are designed to unmask our green heroes that are putting the environment at the heart of their company’s success. The awards attract entries not just from the region, but national organisations operating projects in the Northwest.

Earth Exchange® was announced as the winner of the Northwest Business Environment Award for Environmental Innovation at the awards ceremony held on the 25th June.

The judges chose Earth Exchange® due to the innovative way it has utilised the latest web technology to overcome some of the greatest inherent problems in construction – finding out who is doing what, where and when – and then enables surplus materials at one construction site to be ‘exchanged’ between another site which has a shortfall of those materials. The system has already enabled users to save money, has saved precious natural resources from being used and diverted materials from being sent to landfill. Users of Earth Exchange® have also benefited from reduced haulage distances, saving further costs and reduced CO2 emissions as a result.

Earth Exchange® was also shortlisted for another award in the Sustainable Procurement category.

The region’s foremost environmental business awards were hosted by the Mersey Basin Campaign and the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), and supported by partners from across England’s Northwest.

Walter Menzies, Chief Executive of the Mersey Basin Campaign, said: “Despite the economic challenges that business has faced in the region over the past twelve months, I am proud to see that businesses continue to commit to environmental best practice, and put environmental issues at the forefront of their agenda.

The judges had an extremely difficult task in choosing the winners in this year’s competition as the bar is raised year on year.”

Mark Hughes, Executive Director of Economic Development at the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) said: “Once again the Northwest Business Environment Awards have demonstrated how seriously the region’s businesses are committed to excellence in environmental management.

This year’s winners join an ever growing list of organisations that are taking the green agenda seriously, looking at ways to ensure England’s Northwest remains ahead of the game and well prepared for sustainable economic success now and in the future.”

Commenting on the success Alex Albon, Operations Director of Earth Exchange Limited, said “Just getting to be shortlisted for one of these showcase awards is a real achievement and recognition of best environmental practice in business. To be shortlisted for two awards is almost unprecedented. To actually win an award is terrific and is real recognition of the achievements Earth Exchange® has made in the relatively short time it has been going.

The construction industry is having a hard time at the moment. Using Earth Exchange® has the potential to make a real difference to the bottom line of any construction project, as well as improve the key environmental performance indicators for a project.”

BEEKEEPERS BUZZING AS MORE REGISTER ON NATIONAL DATABASE The number of beekeepers has grown over the last year, according to the National Bee Unit, which runs BeeBase, the national beekeepers’ database.

Increasing the numbers of registered beekeepers is an important feature of ‘Healthy Bees’, the long term plan to protect and improve bee health.

More than 1,500 new beekeepers have registered on BeeBase this year and much of this has been attributed to the increased publicity on bee health, leading to more people donning bee suits and picking up smokers for the first time.

There are also large numbers of new entrants being seen at beekeeping training events provided by the National Bee Unit’s team of bee inspectors and beekeeping associations. Recent training events have seen over 13,000 attendees.

Bee Health Minister Lord Davies said, “This is great news – more beekeepers are registering on BeeBase. This entitles them to the free inspection service offered by the National Bee Unit and ensures that they are able to keep up to date on disease developments. It is encouraging that more people appear to be taking up beekeeping and taking up bee health training opportunities. By working with all beekeepers we can collaborate to improve bee health.”

YOU REALLY COULDN’T MAKE IT UP I’ve seen some strange and worrying material over the last few weeks emanating from the religious world – particularly some sections of the Christian community.

Now before inviting retribution – divine or otherwise – I recognise fully that there are a great many Christians who are working actively and responsibly to combat climate change. Only recently for example, the Methodists have stated that Christians must ‘repent for climate change sins’. Nor am I talking about the strange and extreme groups that inevitably spring up from all corners of all faiths. I’m talking about what appears to be a concerted campaign from some long-established and respected pillars of the Christian faith.

so, but he is backed up by 17,000 scientists.

American economist James Sherk is a widely read Fellow of the Evangelical Society who writes frequently on climate change from what he describes as a ‘scholarly and scientific perspective’. When the influential Christianity Today ran a feature article hailing a ‘New Climate Change Coalition’ in the church to which many leaders had agreed, Sherk was interviewed and stated that ‘the Coalition’s claim that millions could die this century from climate change is a lot of hype’.

They were outraged. Dr. Sugden was “horrified to find my name on such a list. I have spent the last 20 years arguing the opposite”. Dr. Bjorke asked “please remove my name.

What you have done is totally unethical”. Dr. Clague was “outraged that they’ve included my name as an author in this report”. It transpired that none – not a single one – of the scientists listed had been contacted, and Bast had simply trawled papers looking for a sentence or two that he could use as a quote. Context, intention and meaning aside, of course. It’s an old and proven tactic.

He wrote a landmark article in 2004 entitled ‘What would Jesus drive?’ which has been used and quoted to the point of tedium by Christians of all denominations. With the kind of selective pseudo-science we are only too familiar with, he dismantles climate change ‘theory’. The article contains outright ‘mis-statements’ (that’s what used to be called ‘lies’) such as ‘the most accurate measurements available show that global temperatures have not increased over the last two decades’.

Another jaw-dropping quote from Sherk is that “over 17,000 scientists signed the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine's petition proclaiming that there is no convincing scientific evidence that human release of greenhouse gases is causing or will, in the foreseeable future, cause catastrophic heating of the Earth’s atmosphere and disruption of the Earth's climate."

This gets us to the crux of the matter. The ‘Christian in the street’ looks to and relies upon the leaders and thinkers in his church for leadership and direction, and men such as Sherk wield enormous influence on their flock who are in turn voters, parents and influencers.

When someone of his authority states there are 17,000 scientists attached to an institute in Oregon alone who see no evidence of climate change, then that’s more than good enough. Ergo – climate change really is a load of hype. Not only does an eminent fellow of my Church say

So let’s take a look at this. He cites a previous citation from one Joseph Bast back in 1998. Bast is from the Heartland Institute – an organisation funded principally by the US coal industry which exists to lobby against, undermine and challenge climate change. Last year, Bast published a list of 500 eminent “Scientists with Documented Doubts about Climate Change”. The list contained the names of scientific luminaries such as Dr. David Sugden of Edinburgh University, Dr Svante Bjork, the eminent geo-biospherical scientist from Lund University, Dr. John Clague, Shrum Research Professor from Simon Fraser University – and many more.

The problem is of course that these shabby and unethical tactics mislead people in their hundreds of thousands – if not millions.

That’s not all, folks.

The Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine is – well – it’s a one-man band with a faculty of seven working from a barn on a farm 7 miles from Cave Junction (population 1,126) in Oregon in the good ol’ US of A. It also sells information kits to parents concerned about socialism in schools, and published books and leaflets on survivalism and civil defence.

The list of scientists opposed to climate change published by this ‘institute’ has now reached 31,072. You really couldn’t make it up.

Many thanks to those who responded to last month’s article ‘Don’t let the boffins do the branding’ – particularly Gabi Williams from the Environment-Agency in Bangor who suggested the term “Climate chaos” is now also sometimes used and depicts the scenarios quite well...., and to the nine year old son of Nick Hedges, who came up with the priceless suggestion of ‘Wonky Weather’!

Steve Grant can be contacted on steve@stephenmgrant.com

The UK Sustainable Development Association About the author: Tony Marmont is the founder and Chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Association (UK-SDA), and Managing Director of the Beacon Energy Renewable Energy Consultancy. He is also a visiting Professor and has established MSc courses at De Montfort, Loughborough and Nottingham Universities. He is the founder of the Midlands Renewable Energy Technology Transfer.

It is with very great pleasure that the UK Sustainable Development Association (UK-SDA) has announced its new media partnership with Environment Industry Magazine - truly a match made in heaven!

Through this partnership, the UK-SDA will be able to describe its activities in support of a more sustainable future and the technologies that will make this possible.

But first, some very general principles ...

Sustainable development …

The need to make better use of the earth’s natural resources to avoid their depletion, and the climate change caused by CO2 emissions, is well recognised: “sustainable development” describes the measures being taken by the construction industry to play its part in ensuring that the buildings of the future have far superior environmental performance than their predecessors.

Not withstanding this high level of general awareness however, and the outstanding exemplars that are starting to appear, take-up of the techniques and technologies that will make a significant environmental impact has so far been painfully slow throughout the broad construction industry, and will be likely to remain so until higher standards are enforced through Building Regulations.

This is expected to take place over the next few years as the regulations are progressively aligned with voluntary standards, such as the Code for Sustainable Homes (CSH), with the aim being to reduce the environmental impact of the built environment whilst improving comfort levels.

At the same time, demands on energy and water grids must be reduced and significant reductions in carbon emissions achieved.

Award winning Gusto home completed in 2000, predating the CSH but equivalent to around Level 4

Better by design & build …

In new dwellings and commercial buildings, significant energy waste reductions can be simply achieved by ensuring that buildings are aligned to benefit from solar gain and have well-insulated foundations, roof and walls. “U”-values of around 0.25-Wm2K, 0.12 and 0.15 respectively should now be considered the norms in this respect.

Coupled with structures built to be air-tight with heat-recovery air management systems and high thermal mass to achieve temperature stability, well-insulated structures go a long way to reducing the energy currently wasted in much of the built environment.

Achieving self-sufficiency …

Super-insulated office block requiring no central heating

Future new buildings also need to be as self-sufficient as possible. Starting by minimising demand through the use of energy and water efficient appliances, every opportunity needs to be taken to substitute the natural resources available on-site, or nearby, for resources supplied through national grids.

The cost-effectiveness of on-site energy generating technologies such as solar heating, solar photo-voltaics, wind turbines and ground source heating and cooling is already well-understood and being exploited. Similarly, the use of harvested rainwater to reduce demand on stressed mains water supplies is already relatively mainstream.

The debate therefore needs to focus on where, and how, the balance of power needed by new structures should be generated and distributed to minimise the overall carbon footprint of a project, and how close to “zero” that footprint can realistically be.

Retrofitting a must …

Alongside the major environmental performance improvements that can be made to new-build structures, Government policy also rightly focuses on the energy savings that can be made within the existing built environment.

Fortunately, many of the renewable energy technologies are eminently suited to being retrofitted to existing buildings.

Foremost amongst these in domestic applications are improved loft insulation, cavity wall insulation and solar water heating. All of these are very worthwhile home improvements in times of rising energy prices, particularly when incentivised by the Government as happens from time to time.

Expected in the autumn, for example, is new legislation that will remove the need for planning permission when installing micro wind turbines and solar systems. At the same time, the payment for any power exported to the grid is expected to rise to 12p per KWh, a figure likely to rise further with the implementation of the Carbon Reduction Commitment.

Recognising excellence …

The mission of the UK-SDA is to help to accelerate the take-up of the techniques and technologies that will help to improve the sustainability of the built environment both existing and yet to be built.

Even in its infancy, now being just one-year old, the Association has within its membership experts across the whole field of sustainable development and associated renewable technologies. Over coming issues of Environment Industry Magazine, the aim will be to bring practical information about these technologies to life for potential users.

Through its Awards Scheme the Association also seeks to identify examples of good practice brought to its notice by members. Recipients to-date have included the CORE project, the Richard Morris building at Loughborough University, Conkers Youth Hostel Leicestershire, Stoke Park School Coventry and the Idle Valley community facility of North Nottinghamshire College. In each case the UK-SDA Award recognises the creative and far-sighted exploitation of renewable technologies in each project.

Getting the job done…

From the UK-SDA perspective there is an urgent need to accelerate the pace at which the technologies used in exemplar projects become the mainstream norm. Only this will result in a reduction in the use of fossil fuels on the scale that is already urgently required.

Government encouragements, client demands and creative developers will all have their own roles to play in this respect but, in the Association’s view, only the incorporation of environmental performance standards into Building Regulations is likely to have the desired impact on the scale needed.

Thankfully this is already starting to happen with the revisions due to take effect on 1st October 2009; the start of a continuing process to bring Building Regulations into line with environmental imperatives at a rate with which the construction industry can cope.

For further information visit www.uk-sda.org

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Managing Water - Emerging Models for International Action?

Case study: Disasters: Diminishing Death and Destruction.

Margaret Catley-Carlson1 Member, UN Secretary General Advisory Board on Water (UNSGAB) Member, High Level Emergencies Panel. (HLEP)

A sober note of prospection….

More and more, solutions to difficult problems can be found only in composite actions. No single idea will serve – no piece of infrastructure, no new fund, no programme, no piece of technology, no draconian social engineering, no dramatic price movement (though these may all play roles). The difficult problems of our time – global climate variability, homelessness, the obesity epidemic, narcotics trade, rational water use, finding and using cleaner energy - all of these require changes from thousands if not millions of players. This creates a political problem of some considerable magnitude: leaders are expected to ‘do something’ in response to disasters, threats and challenges. The real answer is often that a great number of players all need to “do something”. The trick is to find the mechanisms that will increase the chances that they will move in the right directions. This is the account about two attempts to promote change in the right direction.

Where these water management exercises began…

Koffi Anan, as UN Secretary General, established in 2003 an Advisory Board (UNSGAB) to try to cut through the lack of progress toward the internationally agreed targets on water and sanitation. The Board’s wide spectrum of backgrounds includes politics, finance, administration, academia, labor, NGOs, public and private operators, and guarantees that perspectives would clash and views collide in the course of creating action proposals. Philosophical divisions are common. The Board did agree early in its work not to follow the time honoured model of a group of high level officials, moving around the world with a hard-working Secretariat pulling together conclusions, observations and recommendations. Such reports, often of excellent quality, well written and illustrated and usually of copious quantity, have been over-produced, under read, addressed to all (therefore owned by none) and largely not much followed up.

What is different about the UNSGAB Action Plan?

There were three rather revolutionary steps taken by the Board.

First the Board is led by two Crown Princes – HRH Willem-Alexander, the Crown Prince of Orange, is the active and involved Chair; HRH the Crown Prince of Japan is the Honorary President. So the Board gets some attention.

Second, the Action Plan is a work plan on a global scale, based not on new research or fact finding missions of the Board, but rather on how to find action points within the plethora of existing resolutions and reports.

Some 15 months after it was set up, the UNSGAB Board agreed on a program of action centered on 6 areas where the Board believed that movement was imperative but slow. The report, named after Japanese Prime Minister Ryotoru Hashimoto, who died during his term as Chair, ran to 12 pages with no illustrations or charts, not elegantly written. The Board sifted and sorted and called for specific identified and targeted players to take specific described action in 6 areas under the broad rubric of readjusting the financing framework for water services, and building capacity to allow breakthroughs in the water and sanitation area: Financing, Capacity Building, Sanitation, Monitoring, Integrated Water Resources Management, and Water and Disaster.2 Third was the decision that rather than “publish and push off”, which is broadly the modus operandi of international task forces, the Board would stay in existence and work with groups of ministers, officials, international organisations, NGOs, donors etc to prod them towards action in the 6 vital areas. Five years later the Board is still pursuing these meetings, urging action, trying to set up mechanisms to review commitments, getting the people that could act together.

| 19 |

Why did UNSGAB create a mechanism on Water Related Disasters?

Water is life. Water is also a threat to life when in a form of flood, tsunami or mudflow, as we have recently seen in the Indian Ocean, Hurricane Katrina, mudflows in the Philippines or, two years ago, devastating floods in the UK. Two facts stand out: First, there is irrefutable evidence of the increase of water disasters. Second, while death and disaster tolls rise in many countries, in others they continue to fall.

Disaster events are inevitable: high death and destruction tolls are not.

Image by trokilinochchi

UNSGAB agreed – after much protracted debate – that the international community should be presented with a series of easy-to-understand target areas for coping with water related disasters. Done properly, these could create global awareness and increase commitment.

To create agreement on these target areas, UNSGAB created a different type of organisation – a High-Level Expert Panel on Water and Disaster. HLEP was born in 2007, under the Presidency of H.E. Dr. Han Seung-Soo, Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea and Former President of the Korea Water Forum. The HLEP includes 21 experts in disaster preparedness, response and international issues. It is co-moderated by the World Water Council, the UN Secretariat for the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, and the Japan Water Forum. HLEP created its report of action3 plans through a series of five international meetings (Tokyo, Seoul, Marseilles, New Orleans, and made its Report to the Istanbul Fifth World Water Forum).4 The HLEP adopted an UNSGAB-like format, less focused on doing new research or seeking new formulations of existing agreements but instead, focused on the implementation of existing consensus documents, particularly the Hyogo plan of action.

HLEP called for National Governments, first and foremost, to step up to their responsibilities to apply prevention and prediction techniques and called for International Community actions to provide incentives and support for the essential actions to: 1. Galvanize and mobilise before disaster strikes.

2. Prioritise systems to forecast, inform, alert and evacuate.

3. Incorporate disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation as integral to development planning.

4. Improve disaster response.

5. Provide safe water and toilets quickly when disaster/conflict strikes.

6. Change important background conditions.

The exact recommendations are included at the annex of this article, along with a glossary and terms. There are a | 20 |

Image by U.S. Geological Survey

broad range of activities and actions called for – some of them quite innovative.

Here are a dozen to whet your appetite: 1. River Basin Organisations must create comprehensive flood risk assessments.

2. Warning systems – with best-available technology – linked to operational on-ground response groups and cell phone networks.

3. International Chamber of Commerce to mobilise memberships.

4. Special session of ECOSOC. 5. Schools to drill their students in disaster risks and preparedness.

6. 2012 World Water Forum should feature disasters.

7. Ministers and Parliaments to debate their level of preparedness.

8. Engineering associations should develop guidelines and practices for enhancing the water resistance of buildings.

9. Leading hydrological and climate institutes should form networks to promote the dissemination of the best scientific and technical knowledge in disaster risk reduction.

10. The next Conference of Parties of the UNFCCC conferences should add disaster risk reduction as a key to climate adaptation.

11. A Code of Conduct is needed for participants in disaster response.

12. The world should declare hydro-climatic data as public goods to be shared at all levels (regional, national and local) in order to assist in disaster risk reduction – relevant multilateral and national action should be taken.

Natural hazards are inevitable: high death and destruction tolls are not. Ill-advised human activity can both create and accelerate the impact of water-related disasters.

These water threats have been increasing with climate change and human activities, in the North and South of our planet, from East to West. But, with preparedness and planning, fatalities and destruction can be decreased. The global community has committed itself to the principles of coherent disaster prevention and response. The need is now for concrete and significant changes to make this

happen. The panel has pledged themselves to follow up with governments and institutions to enforce the message that these steps must be taken now to alleviate human suffering and to increase the resilience of our global community in responding to disaster. If budget and funding can be found there will be a monitoring of responses, and a report to the international community socio-economic drivers for a change in the number of disaster events should be the same for all causes of natural disasters.

Hence, the different increases in number of events for weather–related and geophysically-caused natural catastrophes indicate the influence of climate change.

The number of storm disasters increases twice as much as the number of earthquake disasters.

And the number of flood disasters increases (almost) twice as much as the number of storm disasters and four times as much as the number of earthquake disasters.

For more of this article, including lists of action and a glossary, visit www.enviromedia.ltd.uk/current.html 1

The views in this article are my own and are offered as a faithful representation of my view of UNSGAB and HLEP, but not as an official representation of their views on their own operations UNSGAB created a pamphlet for the Istanbul Fifth World Water Forum which offers a brief assessment of the extent to which the Action Plan has resulted in real action and the prospect of real change

3

portal.worldwaterforum5.org/WWC/High%20Level%20Panel%20on%20Water%20and%20Disasters/Pages/default.aspx

4

www.preventionweb.net/english/professional/publications/v.php?id=8609

Image by schizoform

2

Members of the Panel FOUNDING CHAIR

Han Seung-soo

Prime Minister, Republic of Korea

MODERATORS Sálvano Briceno

Director,United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction

Loïc Fauchon

President,World Water Council

Hideaki Oda

Japan Water Forum

MEMBERS

Babagana Ahmadu

Former Director, Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture, African Union Commission/ Food and Agriculture Organisation country representative to The Gambia

Pascal Berteaud

Former Director-General, Water Department, Ministry of Ecology and Sustainable Development, France

Max Campos Ortiz

Executive Secretary, Regional Committee on Hydraulic Resources, Central America Integration System

Margaret Catley-Carlson

Patron,Global Water Partnership

Rae-kwon Chung

Climate Change Ambassador, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Republic of Korea/ Former Director, Environment and Sustainable Development Division, UNESCAP

Mochamad Basoeki Hadimoeljono

Inspectorate General,Ministry of Public Works, Indonesia

Ramaswamy. R. Iyer

Honorary Research Professor,Centre for Policy Research, India

Michel Jarraud

Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization

Heng Liu

Vice-president, Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute, China

Koïchiro Matsuura

Director-General, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

Abel Mejia

Sector Manager, Water Infrastructure Department, World Bank

Paul Sherlock

Senior Advisor, Inter-Agency Standing Committee Global WASH Cluster co-ordinator and Senior Adviser, Emergencies in Water and Sanitation, UNICEF

Quamrul Islam Siddique (deceased 2008)

President, Bangladesh Water Partnership

Kuniyoshi Takeuchi

Director, International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management

Robert L Van Antwerp

Commanding General, US Army Corps of Engineers

Koos Wieriks

Secretary, Dutch National Advisory Water Management Board/Personal Advisor HRH the Prince of Orange

Alan Werritty

Professor of Physical Geography and Research Director, UNESCO Centre for Water Law, Policy and Science University of Dundee, UK

In-Hee Won

Former Assistant Minister, Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, Republic of Korea

PERMANENT OBSERVER

Eric Rasmussen

President & CEO, Innovative Support To Emergencies, Diseases and Disasters(InSTEDD), USA

Robert Mardini

Head, Water and Habitat, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)

Hiroaki Taniguchi

Vice-Minister for Engineering Affairs, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Japan

Annex 1: List of Action LOCAL AND NATIONAL LEVEL ACTIONS

OUR ACTIONS

UI5

1.

National governments to mainstream and integrate disaster potential assessment and risk reduction within their development plans to promote economic growth.

Ask UN Secretary-General to invite member states to undertake the proposed action.

1

2.

National governments to promptly develop people centered warning systems, comprehensive flood risk maps and assessments linked to communication systems such as cell phone networks. These systems to include observation and warnings for flash floods.

Request WMO and UNESCO (via the International Flood Initiative) to assist governments in undertaking the proposed actions and invite international financial institutions to support the fulfillment of the proposed actions.

2

3.

National governments and key research institutes to verify and communicate the social and economic cost effectiveness of disaster risk reduction measures.

Identify and request interested national governments and key research institutes to conduct the proposed study.

3

National governments to establish or strengthen national coordination committees in charge of water, sanitation and hygiene emergency responses during and after disasters.

4.

5.

UN-WASH cluster, WWC and IWA to identify and promote the best tools including database of experts and taskforce for quick assessment of the WASH needs after disasters/conflicts.

Local governments and associations to design programmes for capacity development, greater awareness of waterrelated hazard risks, most vulnerable communities/ groups, educational programmes for young people.

REGIONAL LEVEL ACTIONS

Invite UN-WASH cluster to investigate the effectiveness of national coordination committees and to make recommendations. Where such committees do not exist, member states to be invited to create them.

4

Invite the Heads of the UN-WASH cluster, WWC and IWA to request the proposed action.

Approach local government groups such as UCLG, ICLEI and CITYNET to urge its members to realize the proposed actions.

OUR ACTIONS

5

UI

6.

Regional UN organizations to approach member states to arrange among neighboring countries mechanisms to help each other sharing information and experiences, conduct disaster preparedness drills, and dispatch human resources and urgent supplies when needed.

Approach UN Secretary-General to ask UN regional bodies to facilitate the proposed actions by member states.

4

7.

Regional Climate Centers are needed and should provide outputs to national hydro climatic agencies which link users with early warnings, climate predictions, risk assessments and climate change scenarios.

Invite WMO to take the lead in strengthening and, where necessary, establishing Regional Climate Centers.

3

8.

The World Bank country offices, UN resident coordinators, and national governments to hold regular meetings on disaster preparedness and risk reduction.

Ask the World Bank president and UN Secretary-General to request their country offices and resident coordinators to hold the proposed meetings.

4

9.

UN regional organizations and regional development banks to co-organize a workshop designed to increase public outreach and awareness of water-related risks.

Ask UN regional organizations and regional development banks to organize the proposed workshop.

1

10.

Regional development banks to convene regional seminars on how effective disaster planning can contribute to economic growth. Banks to propose incorporation of disaster preparedness in development plans.

Request regional development banks to invite waterrelated disasters and planning ministries and convene proposed seminars.

1

11.

International River Basin Organizations to develop early warning systems in transboundary river basins and secure assistance from international financial institutions for their implementation.

Invite international financial institutions and River Basin Organization networks to help river basin organizations to develop proposed plans.

2

12.

Regional organizations to call for the establishment of networks of ministers for water disasters.

Approach regional organizations such as ESCAP, ECLAC to call for the establishment of the proposed networks.

1

13.

Heads of regional organizations to identify gaps in existing provision of disaster insurance. This to be achieved via regional conferences in which insurance companies report on the benefits, potential and experience of different types of insurance cover.

Approach heads of regional organizations such as SADC, ASEAN and UN regional economic commissions to realize the proposed action.

1

14.

Regional networks to organize regional Water Summits with a special focus on disaster prevention.

Approach regional networks to realize the proposed action.

1

15.

Emergency relief bodies to organize regional workshops to promote better understanding of the current gap between emergency response, recovery and development plans.

Invite WASH cluster, ICRC, Early Recovery Cluster, ECHO and the World Bank to organize the regional workshops.

5

GLOBAL LEVEL ACTIONS

OUR ACTIONS

UI

16.

ECOSOC to dedicate a substantial proportion of a future session to disaster management.

Approach the head of ECOSOC to realize the proposed action.

1

17.

UNFCCC to embed disaster potential assessment and risk reduction in adaptation to the impacts of climate change, and to urge Member States to promote disaster risk reduction within their national adaptation plans.

Recommend through the UNFCCC process that member states realize proposed actions within appropriate conferences and negotiations.

3

18.

IPCC and World Climate Conference to produce specific recommendations on the topic of water and disasters in their 2009 events and the follow-up processes.

Request IPCC and WMO respectively to include water and disasters as a key topic in the preparatory processes for the IPCC Special Report on the Management of Extreme Events and the programme and recommendations of the World Climate Conference.

3

19.

WMO/GWP/UNESCO to create a database on best practice in responding to early warnings, and to approach NGOs and local authorities active in community-based flood risk management to register their experience.

Ask WMO/GWP/UNESCO to create the proposed database.

2

20.

UN regional organizations and regional development banks to organize workshops on how international financing institutions and donors can help enhance adaptation to climate change.

Approach UN regional organizations and regional development banks to organize proposed workshops.

3

21.

OCHA to create a mechanism whereby funds unused in emergency appeals can be used for resilience and early recovery.

Ask UN Secretary-General to suggest OCHA to create the proposed mechanism.

3

22.

World Economic Forum, UN Global Compact, UN and international business associations to organize a workshop to encourage the business sector to include awareness raising activities on disaster reduction and preparedness in their CSR activities.

Lobby the World Economic Forum, UN Global Compact, and UN and international business associations to organize proposed workshop.

1

23.

Existing handbooks on water and sanitation responses by relief agencies to be appraised and existing data exchanges and platforms to be reviewed. Gaps to be filled in new handbooks to be identified.

Invite the UN-WASH Cluster and the WWC to undertake this task.

5

24.

All organizations involved in post-disaster provision of WASH to adopt and respect a Code of Conduct.

Request WWC, UN-WASH cluster and ICRC to examine the existing Code(s) of Conduct and to prepare a new one.

4

25.

World Bank to conduct a study to assess the relative merits of structural and non-structural measures for waterrelated disaster risk reduction.

Ask the World Bank to conduct the proposed study.

4

26.

World Bank to request that countries add disaster potential assessment and risk reduction and management in Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers.

Approach the World Bank to request countries to realize the proposed action.

3

27.

The G8 states and the OECD to initiate a North-South dialogue on the role of disaster risk reduction as part of adaptation to climate change.

Approach G8 states and OECD to call for proposed dialogue process.

3

28.

OECD/DAC to no longer consider disaster risk reduction solely a humanitarian task. This would enable donors to increase their investment in preventative measures for disaster risk reduction.

Request OECD/DAC to realize the proposed action.

3

29.

International hydrological and hydraulic institutes to identify and promote structural and non-structural measures for disaster risk reduction given that future climates are likely to be both changing and highly uncertain.

Call key international hydrological and hydraulic institutes to realize proposed actions.

6

30.

The International Flood Initiative and international hydrological and hydraulic institutes to examine the efficiency and effectiveness of disaster prevention measures and develop disaster preparedness indices for implementation by local authorities.

Request International Flood Initiative and international hydrological and hydraulic research institutes to conduct the proposed studies.

4

31.

International Chamber of Commerce to urge private sector companies to incorporate disaster potential assessment and risk reduction into their management policies.

Invite the International Chamber of Commerce to undertake the proposed action.

1

32.

Local government associations to urge members to integrate disaster potential assessment and risk reduction into their economic development planning and policy.

Contact local government associations such as UCLG, ICLEI and CITYNET inviting them to urge their members to undertake the proposed action.

1

33.

Local government groups such as UCLG, ICLEI and CITYNET to help establish an international network of local governments for promoting disaster preparedness and response including flood fighting and drills.

Contact local government groups such as UCLG, ICLEI and CITYNET to help establish the proposed network.

2

34.

National governments to declare hydro-climatic data as public goods to be shared at all levels (regional, national and local) in order to assist in disaster risk reduction.

Appeal to heads of state by UNGA to make a declaration endorsing this claim.

6

35.

National governments to report to UN/ISDR on the current status of early warning systems in their country/region including a map of areas covered by these systems.

Approach UN/ISDR to realize the proposed action.

2

36.

Delta states to call for the establishment of a Large Delta States Network to jointly tackle the negative impacts of sea level rise associated with ongoing climate change.

Identify and approach core member countries to call for the establishment of the proposed network.

6

37.

UN to declare an “International Year” on water and disaster reduction in conjunction with related international organizations.

Appeal to heads of state for establishing an “International Year” on water and disaster reduction.

1

38.

Inter parliamentary organizations and associations such as IPU and Globe to request Parliaments around the world to create a Day to discuss economic growth and water-related disasters.

Approach inter parliamentary organizations and associations such as IPU and Globe to realize the proposed action.

1

39.

Reinsurance companies, governments, and international financing institutions to create new funding mechanisms for preventing water-related disasters.

Invite reinsurance companies, governments, international financing institutions to create the proposed mechanisms.

4

40.

International professional engineering societies to develop guidelines for water-resistant buildings

Identify and approach appropriate international professional engineering societies to develop the proposed guideline.

3

Image by AmazonCARES

Annex 2: Glossary TERMINOLOGY 6 Adaptation The adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their effects, which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities.

Capacity Development The process by which people, organizations and society systematically stimulate and develop their capacities over time to achieve social and economic goals, including through improvement of knowledge, skills, systems, and institutions.

Climate change (a) The Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines climate change as: “a change in the state of the climate that can be identified (e.g., by using statistical tests) by changes in the mean and/or the variability of its properties, and that persists for an extended period, typically decades or longer. Climate change may be due to natural internal processes or external forcings, or to persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the atmosphere or in land use”. (b) The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) defines climate change as “a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods”.

Disaster A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society involving widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources.

Disaster risk The potential disaster losses, in lives, health status, livelihoods, assets and services, which could occur to a particular community or a society over some specified future time period.

Disaster risk reduction The concept and practice of reducing disaster risks through systematic efforts to analyse and manage the causal factors of disasters, including through reduced exposure to hazards, lessened vulnerability of people and property, wise management of land and the environment, and improved preparedness for adverse events.

Early warning system The set of capacities needed to generate and disseminate timely and meaningful warning information to enable individuals, communities and organizations threatened by a hazard to prepare and to act appropriately and in sufficient time to reduce the possibility of harm or loss.

Hazard A dangerous phenomenon, substance, human activity or condition that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental damage.

Natural hazard Natural process or phenomenon that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental damage.

Preparedness The knowledge and capacities developed by governments, professional response and recovery organizations, communities and individuals to effectively anticipate, respond to, and recover from, the impacts of likely, imminent or current hazard events or conditions.

Prevention The outright avoidance of adverse impacts of hazards and related disasters.

Recovery The restoration, and improvement where appropriate, of facilities, livelihoods and living conditions of disasteraffected communities, including efforts to reduce disaster risk factors.

Resilience The ability of a system, community or society exposed to hazards to resist, absorb, accommodate to and recover from the effects of a hazard in a timely and efficient manner, including through the preservation and restoration of its essential basic structures and functions.

ACRONYMS ASEAN

Association of South-East Asian Nations

CITYNET

The Regional Network of Local Authorities for the Management of Human Settlements

CSR

Corporate Social Responsibility

Response The provision of emergency services and public assistance during or immediately after a disaster in order to save lives, reduce health impacts, ensure public safety and meet the basic subsistence needs of the people affected.

DAC

Development Cooperation Directorate

ECHO

Emergency and Community Health Outreach

ECLAC

Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean

Risk The combination of the probability of an event and its negative consequences.

ECOSOC

United Nations Economic and Social Council

ESCAP

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

Risk assessment A methodology to determine the nature and extent of risk by analyzing potential hazards and evaluating existing conditions of vulnerability that together could potentially harm exposed people, property, services, livelihoods and the environment on which they depend.

GWP

Global Water Partnership

ICLE

Local Governments for Sustainability

ICRC

International Committee of the Red Cross

IPCC

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

IPU

Inter-Parliamentary Union

IWA

International Water Association

OCHA

United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

OECD

Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development

SADC

Southern African Development Community

UCLG

United Cities and Local Governments

UNESCO

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

UNFCCC

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

UNGA

United Nations General Assembly

UNICEF

United Nations Children's Fund

UN/ISDR

United Nations secretariat for the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction

UNSGAB

United Nations Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation

WASH

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

WMO

World Meteorological Organization

WWC

World Water Council

Risk management The systematic approach and practice of managing uncertainty to minimize potential harm and loss.

Structural and non-structural measures Structural measures: Any physical construction to reduce or avoid possible impacts of hazards, or application of engineering techniques to achieve hazard-resistance and resilience in structures or systems; Non-structural measures: Any measure not involving physical construction that uses knowledge, practice or agreement to reduce risks and impacts, in particular through policies and laws, public awareness raising, training and education.

Sustainable development Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Water-related disasters These include floods, droughts, over-extraction of groundwater, pollution of rivers, lakes and wetlands, loss of water-based ecosystem services, landslides, debris flows, storm surges, and tsunamis.

1

The views in this article area my own and are offered as a faithful representation of my view of UNSGAB and HLEP, but not as an official representation of their views on their own operations

2

UNSGAB created a pamphlet for the Istanbul Fifth World Water Forum which offers a brief assessment of the extent to which the Action Plan has resulted in real action and the prospect of real change

3

portal.worldwaterforum5.org/WWC/High%20Level%20Panel%20on%20Water%20and%20Disasters/Pages/default.aspx

4

www.preventionweb.net/english/professional/publications/v.php?id=8609

5

Urgent Imperatives

6

Apart from the definition of “water-related disasters” all other definitions are based on the UN/ISDR Terminology on Disaster Risk Reduction (2009)

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ISSUES WITH FLOODING? Josh Taylor The 1st June 2007 saw the start of two devastating months with critical infrastructure being kept out of action for weeks and over 24,000 people being evacuated from their homes. The Environment Agency issued 16 severe flood warnings and England had the wettest July since records began. Many regions suffered over a month’s rainfall in just one day on the 20th June, RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire reported 126.6mm of rain and a college at Pershore in Worcestershire reported 142.2mm. Approximately 175,000 homes were affected and damage costs were estimated at £3 billion. Experts have stated that this flooding was not as a result of global warming but it is believed that global warming increases the risk of extreme weather events occurring more frequently in the future. This leaves us with a situation where we have to plan for events such as this flooding and to protect ourselves accordingly, yet many businesses and utility providers have learnt very little from 2007 and are still at great risk.

On the 22nd July 2007, Mythe Water Treatment Works in Gloucestershire was flooded, threatening the drinking water of 350,000 people. In the following two days it was confirmed that 420,000 people were without safe water, and as a result 900 water bowsers were brought in and the army were required to distribute 3 million bottles of water a day as well as keeping the bowsers filled.

Severn Trent Water organised a temporary solution for toilets and washing but it was 16 days until safe drinking water was restored. Following this, Severn Trent Water has set about making £40 million improvements to protect against a repeat situation, involving building a large embankment and the construction of a new pipeline between Stensham and Churchdown, but these improvements are easier said than done. Alan Payne, Severn Trent’s Water Services’ General Manager has said “the Environment Agency have problems with us putting material around the whole site - they want us to defend individual assets.” This suggests that a combination of permanent and temporary flood defences may be required to help prevent situations like the 2007 floods from happening again.

To make matters worse for the residents of Gloucestershire, Castle Meads electricity substation was also flooded, leaving 50,000 people without electricity, and Walham substation, which supplies half a million people including the Government Communication Headquarters, came close to flooding. In order to prevent Walham substation

from flooding, fire-fighters, military personnel and civilian engineers worked for 2 days filling and placing thousands of sand bags against temporary metal fences. This is a time-consuming and costly process as well as using large quantities of non-reusable substances. Alternatively, products such as Watergate (available from UK Flood Control Limited) take a minimal amount of time to install, require significantly less man power and are completely reusable. Additionally 8 pumps were used by fire-fighters to flush out the water that was already inside the plant. Despite this flooding and Environment Agency warnings for several years about the flood risks of the location, very little has been done to prevent this happening again.

Although Gloucestershire was heavily affected, it was not the only county to feel the serious affects of the flooding.

In Herefordshire, 5,200 people were left without drinking water due to the Whitehouse Works being flooded. In Shropshire, the Severn Valley Railway line was closed after several landslips occurred resulting in an estimated £2 million repair bill, and a bridge collapsed on the main road to Ludlow which severed a gas main resulting in the surrounding area being evacuated. In Yorkshire, 136 sewage treatment works serving 2 million people were flooded, and in Oxfordshire the flooding was severe enough to merit the deployment of 40,000 sandbags which had to be transported from Grantham in Lincolnshire almost 130 miles away. Once again, more suitable alternatives were available such as self-inflating sand bags, effectively sandbags without the sand. They are more effective, quicker to distribute and require less resources to deploy as well as fitting in a single lorry compared to the 30 lorries traditional sandbags would require.

Following this catastrophic flooding, the Government commissioned Sir Michael Pitt to conduct an independent review of the flooding emergency that occurred. The Environment Agency thinks that flood protection funding needs to be doubled to approximately £1 billion per year by 2035 compared to the £570 million at present. Despite this review and Environment Agency guidance, many houses, businesses and utility providers are still at risk of flooding.

Since the floods in 2007, the Environment Agency has carried out 90 Flood Defence Schemes, which has provided 58,000 properties with increased protection. They are also funding a project with leading infrastructure asset owners which is being lead by CIRIA entitled “Flood Resilience

and Resistance for Critical Infrastructure”. However two years after the flooding that inspired the project; it is still in the consultation stage. It is definitely a positive that steps are being taken and that many more households are protected, yet there are many temporary demountable solutions available to householders and many of these are at cost-effective prices. What the Environment Agency and Government need to focus on is methods of decreasing the flood risk to the households, primarily through dredging rivers, canals and lakes to increase the flood plane and by improving drainage systems to help remove the water more effectively.

The Environment Agency states that dredging “increases capacity for a short period, often at great environmental costs”, however this depends on how the dredging takes place. It is true to say that the actual process of dredging does not necessarily provide a long term solution.

However if used in conjunction with a form of geotextile dewatering tube, not only will there be a temporary increased river depth due to the dredging but the dewatering tubes can be used as an environmentally friendly method of raising the height of the bank, thus providing a more long term solution and removing the environmental impact.

The Association of British Insurers conducted a survey following the 2007 floods of 1000 people from badly affected areas. The overwhelming response from the survey was that people felt improving drains was a top priority. Improved drainage can significantly reduce flood risk as a high quality network of drains provides the water with somewhere to go so that it does not stay on the surface. Drainage can be improved by using larger pipes, the addition of further road gullies or by introducing more drains and pipes. A few years ago West Sussex County Council introduced a scheme to improve highway drainage in an area of Crawley Down. The scheme involved installing a new, large diameter drainage system and additional road gullies. The cost of the scheme was £82,000 which has continued to protect many properties so there is no requirement for schemes like the Environment Agency’s Flood Defence Scheme.

With long term and more reliable methods of flood prevention available such as these, why are the Environment Agency and Government still providing individual houses with protection instead of protecting entire areas? And why is the project for protecting critical infrastructure still in the consultation stage?

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A Strategic Solution to Water Shortages Alex Stephenson is Deputy Chairman of the UK Rainwater Harvesting Association and Director of the UK Stormwater Division of Hydro International. He is also Govenor of the British Water SUDS Focus Group, and Chairman of the UK-RHA’s Industry Liaison Group.

Playing by the Code Surprisingly, for a country renowned for its prolific rainfall, water supplies in many parts of the UK are under severe stress (see map), a situation predicted to worsen as the population continues to rise.

This is reflected in the “Code for Sustainable Home” policy document which, alongside its commitment to carbon reduction, also contains mandatory upper limits for predicted mains water consumption in new dwellings.

Compared to an assumed current daily average consumption of 150-litres per person, the Code requires that future homes be built to reduce this progressively to 120-litres (Levels 1&2), then 105-litres (Levels 3&4), and finally 80-litres (Levels 5&6).

New regulations In line with Government policy, these Code requirements are now starting to find their way into Building Regulations through innovative – almost revolutionary – changes incorporated in Part-G of the Regulations due to come into force on 1st October 2009.

For the first time, these new Regulations start the process of adding to their underlying health and safety purpose, a new function of legislating for economising on the use of water. Also for the first time, the new Regulations distinguish between the standard of the water that must be used for drinking, cooking and bathing (i.e. “wholesome water”), and the lower standard (“non-wholesome water”) required for other defined purposes such as toilet flushing, clothes washing and the outside tap.

The regulations then go on to require that, in all new dwellings, proof be furnished to show that measures have been incorporated that will restrict the water consumption of mains water to no more than 125-litres per person per day; only then can the building be signed-off by the Building Inspector.

Demonstrating the water consumption of the building is to be undertaken in a straightforward practical way is explained in the Government publication “The Water

Efficiency Calculator for New Dwellings”. This publication contains a number of calculation tables which, once populated with the water-related fixtures and fittings of the dwelling, the associated manufacturers’ performance data and the proposed design occupancy, predict water consumption for the property which must be within the 125-litres limit. If non-wholesome water is being used in accordance with the regulations, then this too must be calculated and subtracted from the predicted consumption.

Part-G1 of the updated Building Regulations identify a number of potential sources of non-wholesome water, including water abstracted from wells or bore-hole, reclaimed greywater, reclaimed industrial process water and rainwater harvesting. Under most circumstances rainwater harvesting would be the simplest and most cost-effective way of providing such water in most dwellings.

Rainwater harvesting The harvesting of rainwater for household use has been a world-wide common practice for many centuries but died out almost entirely in the UK when the Victorians developed a national grid that brought safe, clean water reliably to the tap of every home. Given what appeared to be an abundant water supply falling from the sky to top-up this national grid, we have become complacent about the availability of water and the amount of it we use/waste every day.

In reality, very little of the water falling as rain finds its way into the mains supply, the overwhelming majority being lost back to atmosphere, seeping into the ground, or lost to the sea via natural water-courses. As a result, water supplies have become depleted as consumption rises in line with population and modern industry the main immediate impact of prolonged steady rain being a rise in flood risks, rather than a top-up of national water reserves.

Harvesting rainwater where it falls, therefore, has a number of benefits, the main one being that, properly treated, it can be used to replace wholesome water for household uses where non-wholesome water will suffice. In the process, this also takes at least some of the water out of the storm drain system, thus helping reduce flooding downstream. This beneficial effect will be maximised once the installation of systems becomes widespread, particularly if integrated with the surface water management arrangements (SUDS) for a development.

A final but environmentally useful benefit, is that water collected and stored on-site in this way uses only around 5% of the energy required by the mains system in bringing water to the tap.

Doing what it says on the tin Studies show that the pattern of water consumption around the home is split broadly 50/50 between activities requiring wholesome and non-wholesome water in accordance with the new Building Regulations. In the workplace, and in other public buildings and sports stadia, this usage swings to more than 80% non-wholesome as the balance between bathing and cooking and activities such as toilet flushing alters markedly from that at home.

Straightforward calculations based on roof area, local annual rainfall and a coefficient of efficiency for the water capture arrangements, show that a roof area of around 120-metres2 will harvest sufficient water to meet nearly all the non-wholesome requirements of a household of two adults and two children. Such a system would, accordingly, reduce the demand on the mains supply to close to 75-litres per person per day, a performance well inside the requirements of the new Building Regulations – and one that has been validated by independent year-long Environment Agency trials.

Where the roof area to occupancy is lower, then the water supplied per person reduces correspondingly; conversely, in any building that combines a large roof with a high demand for non-potable water, then the mains water saving can easily rise dramatically beyond the 50% level.

The main point at issue, however, is that unlike some environmental technologies, the performance of rainwater harvesting systems is highly predictable because they are bespoke designed for their applications and based upon straightforward mathematical calculations allied to some easy to make assumptions (such as average annual rainfall, for example).

Simplicity through technology Unlike their pre-Victorian predecessors, modern rainwater harvesting systems are entirely automatic, bringing water to its point of use in a way that, to the user, is indistinguishable from using a mains supply. Moreover, they are designed to provide water that appears crystal clear to the naked eye, albeit not meeting wholesome water standards.

This is achieved by channelling the rain falling on the roof via the usual guttering and down-pipe arrangements up to the point it reaches ground level. Thereafter, all the available water is brought together into a single pipe leading to the storage tank, before entering the storage tank via a high-quality fine-grain filter, designed to remove bio-degradable matter, and a “calmed inlet�, which minimises the disruption to the biological equilibrium within the tank as additional water enters. Further to ensure good water quality, the tank is sized to ensure that broadly the water within it when full equates to no more than 18-days of usage.

The water is then delivered to the services it is providing, ie. those that are authorised to use non-wholesome water, by either a direct pressure pump or are gravity fed via a header tank. Delivery is on-demand and automatic, controlled by a system management unit. For direct pressure systems, the management unit also ensures the certainty of a supply source within the tank by introducing a limited quantity of mains water into it during prolonged

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dry periods. For header tank systems, the mains water back-up function is achieved by a dual ball valve arrangement, the higher level controlling the transfer of stored rainwater to the header tank, the lower level introducing mains water when the stored rainwater is exhausted.

Conversely, if more rain is experienced than the tank can hold, then the excess simply flows across the filter – helping to clean it in the process – before overflowing into the overall surface water management arrangements for the project.

Of the various ways in which non-wholesome water can be obtained, rainwater harvesting is likely to be both the most readily available and clearly the most cost-effective.

It also has universal application, thus offering a strategic response to national water shortages. Last but not least, it delivers carbon footprint benefits, whilst also playing a part in reducing downstream flood risks.

This ancient practice, updated by today’s technology, is therefore destined to make a very welcome return to mainstream house building practice.

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Back to the future In summary, Part-G of the Building Regulations due to take effect in October 2009 breaks new ground in requiring the developers of new dwellings to take steps to reduce the mains water consumption of the building’s occupants. Future updates of the Regulations are expected to demand even lower consumption levels, in line with the higher levels of the Code for Sustainable Homes.

Realistically, the initial mains water consumption requirements can probably be met by simply installing water-efficient fixtures, fittings and appliances; even so, it also makes environmental good sense to supplement these by using non-wholesome water wherever this is appropriate. This use of non-wholesome water would probably be essential to meeting the higher levels of the Code.

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SUDS – Greening Urban Drainage Two years on from the summer 2007 floods, Geoff Gibbs, Technical Advisor for the Environment Agency, writes on the impact of surface water flooding and what is being done to alleviate the problem.

Sustainable drainage in the form of an infiltration basin at Angmering in West Sussex

Last month the Government’s 2009 UK Climate Change Projections (UKCP09) report confirmed what many people had feared, that over the decades to come, the UK will experience hotter, drier summers resulting in droughts, and warmer, wetter winters bringing more frequent intense storms and a greater risk of flash flooding. One in six homes in the UK is at risk of flooding from rivers and the sea. Many more, particularly in urban areas, are at risk of flooding from surface water. During the summer floods of 2007, record rainfall caused surface water runoff from roads and built-up areas to overwhelm drainage systems.

We estimate that of the 52,000 homes and businesses flooded, two thirds were affected by this surface water flooding. The Environment Agency is working to build sea and river defences to reduce the risk of flooding in coastal and riverside areas. However, planners and developers need to include sustainable drainage systems (SUDS) in new developments to reduce the risk of flooding by surface water and to provide other benefits for the environment.

Sustainable Drainage Systems: The Benefits The SUDS approach to surface water drainage balances water quality, flood risk and amenity in the design of drainage systems. There are a wide range of SUDS techniques. These include green roofs, rainwater harvesting, soakaways and permeable paving to manage rainwater locally. These are particularly useful in high-density developments, helping to keep surface water runoff at or even below greenfield runoff rates. Where additional controls are needed, swales, ponds and wetlands are used to carry water, provide storage and improve

water quality. These SUDS techniques provide welcome green features in new developments and, alongside green roofs, create valuable habitats for wildlife.

The SUDS approach has important benefits for the quality of our streams and groundwaters. By implementing pollution prevention measures, as part of the SUDS approach, we can minimise the risk of causing water pollution.

Controlling rainfall at source helps prevent pollutants being washed from streets and other paved areas into watercourses and reduces polluting storm overflows from sewers. By better managing where rainwater goes, we can help reduce the likelihood of water pollution.

Governing SUDS: Taking Responsibility In England and Wales a variety of legislation and guidance applies to the management of surface water, with responsibility shared by local authorities, highways authorities, water companies, internal drainage boards and the Environment Agency. For new developments, planning guidance in both England (PPS25 – Development and Flood Risk) and in Wales (TAN 15) encourages the use of SUDS, as do building regulations.

Climate change scenarios have highlighted the advantages of the SUDS approach over conventional drainage and we have seen government and public bodies acting to raise awareness of SUDS techniques. Although PPS25 and TAN 15 encourage drainage which mimics natural systems, in practice a lack of clarity over ownership and maintenance of SUDS has resulted in developers taking the easier option of using the automatic right to connect to a public sewer in most cases.

The Government’s 2008 water strategy for England, Future Water, highlights the importance of tackling surface water drainage. It emphasises better management of rainwater and preventing surface water entering underground drainage systems. A first step in England has seen individuals planning to pave their front gardens being encouraged to use a SUDS approach by a change to permitted development rights which exempt permeable systems from the need for planning permission.

Early Adopters The Environment Agency has promoted the SUDS approach to drainage for some time and has played a central part in the National SUDS Working Group, which brings together key Government departments, the water industry and developers. We work with a range of institutions and developers to improve knowledge on SUDS and are also leading by example; our new head office in Bristol city centre will have rainwater harvesting to reduce water consumption and surface water runoff. We have also introduced a SUDS training course for our own staff, which is available to Local Authorities on request. Local Authorities themselves increasingly include SUDS information into their policies and we are now seeing more examples of successful developments incorporating SUDS techniques.

In Bristol, permeable paving has been retrofitted in a number of streets close to the city centre as part of a “Home Zones” project in the city. Oxfordshire County Council has pioneered the use of SUDS for streets and other areas in new housing developments across the county. They have emphasised the savings for developers in laying flat, permeable paving, without the need for gullies and associated drainage systems, when negotiating commuted sums for future maintenance.

The use of green roofs has also grown. Developers recognise the multiple benefits they offer in addition to attenuating and reducing rainwater runoff. They can help reduce energy use and extend the life of the roof by insulating it and protecting the waterproofing. They can provide valuable habitat or amenity benefits and help reduce the urban heat island effect. Green roofs can be seen on housing developments and commercial sites from Canary Wharf in London to Waverley Gate, in the centre of Edinburgh. They have also been widely used in schools.

Rainwater Harvesting The UK Rainwater Harvesting Association has reported growth in the market for rainwater harvesting systems.

These offer a real potential to use water wisely in our changing climate. In the UK about one third of the water used in our houses flushes our toilets. Rainwater stored in an underground tank could replace all or most of this, reducing the pressure on both water resources and our drainage systems.

Floods and Water Bill consultation Defra and the Welsh Assembly Government launched a joint consultation on a draft Floods & Water Bill in April 2009, with a closing date for comments of July 24. The draft bill contains wide ranging provisions to improve flood risk management and protect water quality and includes important proposals on SUDS. Below A SUDS feature bringing amenity and ecological benefits to Sutcliffe Park, Eltham, South London

SUDS Provisions in the Consultation

The Future for SUDS

The main proposals in the consultation are:  National Standards for construction and operation of SUDS which balance measures to mitigate flood damage, improve water quality, protect the environment, protect health and safety, and ensure the stability and durability of drainage systems;  An approval system for surface water drainage systems serving new developments, including roads, using the National Standards;  A requirement for the SUDS Approving Body (SAB) to adopt and maintain new SUDS which affect the drainage of other properties;  Developers must show they have met national standards for the application of SUDS techniques before connecting any residual surface water drainage to a public sewer (amending section 106 of the Water Industry Act 1991).

These proposals mean that all new developments will have SUDS drainage which complies with the National Standards. Surface water drainage will require approval by a SAB prior to construction and the same body will be able to monitor construction and will adopt and maintain the scheme when complete. The SAB will be the county council or unitary local authority in England. In Wales this has yet to be decided and is the subject of one of a number of additional questions for Wales in the consultation.

SUDS will play an important role in how we adapt to the challenges of a changing climate. Proposals in the draft bill will mean that developers know what they have to build and can be sure that surface water drainage serving new developments will be adopted. The development of the National Standards will be challenging but a successful outcome will mean a rapid move to the use of SUDS being the norm rather than the exception. If we achieve the right balance between water quality, quantity and amenity we could see a major improvement in the appearance of new developments, with drainage integrated into the design from the start.

Further information on SUDS for developers can be found at: www.environment-agency.gov.uk.

Geoff Gibbs is currently a Technical Advisor for the Environment Agency. A Chartered Civil Engineer, he has worked in flood risk management for more than 30 years.

He has represented the Environment Agency on steering groups which have developed guidance documents on good drainage practice.

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Dusty Gedge is Director of Livingroofs.org, the Uk’s independent green roof organization that provides advice and information on green roofs in the UK. Image by Getty Images, and Arup on behalf of the London Sustainable Development Commission

Stuttgart - permeable gravels and paving

Heat waves and floods were all the news at the end of June and the beginning of July. The last week of June saw London sweltering with temperatures reaching 32ËšC and a level two health alert was issued. The old and vulnerable were warned to take care as they are at risk during periods of excessive temperatures. During the day the heat sizzled and during the night it was hot and unbearable. The following week the weather altered slightly bringing intense thunderstorms, which, whilst providing some respite from the heat, caused major flooding to streets and tube stations in central London.

Heat waves and intense thunderstorms are two of the predicted consequences of climate change. In cities they are particularly intense. Temperatures in cities are generally a few degrees hotter than in the surrounding countryside. This is known as the Urban Heat Island effect and the key to ameliorating both the heat and the thunderstorms that form as a consequence is to keep as much of the water that falls on our cities in our cities. In fact the University of Manchester recently suggested that a 10% increase in green space in our cities by 2020 would be needed to combat the effects of climate change.

Therefore our cities are going to need to adapt and adapt relatively quickly. One way to do this is to reintroduce soil and vegetation.

Traditionally cities are dry and sealed. Only parks and gardens offer a respite from the hard surfaces of roof, road and car park that make up the vast majority of the urban landscape. Many cities in the world are looking at methods to green up the cities using land based swales

and other features. In Portland, Oregon they have used vegetated swales along roads to not only store water but also to slow traffic. In general though our cities have limited space for ground level solutions, so designers are looking skyward to the roof spaces to provide an increasing need for green space. Green roofs have been widely used on the continent for over twenty years to help store the rain that falls onto their surfaces and to reduce the rate and volume of water that enters the local storm water system.

In the UK this approach is slowly gaining momentum.

Last year the Environment Agency in the Thames region launched a green roof toolkit, which provides developers with detailed guidance on green roofs. This guidance includes methods and tables on how green roofs can be an important element within Sustainable Urban Drainage [Suds] management train. At present these are being used on a case-by-case basis and are not being promoted as a default approach as they are in Germany. Hopefully confidence will ensure that, sooner rather than later, this will lead to a national approach to green roofs and storm water management.

The positive effect of green roofs in reducing floods has long been recognised in Germany. Cities, such as Stuttgart, have had local building regulations that ensure new developments must reduce the amount of water that leaves any given development. There are tax breaks and incentives. However over the last few years the ‘polluter pays’ principle has seen an increase in the number of cities instigating such mechanism. Storm water is considered pollution and therefore the more that is sent

Eco Roofing Services is a forward thinking company which is sympathetic to the environment and encourages wildlife.

There are lots of benefits to a green roof including visual impact, reducing heat transfer into the building and water run-off thus reducing flooding.

Email: Web:

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to the local drainage system, the more the owner will have to pay. Berlin for example charges a nominal fee for the amount of impermeable land on a property – roof, wall and landscape. This has led to major developments such as Potsdammer Platz being built along the zero discharge principle. No rainwater can leave the site and therefore the site is deemed to have decoupled itself from the local storm water system. A combination of extensive green roofs on the upper roofs and garden roofs at lower levels collect the rainwater. Any excess rainwater is sent to a large lake on top of the car park to be filtered and aerated along an urban ‘stream’. The filtered water is then reused for flushing toilets and irrigating gardens and parks.

The decoupling approach is used throughout Germany.

Many cities encourage parishes and neighbourhoods to instigate both landscape and roof landscaping to allow decoupling from the local storm water system.

On a recent visit to Stuttgart I was able to visit a housing estate that has recently been built and has a decoupled system. Water had been a principle design consideration and was everywhere. Rainwater was not to be hidden in pipes and moved away as quick as possible. It was an opportunity. Although the extensive green roofs higher up were not visible, the whole ground level landscape was a roof on top of underground car parks. Here there were ponds and landscape gardens. Paths and hard standing are all made of permeable paving stones. Running alongside the paths are gentle gravel swales. The swales have two functions. All excess water from the roofs moves through the swales to the ponds in periods of excess rainfall. However in summer stored water is released into the swales in the afternoon to provide the local children with a water playground!

Retaining water within urban areas has an important effect on the urban heat island. Water stored in the vegetation and the soil is released back into the atmosphere through evapotranspiration. This process can help reduce the effects of the urban heat island making both day and night time temperatures more bearable.

Research in Toronto has suggested that wholescale greening on the urban core could lead to a reduction of between 1 - 2˚C in daytime temperatures in the summer, with the added benefit of reducing the need for air conditioning. Toronto has now instigated a policy that all new developments will have to have green roofs. Other cities in North America, such as Washington DC and New York, are now providing grants and tax breaks for properties that retrofit green roofs, whilst others, such as Chicago and Portland, give developers additional floor space when green roofs are included in development plans.

In the UK a few cities are considering policies, which include the use of green roofs to counter local flash floods and the urban heat island. Sheffield has developed a policy and the current London Plan, which is under review at present, has a distinct policy on the issue.

In the near future it would be hoped that London and other cities will provide incentives to help green up existing roof spaces to ensure that as the climate changes our cities are prepared for the consequences. Keeping water in the city at roof level will certainly be one approach that will need to be embraced.

1. High level roofs collect rainwater, Berlin. 2. Roof gardens at Potsdammerplatz, Berlin. 3 + 5. Swales that become water playgrounds in the afternoon. 4. Stuttgart, roof pond. 6. Stuttgart Green roofs and PVs combine energy production and water storage in accordance with local regulations. 7. Extensive green roof, Stuttgart. 8. Roof lake, Potsdammerplatz, Berlin.

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Green roof progress Steve Greaves - Sales & Marketing Director - Flag Soprema Ltd

Despite the structural impracticality of intensive green roofs for many urban buildings, lightweight ‘extensive’ systems can still provide a range of benefits. Their shallow layers of free-draining material support low growing, drought-resistant plant varieties and, as the depth of growing medium is generally no more than 10cm, maintenance needs are often minimal. Planting of species indigenous to particular regions is possible - a good example being that of the Combined Universities of Cornwall’s Tremough Campus near Falmouth. Flag Soprema’s plant list enabled a seed mix of 27 meadow flower and 7 grass varieties to be used over a roof area of 3000m2. Such planting detail receives little media attention as extensive green roofs are not generally designed for public use.

As the density of green roofs increases, so too does the problem of ensuring that these fragile ecosystems have a long-term future. If we are to see consistent levels of increased biodiversity maintained, there has to be greater understanding of the needs of individual roofs.

In dry areas, systems invariably require irrigation if species other than traditional, drought tolerant sedums are to be used. As a highly effective means of storm water attenuation, the ability to ‘retro-fit’ extensive green roofs is one of their primary benefits. Reductions in the rate of water release of 60% or more are routinely recorded, with a corresponding effect on risk of urban flash flooding and sewage discharge into rivers. With developers now required to achieve high standards of run-off mitigation and the Environment Agency highlighting the benefits of green roof utilisation, a situation where more than 10% of flat roofs are green (as in Germany) is clearly achievable.

There is no reason why we should not be able to effectively link traditional green zones with those provided by flat roofs. If this is to be achieved, continuous evaluation of many factors will be necessary to enable planting to be effective. In addition to providing effective drainage and measuring water discharge coefficient, there are many factors affecting planting performance to consider. Plant species, propagation and establishment methods, plant succession, carbon sequestration potential, water and nutrient requirements and capacity to withstand invasive weeds are just a few. Measurement of heat-flow through the roof in relation to temperatures above it is also critical, in addition to assessing the performance of membranes and their recyclability. The London Borough of Camden’s roofs, commented on by Dusty Gedge, will have Flag’s non-toxic TPO single ply membrane used in conjunction with a “Nature Roof” on the highest level and varying build-ups on the other 8. Such ethylene propylene rubber (EPR) modified polyolefin membranes have no adverse environmental impact, adapt to structural movement and are resistant to root growth.

In Germany, pesticides and insecticides can no longer be used on green roofs, and fertilizer used only sparingly.

The argument about increased pollution resulting from green roof water run-off is therefore a short term one at best. Integration with water recycling systems, reduced energy consumption and CO2 emissions and increased roof service life are all practical facilities management benefits. It can only be hoped, therefore, that Government will seek to increase green roof use through financial and fiscal inducement.

Living with a green roof

By Alex Stacey Editor As a recent convert and greenroofing evangelist, I wanted to write about my experience of living with a greenroof.

My house has a small rear extension into the back garden.

This extension was covered with a very sad flat roof, which was at the end of its serviceable life, with a depression in the centre which collected rainwater.

As I mentioned in the introduction, the responsibility of being the editor of an environment magazine (although at the time it was Environment UK) has led me to include as many green technologies as possible whilst renovating my house and given me access to organisations that could advise me.

One of those technologies I really wanted was a greenroof to replace the shabby one on the extension. John Whittaker from Hertalan recommended Genesis Roofing as a preferred contractor in my area. Dave Hough and his staff at Genesis were fantastic. They were prompt, efficient and professional and their workmanship was impeccable.

The existing roof was removed and the joists were replaced to carry the weight of the new roof and to provide extra support because I wanted to be able to use the grass roof.

Hertalan EPDM membrane. My technical expertise ends here; the next phase was to install the filter, drainage and substrate layers.

Then the roof was topped off with Lindum Turf’s, LT2 Low Maintenance Grassfelt.

More detailed information can be provided if required alex@enviromedia.ltd.uk The completed roof is amazing and improves the house considerably. Firstly, it visually blends what once was an ugly grey roof into the garden and secondly, it provides a great place to sit with a glass of wine enjoying summer evenings. There has been a marked improvement in the insulation of the extension: I have no heating in this part of the house and dual aspect French windows facing into the garden, yet it never feels cold and when we had snow in the winter it remained on the greenroof for several days longer than on neighbouring roofs. The benefits are especially evident during a heavy rainstorm; the water is absorbed into the substrate and the runoff is reduced considerably compared to the normal hard surfaces.

I wholeheartedly recommend having a greenroof and to get Genesis to fit it for you.

The entire surface was covered and waterproofed with

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Works include new works / refurbishments / roof terraces / gardens / grass and sedum mix green roofs.

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FIRST ROUND FLOOD PROTECTION GRANTS ANNOUNCED The first round of new grants to help people protect their homes against flooding have been announced by Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Hilary Benn.

The £5 million Flood Protection Grant Scheme was announced as part of the Government’s response to Sir Michael Pitt’s review of the 2007 floods. In the first round of funding, £3 million has been made available to 25 local authorities to protect up to 593 properties across England offering practical flood protection solutions, including air brick covers and door guards.

Mr Benn said:

“While we’re investing in more flood defence schemes, we need to recognise that in some areas, flooding can’t always be prevented. That’s why we’re helping households across England to become more resilient to floods by protecting their homes from the damage and destruction that can be caused.

People living in areas ranging from Devon to Newcastle and from Lancashire to Lewes who are at risk of flooding will receive grants to help them better protect their homes.

We had an overwhelming response to the grant scheme from local authorities. This is only the first round of grants and as a result of this interest, we’ll be reviewing the money available for the second round with a view to providing even more funding to protect people’s property.”

In addition to the original £5 million, an extra £500,000 has been allocated specifically to help those areas affected by the floods of Summer 2007 in addition to the support they have already received. Local authorities whose applications met the criteria but were unsuccessful due to funding restrictions will be automatically considered for the second round of grants.

Environment Agency CEO Paul Leinster said:

“The Flood Protection Grant Scheme will benefit thousands of people by putting in place flood products such as air brick covers and door boards, increasing resilience to over 590 homes from flooding from rivers, sea, surface water and groundwater. The Environment Agency is pleased to have played a part in making the Scheme, announced by Hilary Benn, become a reality, delivering a key Pitt Review recommendation.”

Local authorities will be given flexibility in how they implement their schemes and the initial surveys they commission will ensure they know exactly how best to allocate the funding available.

Local authorities can apply for funding for any area that they believe would benefit from flood protection and that meets the eligibility criteria described below. Given that the primary criterion is that areas will have been flooded one or more times in recent years, it is probable that such areas will already be known to local authorities. The following criteria should be satisfied for all areas that are to be included in the scheme:

A. Property types 

the main use of the properties in question must be residential...

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except in the case of properties whose protection would be integral to the successful protection of attached residential properties. An example might be a shop either at the end or within a residential terrace.

B. Type and frequency of flooding 1. Fluvial and coastal flooding 

Floodwater must have entered buildings at least once since the beginning of 1998; and



The area in which the properties are located must have an annual chance of flooding of at least 1 in 20 (i.e. 5%).

2. Sewer flooding 

Sewer flooding is the responsibility of the water companies. It is therefore not the aim of this scheme to protect against this form of flooding.

3. Surface water flooding and groundwater flooding 

Floodwater must have entered buildings at least once since the beginning of 1998; and



Buildings must have been flooded at least twice since the start of 1988.

For flooding types 1 and 3, the flooding must have been above ground floor level for a significant number of the properties. For the remainder, flooding must have entered the building sufficiently to need remedial action such as drying of the under-floor spaces. Consideration will be given to groups of properties that would have flooded but for ad-hoc activity, such as diverting flood water using sandbag walls, if it can be reliably established that flooding to the qualifying requirements would have occurred.

C. Prospect of a Community Scheme There must be little or no prospect of the area concerned benefiting from a community scheme within the foreseeable future. When selecting areas for participation in the grant scheme, preference will be given to those locations that cannot be defended with a community scheme rather than those that anticipate having a viable scheme funded in the future. The principle criterion listed above is that areas should have been flooded frequently, for the idea of household flood protection tends to be received more enthusiastically in communities with experience of regular flooding. It is likely that local authorities will already be aware of the areas within their boundaries where this is the case. For areas where the risk is of fluvial or coastal flooding, further information will also normally be available from the local Environment Agency office.

FINANCIAL BREAKDOWN OF GRANTS:  Ribble Valley Borough Council will receive a grant of £119,700 to protect 21 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Rossendale Borough Council will receive a grant of £3,000 to protect 2 homes from flooding using flood boards.

Rossendale is asking for less than the maximum grant because an assessment has been made and a solution identified.  Wigan Council will receive a grant of £83,500 to protect 15 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, airbrick covers and non-return valves.  Vale Royal Borough Council will receive a grant of £15,000 to protect 48 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.

Vale Royal is asking for less than the maximum grant for a retirement home to protect flats on the ground floor. The measures will benefit all the flats in the retirement home.  Leeds City Council will receive a grant of £131,100 to protect 23 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Wakefield Metropolitan District Council will receive a grant of £85,500 to protect 15 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Newcastle City Council will receive a grant of £216,600 to protect 37 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Wychavon District Council will receive a grant of £121,000 to protect 22 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Birmingham City Council will receive a grant of £153,900 to protect 27 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  South Derbyshire District Council will receive a grant of £33,511 to protect 23 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.

South Derbyshire is asking for less than the maximum grant because an assessment has been made with Environment Health Officers and drainage engineers and a solution identified. A pilot project has already been run to test the suitability and performance.  Aylesbury Vale District Council will receive a grant of £325,000 to protect 57 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Milton Keynes Council will receive a grant of £39,900

to protect 7 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Uttlesford District Council will receive grant of £79,800 to protect 14 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, airbrick covers and non-return valves.  Oxford City Council will receive a grant of £119,700 to protect 21 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  West Oxfordshire District Council will receive a grant of £171,000 to protect 30 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Vale of White Horse District Council will receive a grant of £51,300 to protect 9 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Wokingham District Council will receive a grant of £114,000 to protect 20 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Lewes District Council will receive a grant of £282,000 to protect 50 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Somerset County Council will receive a grant of £267,900 to protect 47 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  East Devon District Council will receive grant of £96,900 to protect 17 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, airbrick covers and non-return valves.  Gloucester County Council will receive a grant of £68,400 to protect 12 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Doncaster County Council will receive a grant of £108,000 to protect 19 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Lincolnshire County Council will receive a grant of £96,900 to protect 17 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  Tewkesbury Borough Council will receive a grant of £119,000 to protect 21 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.  East Riding of Yorkshire County Council will receive a grant of £108,000 to protect 19 homes from flooding using a variety of flood boards, air brick covers and non-return valves.

CASE STUDIES

ECR at the Royal Ballet School In March 2009, ECR exhibited at Ecobuild where it launched Easylay. The show was a huge success with tremendous interest from architects, surveyors, specifiers, councils and the general public. At the show, they were approached by the Royal Ballet School’s estates manager, Ian Cordery.

Their problem was how to improve the surfaces around their gardens and to keep the water off the pathways but still have an aesthetically attractive,hard wearing solution.

Having recently spent a considerable amount of money building new dormitories and a dance studio it was important that a cost effective solution was found.

ECR put forward a proposal which was accepted, the key factors being that they were environmentally friendly with a porous solution. The current shingle that the school had laid down was OK, however the issues were with the

Harvesting rain from The Hub

An exciting new building in Bristol has achieved BREEAM excellent rating. The recently opened office accommodation is part of the Aztec West development and is the new South West HQ for engineering and design consultants Atkins.

Known as The Hub, the 100,000 sq. ft. building incorporates energy and water efficient solutions such as ground source heat pumps, an active chilled beam cooling system, and a rainwater harvesting system. The bespoke steel and glass structure will be one of the region's most eco-friendly work places and sets an excellent example of modern sustainable construction.

Leading specialist Rainharvesting Systems Ltd. of Stroud in Gloucestershire were chosen to supply the water saving system for the 100,000 sq. ft. three-storey building, which is designed to meet most of the toilet flushing demand for the 1000 occupants.

students, who would move the stones all over the gardens.

The other problem was that there was a range of colour differences around the gardens.

The project was fulfilling for ECR in that they set about the groundworks and had a blank canvas to work with.

Easylay is simple to lay. Initially you introduce rubber crumb and resin to the mixer. After a couple of minutes the rubber becomes wet and is poured onto the area. This is then tamped down to a level of approximately 20-25mm.

This process is continued for the area. After 2 hours, again, using the mixer, the aggregate can be laid on top of the rubber utilizing a wide range of attractive colours and an aliphatic resin. This gives the aggregate added strength and UV stability.

The end product is an attractive, porous and environmentally friendly solution to today’s problem of flooding.

BAA Terminal 5 Washroom Challenge BAA has set high standards for the washrooms at all their airports. Add to this the expectations of the UK’s most prestigious building project, the design team for Heathrow Terminal 5 washrooms were tasked with achieving the optimum in sustainability, serviceability and aesthetics.

Dart Valley Systems products have previously been used extensively throughout BAA airports for 15 years and have been nominated as the preferred supplier.

The WC Flushvalve is unchallenged and comprises of an electronically operated flushvalve, requiring the user to simply wave their hand within 50mm of the sensor to flush the toilet. The valve open time is adjustable to enable optimum flushing to be achieved. When introduced to Heathrow as a retro-fit product it reduced water consumption by 210,000 m3 per annum, and related maintenance costs by 85%. Additionally all the other benefits became clear - hygienic no-touch operation, ease of use for less abled and young children, robust and vandal proof, and nice aesthetics. The sustained outstanding performance over the many years of service at BAA airports ensured its use at Terminal 5. The only fine tuning on this product was to provide a brushed stainless steel bezel to match the proposed washroom aesthetics. The exact detail was fine tuned with Kay Greetham, one of BAA’s design managers assigned to the Terminal 5 project.

All products in the BAA Terminal 5 washroom were required to be WRAS approved and so approvals needed to be obtained for the suites, including the WC pans, flushvalves and cisterns. There were a number of different WC pans selected to meet the criteria of different parts of the airport but the main ones for customer washrooms were the VitrA Matrix and Matrix Extended DDA compliant WC Pans. A service duct cistern was custom made to meet all the criteria to achieve an optimum cistern for the application. The design criteria included having a good head of water to provide a good flush rate, robust and easy to install. As well as being able to achieve good flush rates the slim robust cistern makes it ideal to fit into those service duct areas with restricted space.

One of the completely new designs developed for the Terminal 5 project was the urinal control system. This is provided with the facility to house the Infra Red Sensor, and Kay Greetham considered a sensor looking similar to the WC wave-on sensor would meet the design aesthetics.

The decision was to use a control box with two channels, to enable the control of one or two urinal bowls. This

solution meant that for many applications the costs could be substantially reduced.

Unlike PIR systems the individual control system only flushes the bowls actually used. On this application the sensor was mounted as an integral part of the urinal bowl and detects the user. A small amount of water, enough to wash the bowl and clear the trap is dispensed after each use, thus providing the optimum in water efficiency and freshness of the urinal bowl. Water for toilet flushing at Terminal 5 is on a separate supply to potable water which meant direct flushing could be used on the plumbing without the need for air breaks.

The automatic taps is another product used throughout BAA airports. Historically deck mounted taps had been used but the design criteria for Terminal 5 was wall mounted, No-touch automated taps . With TMV3 thermostatic pre-mixed water the no-touch automatic taps provide the most water efficient, safe, hygienic solution for hand washing. The technology used is the same as the deck mount taps well known to BAA, and the brushed stainless steel met the basic functional and aesthetic criteria. The flow rates and run-on time were agreed, leaving the subtle aesthetic design changes to meet Kay Greetham’s exact requirements.

With the WC flushing, urinal controls and automatic taps sorted, that covered the normal products supplied to BAA. The Terminal 5 team however had one more concept to look at to fine tune their sustainability objectives. With around 700 WC’s, that is a lot of units to keep an eye on.

One possible problem that can occasionally occur is with WC inlet valves that may scale up or for some other reason malfunction and continue filling causing overflow to waste.

BAA decided to install a monitoring system to provide early warning of any potential WC overflow. After considering the number of cubicles in various washrooms, it was decided to have a control station which could monitor up to 20 WC’s. A float switch is mounted in each cistern and should the water level rise a signal is passed back to a control box and a warning light is illuminated. When an attendant sees the warning light they can advise maintenance. The control box digital readout identifies the cubicle requiring attention.

BAA have demonstrated over many year’s experience that the highest levels of hygiene and washroom freshness can be obtained whilst achieving the most water efficient, environmental and sustainable operation.

CASE STUDIES

Hanson Formpave Installs Geothermal Permeable Paving at Local Groundwork Trust Hanson Formpave, manufacturers of specialist concrete paving products, has recently had its new and unique Aquaflow Thermapave Energy System installed into the car parking areas of the Groundwork Cresswell, Ashfield & Mansfield’s head offices in Clowne, Derbyshire, with excellent results. Groundwork, as approved contractors for Hanson, installed the innovative system on its own premises. Harvested and cleaned rainwater for reuse, a proven flood prevention solution, and reduced energy costs and water bills are just some of the high impact benefits already being gained from the environmentally friendly permeable paving and geothermal implementation.

Groundwork is an environmental regeneration charity dedicated to supporting and sustaining vibrant, healthy and safe communities through delivering projects that tackle regeneration, environmental and educational issues.

At the head offices in Clowne, the Trust had already implemented numerous ‘green’ technologies within the building including solar thermal panels, Air Source Heat Pumps and PV cells to demonstrate the greener future as endorsed by the charity.

With the installation of the Aquaflow Thermapave Energy System, the integrated Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP) and rainwater harvesting solution completed the portfolio of environmentally friendly systems and provided Groundwork with a route in tackling global climate change challenges and carbon footprint reduction.

“There were a number of reasons that we wanted to install a GSHP and rainwater harvesting system - the environmental benefits are obvious but we were also having a major problem with flooding in our sloping car park,” said Darren Pollard, construction manager at Groundwork. “Since the Aquaflow Thermapave Energy System has been installed we haven’t had any issues with flooding and the under floor heating that is sourced from the GSHP provides a reliable, comfortable and constant temperature.“ The Trust’s headquarters are built around a quadrangle with a large courtyard and a sloping car park. More than 300m2 of Red Brindle Aquaflow permeable paving was laid to eradicate the flooding issues, with an impermeable liner and subbase underneath to harvest and clean

rainwater for secondary use. The subbase also provides the ideal laying environment for the collector loops of the geothermal system. Integrated with a 6KW ‘Disme’ system, the GSHP now provides full comfort heating, via a newly laid under floor heating system, to the refurbished annex of the building at a substantially lower cost to conventional heating systems and significantly reducing the carbon emissions of the building. This forms part of a greater redevelopment of the building that will now be used as a training centre for both adults and young people in the area of construction skills, amongst other things.

Groundwork provides trainees with the chance to put into practice what they learn on real working projects, such as installing the Aquaflow Thermapave Energy System.

“The retrofit of the Aquaflow Thermapave Energy System at this site is an excellent example of the versatility of the solution and demonstrates the remarkable results and benefits that can be gained,” said Roger Garrett, Hanson Energy Renewables Manager at Hanson Formpave. “In this case up to 6KW of heating or cooling energy can be produced from a much smaller area than by any other means by using the Aquaflow paving installation and this is more than enough power to maintain a comfortable year round temperature - all with the added benefit of a water harvesting and storm management solution incorporated. This applies from this small project to large commercial schemes” Hanson Formpave partnered with renewable specialist Radiant Heating Solutions to design the complete system from the subbase through to the under floor heating to provide a total thermal solution. The heat pump aspect was something quite new to the team at Groundworks. To assist the installation team, Radiant were regularly on site to give technical guidance and advice. On completion Radiant assisted the installers throughout the commissioning process.

“We are really pleased with the system and already realising a return on our investment. It has been great to partner with such enthusiastic and knowledgeable companies in Radiant Heating Solutions and Hanson Formpave, so that we could fully meet our strategy in running an office that meets our carbon neutral policy”, concluded Darren.

ENERGY FROM WASTEWATER …

IT’S A NO BRAINER Kathryn Lucas and Dave Annells Dyne Solicitors Limited On 18th June 2009, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Hilary Benn announced the Government’s new climate change projection - the UK Climate Projections. It is clear from the projections that water is on the front line of climate change. Changes already visible in the quality and availability of water and the frequency of extreme events (flooding and drought) are consistent with the new information.

Key impacts include reduced availability of water in rivers, reservoirs and aquifers, which also means lower quality in some cases due to reduced dilution of pollutants, effects on existing sewerage systems, which were not designed to take climate change into account, more intense rainfall is likely to exceed the capacity of parts of the network, water quality problems caused by run-off taking nutrients and pesticides from agricultural land and transferring them into rivers and lakes, and to exacerbate supply issues the likely increased demand for water, particularly at times of reduced availability. With this in mind, part of the Government’s long term plans for water include setting out how the sector should adapt to a changing climate through increased metering and a much greater emphasis on water efficiency.

Industry has been one of the largest and fastest-growing users of water. Water is essential for processes such as cooling, cleaning, diluting and sanitation. With increasingly stringent water abstraction limits, recent droughts and Image provided by WPL

mounting interest in the environmental performance of businesses, there is a growing need for industry in the UK to reduce water use. The requirements of the Pollution Prevention and Control Regulations (now Environmental Permitting Regulations) have required operators to identify and monitor resource efficiency in general, but specifically water use.

The Environment Agency consistently applies pressure to large water users, such as paper mills and breweries to reduce specific water use (m3 of water per tonne of product). At European level, works on water scarcity and droughts identified treated wastewater reuse as a way of addressing long term imbalances between water demand and supply. Water reuse has, in recent years, provided an alternative water supply; it involves suitably treated wastewater from one process being reused for a different beneficial purpose. The resultant water is termed ‘reclaimed water’. An example of such reuse in action is that of Anglian Water which has been supplying Peterborough Power Station with reclaimed water since 2000. 1.5 million litres per day of treated wastewater from Flag Fen Wastewater Treatment Plant undergoes further treatment including microfiltration and reverse osmosis.

The resultant reclaimed water is converted into steam to drive the power station’s combined cycle gas turbines.

The water quality needed for some industrial uses is generally less stringent than water quality for potable

consumption (though potablitity is aimed at whether the water is “wholesome” and clear of micro-organisms and pathogens, more recently the World Health Organisation has looked more closely at the nutrient level of minerals in drinking water). Certain industrial processes such as cleaning are particularly suitable for lower quality water use. With care, heating, cooling, quenching are also candidates but it can be dangerous to use poor quality water for these duties as it results in fouled heat exchange surfaces and can also lead to corrosion. However, other uses, such as high pressure steam generation and microchip production require very high quality water.

Nevertheless, recycled water can be successfully treated to provide this, as Flag Fen demonstrates.

In Australia, the concept of “sewage mining” has been used for a number of years, where sewage is directly extracted from sewers and water locally recycled, using membranes. In the Middle East, partly treated sewage is used for greening the desert, watering the verges, plants and golf courses that have transformed locations such as Dubai into tourist venues.

In addition to the reclamation of water, energy can also be recovered from wastewater treatment.

Such derivation of energy from waste has been taking place within the water sector for a number of decades.

For example, since the 1950s the United Utilities wastewater treatment facility in Davyhulme has been generating combined heat and power from biogas produced via anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge. In 2008 DEFRA decided more needed to be done to push anaerobic digestion into the mainstream. A £10 million programme under the Environmental Transformation Fund, was launched to establish demonstration plants to promote investment in anaerobic digestion. The Anaerobic Digestion Demonstration Programme, which has been delivered by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), aims to promote anaerobic digestion whilst addressing some of the issues and concerns held by those with interests in the recycling and renewable energy sectors.

A specific element of the programme was to look at ‘state of the art’ technologies or processes and to demonstrate commercially viable but innovative projects which could be replicated throughout the UK. The Anaerobic Digestion Demonstration Programme was specifically developed to deliver five key aims, one of which being maximising the potential of anaerobic digestion to reduce the carbon footprint of the water treatment infrastructure. In June 2009, the Government announced five new biogas projects

that would receive funding under the programme. One of the projects selected for the funding was a joint project between United Utilities and National Grid, which will see a new use for the biogas produced at the Davyhulme works. It will be upgraded to biomethane, a renewable fuel with similar properties to natural gas, and then injected into the local gas pipeline network, or compressed for use as fuel for a fleet of sludge tankers. The pilot project, which should be operational by early 2011, is expected to produce enough biomethane for around 500 homes – though it is claimed that a plant the size of Davyhulme (one of the largest in the country) would eventually be able to supply around 5,000 homes. The pilot should also provide enough fuel to power 24 of United Utilities’ sludge tankers. A report published by National Grid earlier this year suggested that biogas could eventually supply up to half of the UK’s domestic gas needs. In particular, the report said that biodegradable waste streams could help meet the UK Government’s renewable energy targets for 2020, if turned into biomethane and pumped straight into the UK’s existing gas grid. The Davyhulme project is a chance to test this theory.

Leaving aside for a moment the funding on offer from the Government, which in effect acts as a loan facility to the companies that wish to tender in relation to such technologies, just what is the incentive to business to continue to pioneer and adopt measures to produce renewable energy? A particular motivation which comes to mind is the Renewable Obligations Order which came into effect in 2002. This has been renewed almost annually and on 1st April 2009 a new order came into force. The Renewables Obligation is the main support scheme for renewable electricity projects in the UK. It places an obligation on UK suppliers of electricity to source an increasing proportion of their electricity from renewable sources.

A Renewables Obligation Certificate (ROC) is a green certificate issued to an accredited generator for eligible renewable electricity generated within the United Kingdom and supplied to customers within the United Kingdom by a licensed electricity supplier. Traditionally, one ROC was issued for each megawatt hour (MWh) of eligible renewable output generated. In 2005-06 it was 5.5%, in 2008 - 2009 the obligation was set at 9.1%. However, from 1st April 2009, the obligation changed from a percentage to the obligation to present a number of ROCs. In 2009-10 this will be 0.097 ROCs per MWh in England and Wales & Scotland. Also from April 2009, ROCs banding was introduced, in an attempt to encourage development of more novel technologies to generate renewable power,

by rewarding these with more ROCs per MWh, and giving the more mature technologies already established, and thereby achieving economies of scale in implementation costs, fewer ROCs per MWh. Thus the introduction of a banded RO will break the existing direct link between the level of the obligation and the actual amount of renewable energy required to meet it. One ROC will not necessarily be equivalent to 1 MWh of renewable electricity.

This means that the RO will need to change from an obligation to produce evidence that a percentage of electricity supplied to customers comes from renewable sources, to one where suppliers are obliged to present a specified number of ROCs. Where suppliers do not have sufficient ROCs to meet their obligations, they must pay an equivalent amount into a fund, the proceeds of which are paid back on a pro-rated basis to those suppliers that have presented ROCs. The Government intends that suppliers will be subject to a renewables obligation until 31 March 2027.

In addition to anaerobic digestion of the sewage sludge, such as that at Davyhulme, high strength biodegradable (i.e. high COD and BOD) industrial wastewaters, such as those from the paper industry, brewing and soft drinks industries, the dairy industry and the sugar beet and foodstuffs industries can themselves be treated anaerobically to generate biogas. This has been going on for a number of years, but only to a relatively small extent

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in the UK, where any biogas generated was often just flared, or at best used in site boiler houses to supplement gas or oil. More recently, with the advent of the Renewable Obligations and the market for ROCs, and the consequent reductions in the practical thresholds for selling small amounts of electricity, it has become cost effective to put in the capital infrastructure to clean up the gas sufficiently and generate electricity which can be sold back to the power suppliers for use in the electricity grid system.

Anaerobic treatment is also much less energy intensive than aerobic treatment. In a number of cases, by installing anaerobic treatment systems for their wastewater, to replace existing, energy intensive aerobic treatments, whilst at the same time generating a revenue stream from electricity generation and ROCs, businesses can generate better financial returns than by expanding their core business. In recessionary times this is increasingly attractive, with this attractiveness enhanced by the latest Energy Bill (currently going through Parliament, having already been through two consultations that formed the basis of the April 2009 changes discussed above) that doubles the ROCs, and hence nearly doubles the revenue, for each MWh of electricity generated by anaerobic treatment. Moreover, because the anaerobic digestion converts most of the organic content of the wastewater into methane rather than biomass, it generates much less sludge than aerobic treatment, and the sludge is more easily dewatered. This reduces the major problem of sludge transportation and disposal and the costs associated with this (although it is worth noting that with the advent of PAS 110, there are arguments that the sludge ceases to be a waste provided that it complies with the standard and the Quality Protocol).

As with all technologies, there may be some operational difficulties to overcome, depending on the water to be treated, and the fact that some of these wastewater anaerobic plants are as high as 30 metres, which may upset the planning authorities, though this is nowhere near as tall as wind turbines. Anaerobic treatment will not achieve river discharge quality water, so will need some additional, tertiary treatment prior to discharge or water re-use, but the cost of this tertiary treatment is much reduced and the anaerobic stage can generate real revenue. Not much in life comes for free but generating renewable energy and revenue whilst reducing the cost of water treatment for either improved discharge or reclamation is pretty close to it – a “no brainer” as one company director recently described it. Clearly, judging by current practice, the steps taken by the water sector and industrial water users to date are steps in the right direction as far as the law and the principle of sustainability are concerned.

Environment Agency prosecutions CASE 1: Just recycle it, don’t dump it!

CASE 5: Pollution offences cost over £8,000

On the 3rd June, Karl Anthony White, aged 23 of Bridgegate, Retford, pleaded guilty at Worksop Magistrates’ Court to one charge of dumping large amounts of waste likely to have come from a pub or restaurant.

On the 17th June 2009, Mr Alan John Frederick Woodhouse, aged 63, of Old Hall Farm, Marston Montgomery was fined a total of £4,500 and ordered to pay costs of £4,000.

Mr Woodhouse pleaded guilty at the Derby Magistrates’ Court to eight charges relating to the pollution of a watercourse. The charges were brought by the Environment Agency under the Water Resources Act 1991.

The charges were brought by the Environment Agency under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Mr White was fined £360 and ordered to pay costs £150, along with a victim surcharge of £15.

CASE 6: Birmingham waste carrier fined CASE 2: Covert surveillance is watching flytippers On Wednesday 10 June 2009, Simon Mark Johnson, aged 33 of Selwyn Street, Mansfield, pleaded guilty at Mansfield Magistrates’ Court to dumping oil drums, bumper bars and a vehicle battery.

He was awarded a conditional discharge and ordered to pay a contribution of £500 towards the Environment Agency’s costs.

On the 18th June, Brampton Contractors Limited of Stratford Road, Hall Green, Birmingham, pleaded guilty at Worcester Magistrates’ Court to one charge relating to carrying waste illegally.The charge was brought by the Environment Agency under Section 1 of the Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989.

Brampton Contractors Limited was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1,378.27, along with a £15 victim surcharge which could have been avoided if company had registered as a waste carrier.

CASE 3: Farmer fined for discharging slurry over cliff A North Devon farmer has been ordered to pay £7,173 in fines and costs for pouring slurry over a cliff near a popular coastal footpath and beach.

Appearing before Barnstaple magistrates on June 11th, Leslie Heywood was fined £4,000 and ordered to pay £3,173 costs after pleading guilty, at East Milford Farm on September 4th 2008, to causing or knowingly permitting polluting matter to enter controlled waters, an offence under Section 85 (1) of the Water Resources Act 1991.

CASE 7: Abandoned waste gets £16,955 fine Paul Cooper, Director of PKRN Recycling Ltd., has pleaded guilty, in Abertillery Magistrate’s Court, to charges of abandoning waste at a business premises on the Crown Business Park in Tredegar.

Cooper was fined a total of £16,000, £8,000 for each offence and ordered to pay £940.01 costs and the £15 victim surcharge.

CASE 4: Company fined £5,000 for polluting beck

CASE 8: Pollution takes shine off beck

Textile manufacturers, R Soper Limited (trading as Albert Hartley), have been fined £5,000 for discharging effluent into Stock Beck, Barnoldswick. They have also been ordered to pay costs of £1,489.29.

A cokeworks has been fined £12,500 for polluting a beck with red diesel.

R Soper pleaded guilty to the offence of causing polluting matter to enter controlled waters, in September 2008. The pollution occurred when a storage container was damaged, causing waste effluent to drain into the nearby beck.

At Darlington Magistrates’ Court today, James Durrans & Sons Limited admitted polluting Shiny Beck at Crook, County Durham, on 30 October 2008.

The company, of Phoenix Works, Thurlstone, Penistone, Sheffield, was also ordered to pay full prosecution costs of £2,861.77 and a victim surcharge of £15.

Should I care about non-native species?

We often read about the problems caused by non-native plants and animals to our wildlife, with stories about how grey squirrels have over-run the native red squirrel frequently in the news.

But non-native or ‘alien’ species that become invasive also cause significant economic damage, with estimates that they cost the British economy at least £2 billion a year.

Japanese Knotweed will be a well-known pest to many industries in Britain, with the costs of cleaning up the Olympic site alone estimated at several tens of millions of pounds. And we are far from alone, in Germany over €40 million is spent each year on Japanese Knotweed control, and in stabilising riverbanks, clearance of railways and repairing damaged foundations.

Invasive species can also be a serious problem for our infrastructure and many industrial and economic ventures.

Zebra mussels, as well as having huge impact on nutrient cycles in fresh waters, can also clog intake pipes in waterworks costing the water industry large sums.

Aquatic plants can become invasive and increase flood-risk, cause damage to infrastructure such as bridges and impact on angling.

It is important that everyone is aware of the problems of releasing non-native plants, fish, and animals. In Great

Britain we have set out a joint strategy to tackle invasive non-native species – often working with industry. For example Defra supported the development of the Construction Industry Research Information Association guide published last year, giving advice on non-native species to the construction industry.

It is already illegal to release many of the worst non-native species into the wild and we are currently considering adding other species to the list. In addition, for the first time ever, we are considering whether to make it illegal to buy and sell the most invasive non-native species. 28 species from the American bullfrog to the Himalayan balsam were consulted and an initial announcement is expected later this year.

However, while many non-native species are and have been extremely costly to our economy and wildlife, the majority are beneficial and have helped shaped Britain.

In Europe only about 15% of non-native species harm our natural world and a similar amount cause economic damage. So we need to take a balanced approach.

Without food such as tomatoes and potatoes our food would be more boring and our gardens would be duller without the sweet peas and sunflowers that add colour.

It is important that government, industry, wildlife groups and the public work together to help stop the spread of invasive non-native species and understand the dangers of their release into the wild, and the Government remains committed to this.

Huw Irranca-Davies, Wildlife Minister

The Great Britain non-native species strategy can be found at www.nonnativespecies.org/documents/Invasive_NNS_Framework_Strategy_GB_E.pdf

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Management of invasive plants James Macfarlane, Vegetation Adviser, Environment Planning and Economy, Cornwall Council

If one were to take many of the comments made about Japanese Knotweed literally, one could imagine that we are in a situation of Triffid like invasion. Questions such as, “How much concrete do I need to put down to stop Japanese Knotweed?” indicate a worrying lack of understanding.

The plant is extremely vigorous and has characteristics which enable it to survive in its native habitat where it is a primary coloniser of volcanic slopes. It is tolerant of heavy metals and also has the advantage that it is in this country without the organisms which provide some checks to its growth in its native zone. In general with other organisms, it will take advantage of any opportunity to expand.

Work has given some indication of the type and size of material which is capable of regeneration. Above ground stems have been shown to produce roots, particularly in moist conditions. Pieces of below ground material – technically largely underground stems rather than roots (less than half a gram in weight) - can produce new plants and small material has the potential for translocation by a variety of means. Dumping of garden waste on highway verges followed by an operation such as trenching is a classic method for the acceleration of spread of the plant and the potential for the transport of viable material to other locations on equipment such as tracked excavators is high. Flailing is also likely to lead to spread. The large quantity of below ground material, perhaps 30kg in a cubic metre in an established site, equivalent to twice the weight of the full summer top growth, provides some explanation of the surprisingly rapid rate of shoot growth, in excess of 100mm in 24 hours in some circumstances. Shoot material has been observed to appear from some sites after an absence of several years. Any form of disturbance is likely to lead to rapid regrowth.

The key to successful control is to take proper account of these factors and to consider the range of options which may be appropriate. With the emphasis on brownfield site redevelopment there is an increased likelihood that Japanese Knotweed may be encountered in these formerly used areas due to inappropriate disposal of materials and lack of maintenance often over a number of years.

The first essential is good, timely survey of the site on foot. This is likely to be a highly cost effective strategy in relation to many ecological issues, not simply Japanese Knotweed. Often I have had a call, “I’ve got this site which I’ve got to start on next week and I’ve just been told that I have Japanese Knotweed, what should I do?”.

Again there are too many occasions when Japanese Knotweed has been dumped inside an entrance gate and a machine has been sent in to “tidy” the site, resulting in the spread of the plant and the appearance of those well known pink shoots over wide areas and the request, “What should I do now?”, to which there is no easy, cheap answer. Recognition of the fact that the plant can colonise fissures in foundations should inform any demolition strategy on an affected site, ensuring that non-contaminated above ground material is kept separate from potentially affected material below

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ground, again reducing costs. Once the scale of the problem and the time available for treatment have been determined, appropriate treatment strategies can be considered. The Code of Practice produced by the Environment Agency catalogues a number of these. Good verification of materials brought onto site is a further important factor. Topsoil containing rhizome of the plant has produced unwanted surprises on a number of sites.

It is far better to check material in a lorry butt or in a heap than when it is spread widely within a development.

Remedial visits to deal with plants coming up through paving around drains or at a meeting point between materials can be an expensive and profit-reducing factor.

Even in difficult economic times treatment on sites with the likelihood of development is likely to have a very favourable cost/benefit relationship.

Cornwall is often cited as having a particular problem with the plant and there is certainly some foundation to this with the number of extractive industries and the point that the area was, as one of the mildest parts of the British Isles, used as a testing area for newly imported species. However Cornwall is by no means the only area of the British Isles with the issue. Take a look around in your area! Perhaps a different viewpoint is greater awareness of the plant and its problems in Cornwall and a more comprehensive and targeted surveying and control programme than in many others.

Within the highway network in excess of 1800 sites are within the treatment programme, each being marked with a sign to make the public and contractors aware of the presence of the plant and with contact details for further information. The site is monitored for five years after the last observation of above ground material. Many of these sites are now in this last stage. Online information regarding known sites is available.

A forum was initiated in 1997, with many parties recognising the problems that the plant can cause both in the built and the wider environment. A wide variety of interests are represented and a number of strategies developed including the assessment of the urgency for action on particular sites, realising that the process takes time, co-ordination and effort.

When the forum put on a display at the Chelsea Flower Show warning of the problems that the plant can cause, Japanese Knotweed was noted in the grounds – and even a shoot approaching one of the show signs! There are few areas of the British Isles where the plant is not present and translocation of materials during the latter half of the twentieth century certainly spread it widely. Early awareness of the plant and a properly considered course of action rather than a knee jerk reaction to alarmist reports regarding the plant are of great benefit, both ecologically and financially.

Need a rapid reliable way of getting rid of Japanese Knotweed?

Environet is pleased to announce we now offer you the perfect on site remediation solution for your Japanese knotweed problem.

New Xtract enables us to remove Japanese knotweed rhizome from infested soil, economically and effectively without herbicides or large scale dig and dump. It not only avoids the punitive costs of Landfill Tax but is also eligible for relief under LRTR. “On site it was all very efficient - the extraction was completed quickly and with minimum of fuss.�

M Dunn, True Colours Ltd

Xtract - literally removing the root of the problem

We provide a selection of proven methods for the control and eradication of Japanese Knotweed from development sites, amenity areas and private gardens.

We offer:

Herbicide Treatment Rhizome Extraction Supervised Excavation Consultancy Services

We pride ourselves on providing an efficient professional service to suit your time-frame and budget.

Best prices, best methods

Environet Consulting Ltd Tel: 01932 868700 www.environet-uk.co.uk/japanese-knotweed.php

ENERGY, WATER AND WASTE GURUS OFFER FREE ADVICE AT RWM 09 Experts in energy and the environment are lined up to speak in the free seminars at this year’s Recycling & Waste Management Exhibition (Birmingham NEC from 15 to 17 September 2009). With over 500 exhibiting companies, three seminar theatres, and a new networking zone, RWM 09 will show you how to cut costs, improve efficiency, stay ahead of the competition and remain sustainable in a difficult economy. Register now at www.rwmexhibition.com/envpr RWM exhibitors will include companies and organisations operating in all parts of the supply chain from suppliers of bins, recyclers of a wide range of materials including paper and plastics to environmental consultants and waste management companies.

Event Manager Gerry Sherwood said: “Now more than ever, it is important to stay up to date with legislative change and new technologies. Making efficiencies can save you money - and breaking the law can prove very costly - so no business can afford to be complacent. RWM is designed to bring together the very latest thinking and best practice. Anyone who produces waste or manages resources should take advantage of this opportunity to be informed and inspired by registering now to attend RWM in September.”

NEW FOR 2009 - ENERGY & WATER SEMINARS The Energy and Water Seminar Theatre has been introduced for the increasing number of RWM visitors who have responsibility for energy and water resources in addition to their waste and recycling role. The opening day’s programme (15 September) features a keynote address from waste guru Peter Jones OBE on using waste as a fossil carbon substitute. Stuart Clayton, Water Team Technical Manager at Envirowise will talk about water conservation and re-use and Julian Walker-Palin, Asda’s Head of Corporate policy for Sustainability and Ethics will explain how resource efficiency can help to lower prices in a recession. The second day (16 September) is devoted entirely to the topic of waste-to-energy. Dr John Williams, polymers and materials manager for the National NonFoods Crop Centre (NNFCC), will explain how renewables fit in the energy-from-waste debate. There will also be fascinating presentations on powering the future through food and a chance to get to grips with the renewable obligation order. The final day’s sessions on climate change and sustainability will include a presentation from Simon Houghton-Dodd, Head of Quality and Sustainability for Tate and Lyle Sugars Europe.

Water Conservation Solutions on the Exhibition Floor:  Bin refurbishment specialists Plas-tac LLP will be demonstrating its new environmentally-friendly bin-washing service which uses a self-contained water tank to filter waste water and then re-use it.  Seiler GmbH will be demonstrating the H20 Ultra Pro, a machine specifically designed to treat wastewater to the point where it can be safely released into the environment, or recycled to be used again.

Waste-to-Energy Solutions on the Exhibition Floor:  GAME Engineering which has recently completed a number of high profile contracts including a recent biomass project at Drax Power station, will be showing how it is “racing ahead” in the biomass industry by displaying the GAME Engineering-sponsored biofuelled motorbike on its stand. The Ducati 800 SS which runs

on E85 fuel, regularly competes against, and beats, bikes using conventional fuel. Engineers from GAME Engineering will be on hand to discuss any materials handling or biomass project ideas.  Rotterdam-based Inashco have found a new way to extract something valuable from the bottom ash which remains in incinerators and was generally only suitable for use in landfill or low-grade construction materials. They can separate out the tiniest metal and mineral fractions from this ash, proving that even the dregs of the waste chain are still precious!  BRT Recycling, has developed a moving floor conveyor to discharge Refuse Derived Fuel into power stations.

SEMINARS FOR CONSTRUCTION, RETAIL AND MANUFACTURING BUSINESSES Any business which generates waste should be able to find a session relevant to them in the Business Seminar Theatre, with themed days for construction and retail.

Don’t miss the chance to update your legislative knowledge on day one (15 September) in the Business Seminar Theatre with the sessions led by Dr Anne-Gaëlle Collot, Environment Policy Adviser, Chemicals Industries Association, and Dr Joanna Lloyd, Director of REACHReady.

REACH stands for the Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH) regulation which impacts 65,000 companies and organisations in Europe‘s textile, metal, retail, construction and packaging industries, not just traditional chemical manufacturers.

According to the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), the construction sector accounts for 32% of all the waste produced in the UK - that’s over 100 million tonnes of waste each year. But a staggering 90% reduction in construction waste could be achieved through more modern working practices and off-site manufacturing. An entire day of free seminars in RWM’s Business Seminar Theatre on 16 September will show you how. Stephen Wielebski, Divisional Development Director for Miller Homes will give a developer’s perspective on construction waste and the issues with

recycling. Paul Elliot, Supply Chain Manager for Wates, will present a case study on achieving the holy grail of zero waste and WRAP’s Programme Manager for Materials Recycling, Mike Falconer Hall will examine the roles each part of the construction supply chain can play in meeting Government targets to halve construction waste to landfill by 2012.

The third day features a programme designed for retail visitors. Packaging and selecting a waste partner are some of the key topics under discussion from an expert speaker line-up which includes Bob Gordon, Head of Environment, British Retail Consortium, and Mandy Keepax, Head of Facilities Management, Marks & Spencer.

Construction Waste Solutions on the Exhibition Floor:  New to the outdoor exhibition area is global full liner company Case Construction which has developed its product portfolio and now offers a wide range of excavators and wheel loaders for recycling and material handling. RWM 09 will see the launch of its new 21 and 24 tonne excavators and also the 821EXRecycler.  Master Magnets offers separation equipment that can remove the metal contaminants (i.e. nails) from wood waste, increasing the value of the recycled woodchip that is now used in playgrounds, pathways, gardens and parks.

LOCAL AUTHORITY SEMINARS The Local Authority Seminar Theatre, supported by the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee, features a number of council case studies and professional advice from the Environment Agency, Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP), BREW Centre for Local Authorities and Nuclear Legacy Advisory Forum (NuLeAF). Day One (15 September) will cover planning, finance and procurement with a PFI success story from Northumberland County Council and case studies from West Sussex County Council and Cambridgeshire County Council. Day Two will look at hazardous waste and Waste Electrical Electronic Equipment, featuring policies for managing radioactive waste, while the final day’s sessions will tackle food waste and collaborative working with a programme which includes

a composting case study from the Somerset Waste Partnership.

Local Authority Solutions on the Exhibition Floor:  Alupro, the not for profit industry organisation which promotes the collection of aluminium packaging through local authority kerbside and bring systems, will be telling visitors about a new initiative to increase the number of local authorities collecting clean aluminium foil trays and pie cases from 58% to 70%.  Smurfit Kappa Recycling will be explaining how its mixed paper grade service can help to drive up recycling rates. The company recycles all types of cardboard and paper (including packaging and directories) from council kerbside collections and bring banks to reprocess at its paper mills.  Speak to the VCU Europa team about food waste solutions. The company has just opened a 25,000 tonne-a-year capacity in-vessel composting facility in New Deer, Aberdeenshire, which it claims is the largest of its kind in Europe.

Snapshot of RWM Exhibitor News: Vehicles and Loading:  Sentinel Systems will be explaining how its ultrasonic reversing aids can prevent accidents.  Recognising the growing trend towards containerisation for exporting processed, recycled metals, Dunn Bros has developed a fast, efficient machine for loading export containers safely. Visitors can see this machine in action in the outdoor area at RWM this year.  Groeneveld will be launching the latest version of its twin line automatic greasing system for wheel loaders and excavators at RWM. Now with CAN-BUS enablement, the system can be remotely interrogated and controlled via a GSM communication module.

Meanwhile the pump features an uprated microprocessor for faster and more accurate control and the twin pressure switch guarantees grease delivery down to -25oC.  By installing weighing electronics to a container tilter

machine, Griffith Elder, has developed a solution to maximise loading efficiency in the metal recycling yard where space is often tight, and fill a sea-bound container to capacity without the use of an external weighbridge.

Bins and Bags:  Weir & Carmichael will be exhibiting its new range of wheeled bins and kerbside boxes, together with recycling bags for household and green waste, kitchen caddies and a 47 litre organics collector.  SSI Schaefer will be exhibiting the new lid for its wheeled bins - the ergolid. This lid is designed for maximum ease of opening as well as convenient and quick colour coding for the different recyclable waste streams.  Synthetic Packaging will be launching the new Mega Skip Bag.

which saves fuel and reduces non-revenue generating time.  Whitham Mills Engineering has recently expanded its offering with the GreenMax range of polystyrene compactors. The company works with Intco which guarantees to purchase the recycled material to make new products, giving customers a complete recycling solution for a difficult material.  The “R” Series shredder range from Satrind will be making its UK debut on the Shredderco stand this year. Benefits include increased throughput, increased cutting forces and longer maintenance intervals.  L&P Wire International designs, manufactures and installs tying equipment systems for recyclable products and speciality packaging applications. It also sources top quality wire and wire products at competitive prices.

Employment

Separation Systems:  Following market research Master Magnets has recently introduced a new can sorting machine for handling larger throughput rates, called the R type.  Steinert Elektromagnetbau GMBH will be demonstrating its newest eddy current separator, the CanMaster, designed for separating coarse-grained aluminium and optimising aluminium recovery at the best price. Designed to run 24 hours a day with an easily replaceable belt, the CanMaster also features an eccentric pole system which allows for quality performance, high sorting accuracy, extreme durability and easy maintenance. Sorting systems for plastic, RDF and wood will also be exhibited.  Stadler plastic sorting plants are optimised for a seamless integration of the pre-treatment plants to the washing plant, guaranteeing maximum efficiency through a bespoke sorting process. Creating plastic fractions of this quality dramatically increases the value of the material and enables the production of a high quality washed flake or pellet.  Machinex will be exhibiting a range of Mach machines including Mach One separators and finishing separators.

Balers, compactors and shredders:  Global Recycling Solutions has supplied Shred Easy with a three tonne-an-hour processing plant to take their confidential waste.  Axo Shredders recently supplied a third mobile shredding truck to Shred-on-Site. The AXO WM608 features remote engine start/stop and in-cab unloading

 Reflecting the fact that there are still employment opportunities within the recycling sector, Smart Solutions Recruitment has also recently booked a stand. The new company was set up just 14 months ago by industry employee, Nathan Bowles, who saw a gap in the market for a bespoke recruitment service.

VISITOR INFORMATION How to get there: RWM is held in Halls 17, 18, 19 and the outdoor areas of the National Exhibition Centre, 8 miles East of Birmingham city centre. The address is: The NEC, Birmingham, B40 1NT. If you’re coming to the NEC from any part of the UK by road or rail, or flying in from overseas, you will find that its central position is at the hub of the UK transport network. Walk directly into the show from Birmingham International rail station or choose from a number of bus and coach services. Alternatively if you are driving there is ample car parking at the NEC. Visit http://www.thenec.co.uk/travel for detailed travel information.

Opening Hours Tuesday 15 September Wednesday 16 September Thursday 17 September

9.30am - 4.30pm 9.30am – 5.30pm 9.30am – 4.00pm

How to Register: Complete the form on www.rwmexhibition.com/envpr

EXHIBITOR INDEX Andritz Feed & Biofuel one of the world's leading manufacturers of pelleting and grinding equipment, is once again exhibiting at the RWM 2009 Stand 808.

Reduce Landfill & Recycle At The Same Time The Atritor Turbo Separator effectively separates products from it's packaging with up to 99% efficiency.

RWM09 Stand 625 Hall 17 www.turboseparator.co.uk

AWS Eco Plastics Probably the best plastic recycler in the UK. Exhibiting at the 2009 RWM - stand 1530 www.awsecoplastics.com

Cape Machinery International are agents for the scrap, recycling and waste industry including balers, shredders and full RDF systems.

Kliko innovative waste containment products… plastic, wheeled and non-wheeled refuse bins, sorting bins, clinical waste bins and recycling containers.

Tel: 01925 607800 Email:steve.poppitt@craemer.com www.craemer.com

Aylesford Newsprint Limited Stand: 914 Telephone: 01622 796191 Recycling@aylesford-newsprint.co.uk www.aylesford-newsprint.co.uk Aylesford Newsprint, one of the UK’s best known reprocessors, recycles one in seven of every newspapers read in the UK at its Kent-based mill.

Almost 30 years of tough service in all climates and heavy handling conditions has given DOLAV the enviable reputation for making pallet boxes with features demanded by the recycling industry.

Visit stand 850 Hall 17 or ring 01953 880220.

Visit us at stand 506 www.dragon-machinery.co.uk

ecosac ltd Suppliers of:

Stand 854.

 certified compostable bags, liners and carriers  ventilated kitchen caddies

Introducing RECOFLEXthe first range of lids made of recycled material, representing best practice and best value in the container branch.

Visit GAME Engineering at stand 1221. Offering advice and expertise in Biomass Fuel Process and Handling Systems, Bespoke Handling Solutions and Waste Recycling Upgrades/Modifications.

Anaerobic digestion By product recycling Composting

 vermin-proof bins for the collection of foodwaste Visit us on stand 442

Stand No 1366 01630 639614

Glasdon U.K. Limited

Glasdon supply an extensive range of internal and external recycling bins that have been designed to provide ideal solutions for any recycling scheme.

Please visit us at Hall No: 17 Stand No: 628 for more information Tel: 01253 600412 Web: www.bins4recycling.com

Award winning solutions you can depend on. www.envar.co.uk

Recruitment specialists for the Recycling & Waste Management, Renewable Energy and Engineering & Technical sectors.

Visit us on Stand 222. www.executivefutures.co.uk

GreCon specialises in the supply and manufacture of Spark Detection Systems used for the prevention of fire within Recycling Processes.

Hall 17, Stand 738.

T. 0191 4147200 E. Kevin.spiess@grecon.org W. www.grecon.org

We take all grades of wood including MDF & laminates.

We have sites in the North West, North East and South of England.

Visit us at stand 602 hall 17.

Please Visit ITWS at the RWM Exhibition, NEC Birmingham, September the 15th,16th,17th, 2009 Inside the Hall on Stand # 1618

Combitour, a complete software solution for commercial and public sector waste management operations.

Are you getting the most from your vehicle fleet?

Visit 802 to find out more.

sales@ivu-uk.com www.ivu-uk.com

Master Magnets Ltd. is the UKs number one manufacturer of Industrial Magnetic Separation and Metal Detection Equipment.

We believe that resource and energy recovery is best delivered through source separation.

Come and talk to us stand 1258.

Visit us at Stand 946 or give as a call, +44 (0) 1527 658 58

John Hanlon & Co. Ltd (www.loaderhire.com) operate a large fleet of self-drive Loading Shovels and Re-handling Equipment, for short-term or long-term hire in waste, aggregates and industrial re-handling industries.

We are on stand OA200

Specialists in sales and hire of RoRo equipped vehicles and waste handling equipment.

Visit us at our stand (No OA206) at RWM 2009.

TEL: 01386 792354 EMAIL: info@MHF.uk.COM WEB: www.mhf.uk.com

Milbury, complete solutions for the storage and containment of waste/recycling materials.

In house experienced design engineers giving advice and recommendations.

Tel: 01275 857799 Stand no: 832

Visit the New Earth Group companies at stand 734

Come visit us at Stand 818

New Earth Group – bringing together waste management and renewable energy solutions

The world’s leading Portable XRF analyser for on-site & in-situ elemental soil analysis on Brownfield and similar site investigations.

Visit us at stand 546

QSP is an Assessment Centre for WAMITAB, City & Guilds and IOSH.

The One Stop Shop for facilities management, recycling and compliance with the packaging and WEEE regulations.

Visit us on Stand 1738.

Novelis offers a guaranteed market and good price for aluminium drink cans.

Visit us at RWM09: Stand 1246 www.novelisrecycling.co.uk

Delivering NVQ’s 1-4 in Waste Management, Recycling Operations and Cleansing and Support awards, along with all levels of Health & Safety NVQs. Having access to TrainToGain funds enables us to offer fully funded NVQ 2-3 awards in England.

Come and visit us at stand 545.

Recolight is the UK’s only lamp compliance scheme that specialises in the recycling of Gas Discharge Lamps (GDLs).

Recolight offers free lamp recycling services, advice and support to help all parties recycle their end-of-life lamps as simply and efficiently as possible.

Visit us at stand 1350 Email info@recolight.co.uk or call 0845 601 7749

Recycle Direct specialise in the supply of rebuilt recycling machinery.

Visit us at RWM 2009 on stand number 122.

RECY SYSTEMS are world-wide leaders with a proven track record; RECYÂŽ is installed in over 30 countries, across nearly 500 customer sites and used by over 12,000 users daily.

Red Forge will be attending the RWM to showcase their Axle Load Indicators and new Loadcell product Omniweigh. Stand 314

REDOX Recycling Technology Technology is specialized in the supply, process technology, the engineering and the project management of sorting lines for solid waste.

Visit us at Stand 1238 in hall 17.

Riverside Waste Machinery looks forward to welcoming customers onto Stand No 1056 at RWM 2009.

Alternatively, please feel free to contact us on 0845 450 5388 or visit www.wastemachinery.co.uk

Hall 17 Stand 264

Rotajet Systems manufacture a series of standard and bespoke industrial washing machines for the recycling of plastic.

SEILER PROCESS ENGINEERING LIMITED is an environmental engineering company which has extensive experience in dealing with such problems as Ultrafine Dust Particles, Aerosols, Acidic Components, Recovery, Conversion of Waste to Energy and Waste Gases and Water Processing.

Contact Harry Conlin on 01797 227 237 or seiler@conlin.me.uk Seiler will be on stand 239 at the RWM Exhibition 2009.

Battery Recycling Box ideally suited for recycling and waste collection sites, as well as retail collection points. Manufactured in mild steel, and available in any colour.

01295 266655 Russell@rsfabrications.com

S+S Inspection offers world leading sorting equipment for glass and plastics.

Pay us a visit at booth 1622 at RWM.

Stand 1608 Shawcity will feature handheld and in-borehole 24/7 Landfill Gas Monitors and PIDs. These are available for purchase or hire. www.Shawcity.co.uk For more details contact: Colin Woodley Shawcity Limited Tel: 01367 246960 Fax: 01367 243200

The environmental products and services group.

Springmasters is one of the UK’s largest manufacturers and stockist of coil springs, disc springs, die springs, and push on fixes and flat metal products.

Please visit us at RWM 2009 Stand Number 1348.

info@shawcity.co.uk www.shawcity.co.uk

Tinytag Conventional & Wireless Monitoring Systems

Systems 4 Recycling are proven experts in providing systems for producing RDF from various waste streams.

See us at RWM on stand 900 for more information.

Robust, compact, and battery powered data loggers for monitoring temperature, humidity and other environmental variables.

Visit us at stand 1174 or call on +44 (0) 1243 813000 e: info@tinytag.info w: www.tinytag.info

Tel: 01908 821274 Fax: 01908 821275 Stand number: OA202

TRACKSS @ RWM

Stand 300 is where you will find TRACKSS, leaders in Waste Management.

Training and Consultancy for 15 years.

Visit us at Stand 726

T: 0113 245 2244 www.straight.co.uk

The Power of Innovation Vecoplan Machines & Systems for Recycling Visit us at the RWM09 Hall 18 Stand No. 1300 15th - 17th September 2009

Sales: 0845 643 4800 Spares: 0800 046 7406 sales@vecoplan.co.uk www.vecoplan.co.uk

_Shredding_Conveying_Screening_Separating_Storing

NOTES

6.5

6.5

42.25

OA640

3

9

6.5

6.5

58.5

3

10.5

68.25

OA635 OA630

12

6.5

6.5

78

84.5

OA625 OA620

6.5

6.5

87.75

8.5

3

13.5

87.75

OA615 OA610

13 13.5

3

6.5

6.5

55.25

55.25

OA605 OA600 8.5

10.5

OA510

3

8

10

OA515

3.53

20

80

10

OA520

3.9

210

110

11

10.5

OA530

15.5

3

10

OA535

3.08

20

155

10

13

4

169

10

145

3

10

231

3.49

4.06

7.5

3

9

10.5

21

3 6

12

20

4.5

12

8.49

50

6.5

9

60

SCREENS

15BAUGHANS BARREL

4.15

5

9.9

80

GARWOOD EUROPE LTD

OA102

8

12

5

119.5

OA105 DUNN BROS

6.71

10

14

12 12

3

Jenkinson

OA100 AW

14.5

11

OA101

56

OA500

132

3

8

22

OA106

7

6

154

OA66

80

60

PLASTAC

OA107

3

17

8

8

80

157.5

3

15

5.5

60

3

10

10

10

CMS HIRE LTD

OA135

ISUZU TRUCK (UK) LTD

OA136

12

30

120

180

60

120

120

TERBERG MATEC (UK)

OA160

OA111 E H HASSELL LTD

5

AXO SHREDDERS 12 LTD (UK)

10

OA190

6

246

GEESINK NORBA

12

6

12

12

BRENDON POWER WASHERS

22

OA 250

TONG OA253ENGINEERING

72

OA264

OA28

2.5

METSO LINDEMANN GMBH

12

CASE

136

COLLETT TRANSPORT SERVICES LTD

OA124

7.5

16.5

195.75

OA29

2.5 OA125

3

3

10 10

OA405

3

7.5

13.5

OA415

16

4

68.75

14 7

56

106.25

TRAFALGAR CLEANING EQUIPMENT LTD

14

154

70

12

14

HAMMEL (UK) LTD 168

168

14

168

MERCEDES BENZ

OA152

140

MUNI-SERV LTD

OA151

3

10

14

BLUE GROUP

OA150

3

12

14

120

HAAS RECYCLING SYSTEMS

OA164

3

12

12

OA176 LTD

3.5

10

126

(BRIDGEND) 3.5

3

3

60

6.72

5

4

JBC 15 TRAILERS LTD

OA197

5

4.36

75

4

56

8

9.5

8

3

14

128

16.5

14

TEREX EQUIPMENT LTD

8

BMI MUNICIPAL

OA166

3

95

OA178 16

3

WCR VEHICLE HIRE LTD

252

189.75

CONTINENTAL PLANT SERVICES LTD

OA142 11.5

80

OA185 10

18

80

WILLIBALD GMBH

4.15

10

OA186

8

8

GULLIVERS MUNICIPAL

3.07

10

OA187

8

3

Greenview Environmental Ltd 14

OA188

3.5

10

ENGINEERING SERVICES

OA184

3

SEFAC LIFT

LIEBHERR GREAT BRITAIN LTD

OA195

14

70

JOHN HANLON & CO LTD

9

12.5

54

OA200 OA202

7

OA201

3

9

FIRST

RECYCLING SYSTEMS

3

11

6

OA205

12.5 GRADE

10

80

OA194

72

Whale Tankers

8.5

8

DULEVO SWEEPERS

20

3.67

DUO MANUFACTURING (LJH)

OA208

3

32.99

3.02

6

SANDERSON

OA232

EQUIPMENT LTD 18

5.5

3

4

10

36

MHF UK LTD

OA206

6

4.01

140

4.5

OA234 HYDREX

5.5

4

OA204 OA209

8

3.5

6

3.51

14

OA213

4

HYDREX EQUIPMENT LTD

OA330

3.5

10

OA490 3

22

3

461.25

22.5

3.23

INTERLUBE SYSTEMS LTD

3

10.5

OA550

20.5

20.5

OA214

210

185

18.5

22.5

OA560

3.43

13

OA540

3.06

1950

9

8

96

12

9

3 63

12 12

3

12

4

7

4

6

3

9

3

274 FMJ

9

12

MOGENSEN

1900

9

1902 Resource

ENDS LTD

1904

3

4

3

3

WASTE MANAGEMENT WORLD9

3

5

5

5

4

3

6

20

3.5 17.5

38

4

16

8

38

273

8

7

32

21

3

48

38

1802

ZERMA UK LTD/ SUMMIT

1800

1806

1812 RESERVED

4

16

1814

COVANTA ENERGY

38

1818

4

7.5 5

6

7.5

4

4 4

6

16

16

3.5

3

TONY TEAM LTD 12

1742

17.5

14

7 7

BV

1706

LTD

21

24

LAWR

1714

1608 SHAWCITY

12

1720

9

1714

1716 1718

SUSTAIN MAGAZINE 9

16

1722 HOLMEN

24.5

7

4

5

5 3

6

2

4 4

4 4

5 5

3

2

3

3

3

9

ADVASOL MANAGEMENT LTD

27

STERECYCLE LTD

6

3

24

21

21

3

24

INTERNATIONAL TYRE & WHEEL SOLUTIONS (ITWS)

6

15

1616

3

MERIDIAN TECHNICAL SERVICES LIMITED

1620

9

1621 1618

RUF UK LTD

S+S HUGGLUNDS INSPECTION LTD

1740 1622

3

MARCO TRAILERS

1630

12

1636

15

HOPKINSONS FAIRDEALS LTD

8.5

6

4

9

1640 1634

3

3

ABANAKI

1644 1642

10.5

3

15

GREEN CONE LTD

1710

6

1606

3

24.06

EDIE

2

13

7

4

20

3

9

3

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ARTHUR MARSH & SON 9

9

3

3

12

GRIFFITH ELDER

100

12

The Skip

102

12

FRUTIGER

104

106

GROENEVELD UK LTD

15

NOBLET

110

3 112

HARRY WEST (PREES) LTD 9

114

EUROPA

116 VCU

APPLIED WEIGHING

118

INTELLITEC

120

12

RECYCLE DIRECT

122

15

CAPARO WIRE

124

15

WORSLEY PLANT LTD

126

HUB 4 9

128

PEARSON SEPARATION MACHINERY

130

3

Who can I see there?

GAME Engineering races ahead in the biomass industry Lincolnshire based materials process and mechanical handling engineers GAME Engineering will be exhibiting with a theme of “Racing ahead in the biomass industry” at the 2009 RWM exhibition.

Racing Line Photography

GAME Engineering has been a leading force in the biomass energy scene in the UK for many years and is at the forefront of biomass plant design and installation. GAME has completed a number of high-profile contracts including a recent biomass project at Drax Power station.

GAME will be proving how they are racing ahead in the biomass industry by displaying their GAME Engineeringsponsored biofuelled motorbike on their stand (number 1221). The Ducati 800 SS which runs on E85 fuel, regularly competes against, and beats, bikes using conventional fuel.

Engineers from GAME Engineering will be on hand to discuss any materials handling or biomass project ideas.

David Burkitt, Projects Director at GAME Engineering said “In the last year GAME has successfully completed a number of major biomass contracts including biomass production facilities at Grangemouth, Drax Power station and Andover. Our experienced team on the stand at the RWM will be able to answer any questions you may have.”

Recycle Direct Recycle Direct recently joined forces with U-Tech, the leading German-based manufacturer of safety equipment designed specifically for the waste sector.

The U-Tech equipment is designed to save lives by ensuring all plant and equipment stops automatically if a person comes into contact with say a conveyor belt or gets too close to any dangerous or restricted area of the plant. The system can also be set up so that only certain personnel can start up and operate certain machinery thereby ensuring that only trained personnel can operate the equipment.

One of the biggest problems in the industry at this time is the instability of the waste market and the recent continual price reductions for processed materials.

Reductions in the prices paid for processed material inevitably end up with the processor looking for cost savings in other areas of their business. The U-Tech safety system can save the purchaser considerable costs in areas such as insurance premiums, whilst improving employee morale by showing an awareness and consideration for their safety.

U-Tech have developed an industry specific system with features designed specifically for the recycling industry.

Systems can also be tailor made to suit the individual site application and features such as remote emergency stop buttons, worn independently on an employees arm in the shape, size and weight of a wristwatch, whereby the employee can stop or start the plant remotely and manually if a dangerous situation ,or even a blockage on the conveyor occurs. This can be purchased and incorporated into the safety system as an additional option to the basic system at point of sale, or at a later date.

Possibly due to its large population, conveyors cause more injuries (30%) than any other type of machine. Analysis has shown that 90% of conveyor related injuries occur on belt conveyors and 90% of the injuries involve well known hazards such as in-running nips, transmission parts, and trapping parts between moving and fixed parts.

Also, 90% of accidents occur during normal forseeable operations-production activities, clearing blockages etc.

The U-Tech system works by ensuring that the complete system is shut down as soon as anyone enters the danger area. The system can only be reset by the person that has caused the system to shut down and cannot be reset by others, thereby ensuring every individuals safety.

Latest version of Twin Line automatic greasing system launches at RWM Successful products don’t stand still. They continually evolve to produce greater efficiencies or incorporate additional features to give added value to the end user. Such is the case with Groeneveld’s Twin Line automatic chassis lubrication system as the third generation version is launched.

Twin has been a huge success world wide especially in the rugged environment of off highway where its inherent reliability and ability to deliver the correct type and quantity of grease when required has kept many an operators’ machinery working longer and harder. This latest version has new features which build upon the strong foundations of earlier versions to offer further benefits including the supply of operating performance data in order for further efficiencies to be achieved.

The system’s pump unit now features an uprated microprocessor for faster and more accurate control as well as an all new electronic timer featuring a real time clock providing precise event logging for subsequent diagnostics.

The Twin pressure switch, which guarantees grease delivery down to -250C and monitors the complete lubrication process, now has its harness electronically monitored too.

However the major development has been the inclusion of CAN-BUS enablement allowing system control and monitoring via the machine’s own communication channel and cab display, thereby dispensing with the need for an additional cable set. CAN-BUS also means that the system can be remotely interrogated and controlled via a GSM communication module.

All this is backed up by further enhanced diagnostic software operating under Windows Vista and via USB that provides an abundance of system information for management analysis.

Twin 3 is currently available as an option on: JCB & Bell wheel loaders Komatsu excavators

Griffith Elder help maximise shipping payloads Electronic weighing equipment specialists, Griffith Elder, have improved the “Container Tilter” by means of an innovative kit of weighing electronics for an application of great significance in the recycling business.

In recent times shipping costs have been on the rise, hitting scrap metal companies container loading to countries such as China and India. In order to maximise payloads, A-Ward, a New Zealand company, have developed the “Container Tilter”: a machine designed to turn the container on its end to be filled from the top. However space in a metal recycling yard is often tight and moving a container in and out of the Container Tilter to be weighed on a weighbridge is not always a feasible option.

Griffith Elder have provided the solution to minimise hassle and maximise efficiency. By installing load cells under the Container Tilter, the whole machine is

weighed without the use of an external weighbridge.

A purpose designed weight indicator, operating from 12 volts, allows the weight of the empty container to be zeroed out so the indicator only shows the load weight inside the container. The indicator also has a radio link that communicates with a remote display in the cab of the loading grab, showing the operator exactly how much has been put in the container. A flashing light shows when the target weight has been met.

The new improved Container Tilter has become very popular with metal recycling businesses all over the world.

Aylesford Newsprint highlights UK paper recycling At RWM 2009 Aylesford Newsprint will be highlighting its UK-based reprocessing options available to local authorities and waste management companies currently involved in the collection and recycling of used newspapers and magazines. The company currently recycles one in seven of every newspaper read in the UK at its Kent mill and has recently worked with Metro Newspapers and Southeastern Trains to launch a commuter newspaper collections trial.

While serious messages regarding materials recovery and reprocessing abound on the Aylesford stand, the company will once again bring a buzz to the exhibition, this time with a dedicated area where stand visitors can quite literally make their mark on recycling. To find out what’s going on, exhibition attendees should visit stand 914. Those visitors who prove to be particularly creative could even win a prize!

Liebherr at RWM 09 Liebherr-Great Britain Limited is exhibiting once again at RWM09 on Stand Number OA195. On display will be three materials handling machines from the company’s comprehensive range of equipment, specifically designed and built for municipal and commercial waste management, transfer stations recycling operations and scrap handling.

The A 316 Litronic Industrial Rehandler The A 316 Litronic is a wheeled materials handler featuring a hydraulically elevating cab, a 3.5m stick and a 5.5m industrial boom for lift height and long reach capabilities. The machine is equipped with a waste sorting grab and hydraulic swivel for full 360° rotation. For operational stability, the A 316 is fitted with front and rear hydraulic outriggers and, when free-on-wheels, the mobility and agility of this machine provides excellent manoeuvrability around site.

Inashco offers a solution for the recycling of bottom ash Rotterdam – Inashco offers a ground-breaking solution for the recycling of bottom ash. The patented dry technology provides an optimal separation of metals and minerals from bottom ash. The separating of metal and mineral fractions smaller than 10mm is unique.

A market opportunity “The new technology is cost saving, separates the small metal and mineral particles extremely efficiently and decreases the environmental charges considerably.

The new separation technology offers a solution for the current issues”, according to Dr P. Rem from the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences of the University of Technology in Delft.

Current market situation Until now, the ash, which remains in the incinerators, is used as landfill or as lowgrade construction material for e.g. highways. This has high environmental risks, due to the leaching of metal particles. To prevent this from happening, impermeable layers have to be placed on the dump site. The extra costs of leach prevention are very high. In addition the small metal and mineral particles are lost for reuse.

The market introduction A prototype drew the attention of Fondel Development BV, a subsidiary of the Fondel Group. “We are continuously looking for new and innovative ways to efficiently recycle waste. This technology is unique because in the short term major economic revenue can be obtained and at the same time, a huge step is taken to 100% recycle waste into valuable products,” according to Jaap Vandehoek, director of Fondel Development.

Win a stand at Futuresource!

Enquire about exhibiting at Futuresource 2010 by 18 September and be entered into a prize draw to win a 9m2 shell scheme stand.

Futuresource covers everything from recycling and waste management to energy, climate change, street scene and plant and vehicles.

Exhibiting brings: A potential market of 9,000 expected visitors Opportunity to invite your customers as VIP members of our Elite Club Raised awareness of your business The chance to network with key buyers and industry influencers

15-17 June 2010, ExCeL, London

Find out more – enter now! www.futuresourceuk.com/winastand Or visit us at RWM – stand 706 (Environmental Services Association) t: +44 (0)1604 620426 Already booked?

Enquire online and win a Futuresource advertising package instead.

Terms & conditions Entrance is free if you enquire about exhibiting at Futuresource 2010 by September either at RWM 09, via our website www.futuresourceuk.com/winastand. The competition closes on 18 September 2009. The prize is for a 3m x 3m shell scheme stand in the zone of your choice. No cash alternative is offered, however the value of the stand may be put towards a larger stand if you haven’t already booked. If you have already booked a stand at Futuresource, you may enter but an advertising package to the value of the stand will be offered instead, should you win. The winner will be drawn on 20 September 2009 and will be contacted by phone or email within 30 days. If the winner is untraceable, a redraw will happen after 14 days. The winner’s information will be available 30 days after the draw date from www.futuresourceuk.com and will be published in the CIWM journal. The value of the prize stand will not be eligible to be subtracted from an existing stand contract. Promoter: IWM Business Services Ltd, 9 Saxon Court, St Peter’s Gardens, Marefair, Northampton, NN1 1SX.

Europe’s sustainability event

SIZE SCREENING Alfatek UK has been closely involved in Facility and Process Design for the Recycling Industries. Managing Partner, Simon Ingleby is a Design Engineer who has combined practical experience with innovative technologies from Europe to build some of the most robust plants in the UK.

carried through all at the same rate. I have seen many inclined trommels, fast-running, where the heavy material passes through too quickly and the lighter, bulky waste hangs in the barrel and gets wound up to eventually exit the trommel like a big ‘sausage’.

In future issues it is the intention to road test different machines from several manufacturers however, for the benefit of readers, we shall continue to describe the individual elements that form part of the recycling process of many mixed waste streams.

For mixed C&I (commercial, industrial) waste, lifter bars can be incorporated within the barrel to ‘work’ the material to loosen it up and separate. In its role as primary screen, the trommel should not be expected to screen too finely otherwise blinding (apertures blocked) and in-efficiency will occur. ‘Wet’ material should also be avoided.

Following on from my description of a machine that is a key to a successful recycling plant, namely The Redox Windshifter for density separation, I would like to consider another ingredient that plays its part in the process as a whole - Size Screening.

There is a plethora of different technologies for this operation so I will give an overview of the most popular machines with their particular uses. I have also split them into the categories of primary and secondary screening, however some machines can be used for both and often are.

PRIMARY SCREENING DEVICES No.1 in the hit parade here would be the trommel, a rotating cylindrical barrel with apertures of the desired size for screening. The trommel was developed from the quarrying industries to become a universal screen for many applications. Heavyweight trommels are used in the CDE (construction, demolition and excavation) waste streams. An ideal configuration for this would be a solid 15mm thick steel body with square screening apertures, laser cut and running horizontally on solid rubber driven wheels. The material is carried through the screen by means of an internal, welded auger flight (helix). This ensures that the mixed material (of different densities) is

A 3metre diameter by 7.5metres long heavy duty trommel from Dutch equipment supplier Redox would see 500k tonnes use before a simple barrel change.

Other screens for heavier applications are the step-deck and finger screens. The step deck has a long amplitude stroke and inclination to carry the material over. Each step gives the mixed material chance to loosen and separate. The screening deck has holes (or slots) for the desired fraction size to fall through. This type of screen must be dosed (loaded) properly for maximum efficiency to be maintained. Finger screens have forward projecting fingers to prevent light material getting caught up. They have a higher amplitude vibration which can loosen up the fines within the waste, however they cannot have a big step and are prone to damage.

For lighter duty applications the Disc Screen is becoming popular. The solid hexagonal shaped rotating discs are arranged in rows across the screen. Each row is offset to the other so that two adjacent discs would have the next row rotating in the gap between them and so on. A typical screen would have 15-20 rows of discs. The screening aperture is the gap between the discs. The screen is usually inclined slightly and the discs rotate forward to carry the material along. The flat faces on each disc

The Trommel

throws the material upwards to give it attrition and loosen the finer parts. These screens are particularly efficient with lighter, bulky material, however this would normally be pre-shred before hitting the screen. The disc screen can be used for ‘damp’ material such as MSW (municipal solid waste). Wear rate can be high and maintenance costly.

SECONDARY SCREENING DEVICES To achieve a finer fraction split a particular favourite of mine is the Stretch-Deck Screen, as manufactured by Hein Lehmann and fitted to many of the Redox Recycling Plants throughout the World. Its roots go back to the coal industry where screening the ‘sticky’ material was a problem that they solved. The screen decks are flexible high tech plastic arranged across the screen in 300mm strips. They have driven bars front and back that oscillate in pairs. As one screen strip tightens, the adjacent strip loosens as so on.

This effect throws the material up as it travels along the screen giving attrition. The apertures in the screen decks are slot-shaped: if the material is sticky and blinds the slot it is loosened when the screen flexes and is thrown back up as the screen deck goes tight. This gives the ability to screen very finely, even with ‘wet’ material. For C&D/C&I waste the nominal size would be 5mm, for MSW 10mm, for glass (especially after washing/crushing) effective at 2mm and for gypsum (dry) it can screen to 1mm.

Star screens are widely used in compost and green waste where the waste stream is less mixed. They are as the disc screen above but for the fact that the rotating discs are shaped like small stars. They lose efficiency as the stars wear down (thus making the gaps bigger), however they are very popular. Typical screening would be compost down to 10mm.

Due to easy availability, light weight trommels with exchangeable screen plates on the barrel and are widely used in many applications. I have found them to be less

effective and limited to about 20-25mm optimum. They are very prone to blinding.

For dry recyclables there is a range of devices such as inclined, fast-running disc screens, vee-screens and ballistic separators (shape and density screening rather than pure size).

I hope to bring you reports and case studies on these in the future. Next time, I will introduce you to high-tech optical, NIR (near infared) and sensing equipment.

The Stretch-Desk Screen

ent m n o r i v n E Industry n Educatio

By Katrina Pierce , ntal Institute of Environme nt me ess Ass t en Managem (IEMA)

No one needs an introduction to the economic slump that has made personal and business lives so difficult of late.

Although the British Chamber of Commerce reported in early July that the “the worst of the recession is behind us”, the pound is still very weak, top line costs are still intimidatingly high and many businesses have already folded under the pressure of the recession. Many British workers have been made redundant making for the highest unemployment rate, currently at 7.2%, since July 1997.

Even though the environmental sector has benefitted from massive growth over the past decade, it too is undoubtedly feeling the effects of the global recession during 2009. Where organisations had previously happily invested in Environmental Management teams and benefit from cost savings brought about by effective environmental management and improvements in resource efficiency, some organisations now unwisely may see the environment as “a nice to have” that can be easily culled when times get tough, forgetting about those essential cost savings on resources that came about before the omnipresent credit crunch came about.

Realistically though, the environmental industry is very far from shaky, unlike the construction, property and engineering industries that have suffered more than most. One of the core principles of the Government-backed Green New Deal promotes the notion of “Jobs, more jobs and secure jobs” and a focus on skills and training; not just for environmental professionals but for all sectors (www.greennewdealgroup.org). Nevertheless, there are a number of environmental practitioners now either seeking work or doing the work of several after redundancies have been made and job roles have been merged.

Everyone in every sector, not just in the environmental industry, has no choice but to ride out the recession and anticipate that 2010 will bring better financial and professional luck than 2009 has presented. The way to weather the storm, and come out the other side motivated, better qualified and more confident, is to undertake CPD (continuing professional development). It may seem something of a non-sequitur to pay for (superficially non-essential) training and CPD during the worst financial period in almost 80 years but cutbacks, downsizing, streamlining or whatever the latest recessionary

exhortation is, has made training even more important now than it was in more affluent times.

Training after college and university age is not just for steadfast careerists or those starting over in a new career: it exists to keep practitioners up-to-date in this fast-moving industry where new legislation, policies and initiatives are regularly introduced, to teach new skills where innovation makes it necessary and also support and validate what the individuals already do in their day-to-day jobs. Training helps individuals to stay focussed on their careers by establishing goals (additional qualifications, professional suffixes etc) to work towards and provide evidence of vocational achievements that are demonstrable to employers, both current and potential new ones. This is essential when attempting to demonstrate professional credibility over colleagues and rival job-seekers, something that can prove invaluable during a recession when organisations only want to employ (or retain) the best, most competent candidates.

An environmental practitioner’s salary survey, conducted by the Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment (IEMA) in mid-2007, revealed that procured training was at that point dependent upon the work sector and job role – however the world economy has since experienced something of a downward spiral and a 2009 survey would probably reveal some different results. In 2007 the respondents were asked whether they had undertaken any formal training over the previous 12 months

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– just under two-thirds (62%) of respondents indicated that they had. Public sector employees were more likely than others to have undertaken formal training – 66% compared with 63% in business and industry and 60% in consultancy. Employees (64%) were more likely than self-employed or contract workers (54%) to have undertaken formal training. Over 8 out of 10 employees (84%) said that their employer offered financial support for their professional development. Now that we are in the midst of a truly global recession it is likely that this final figure will not be as high as 84% in 2009 as employers become nervous about paying for anything deemed non-essential even though training and investment in skills often boosts productivity, competitiveness, morale and motivation.

Training, or even re-training, can be a low priority during a recession, seen as just another

unnecessary outlay. But training must not be ignored as competent, better trained staff can be a means to saving money and improving efficiency; those who have undergone good quality environmental training know how to reduce resource use, cut costs and make the most of improvements in resource efficiency. Also, as we move towards a low carbon and resource efficient economy, practitioners may need to gain extra skills to successfully influence and advise their organisation through the transitional period.

Professional bodies like IEMA typically offer training and skill development courses and can award certain levels of professional recognised membership (e.g. Associate) to those who have successfully completed a course from their range of approved and recognised courses. Such membership alone separates one from the crowd when looking for jobs as many employers state membership of certain professional bodies as pre-requisites when advertising environmental positions and therefore will disregard any applicants who cannot demonstrate membership of an appropriate professional body a signifier of commitment to professionalism. Although membership of a professional body does mean

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paying an annual subscription fee, this must always be viewed as an investment as employers do prefer to have professionally recognised practitioners on board and the “extra-curricular” development or voluntary activities, such as getting involved with committees and steering groups as part of the professional body, also present opportunities to network, gain confidence, improve skills, retain focus and demonstrate dedication to your profession.

Organisations, particularly environmental consultancies, require professional qualifications to secure contract work and for tender submissions.

Training is also essential when some staff have been made redundant and job roles have merged. The remaining practitioners may not always be as proficient in all of the areas their former colleagues were and therefore may require training to allow them to confidently perform the tasks expected. Also those who have been made redundant should remember that re-training in other areas of environmental management and assessment is a great way to stay professionally in the loop and pass their downtime effectively. There are many low or no-cost activities that can put those out of work in touch with potential new employers such as professional body networking and regional events. This also enables them to approach potential new employers with an impressive new qualification and newly-acquired skills.

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CPD workshops are another convenient method of maintaining that crucial professional edge. These workshops are typically offered by professional bodies and other training providers and focus on various areas of environmental management and assessment, clarifying best practice with a how-to approach on these subjects.

By attending such workshops and day-courses, delegates can get updates on legislation and environmental management techniques from leading authorities in an inclusive and accessible environment. As these types of events usually take just one day to complete, practitioners can learn about an unfamiliar area of the environment by sparing just one day out of the office for a one-off fee of around £150 to £300, ideal for those who have taken on extra areas of responsibility where streamlining has meant that colleagues have been made redundant and there is little time or money to spare. These workshops are useful for those working towards full membership or chartered environmentalist membership of a professional body who need to undertake some professional development to learn about a topic with which they are currently unfamiliar. Delegates leave the workshops feeling refreshed, confident and ready to tackle their new challenges.

From an organisational point of view rather than an individual one, it may be worth noting that businesses can apply for funding to train its employees when there are minimal funds available. Train to Gain, the national skills

service for England, can provide support with identifying and improving the skills of employees. It works with organisations of all sizes and from all sectors to develop training packages and help to source funding (however, the assistance of an independent business broker is required). Train to Gain work with the appropriate Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) to identify the specific skills needs of businesses. Lantra, the SSC for the environmental and land-based sector and IEMA have worked together to undertake research about skills, training and functional roles. Business Link offer an online training directory and can also provide extensive support with skills, training, development and management.

So as the green shoots of recovery sprout forth and we can see a pin-prick of light at the end of the recessional tunnel, environmental practitioners who have held on to their jobs can look forward to s, a bright future, as sation i n a g can those who have Or ularly l c i taken the initiative to rt a p nta onme undergo training and envir ancies, t come out of the onsul rofessional c economic crisis better ep requir ations to qualified than they were c qualifi ontract before the words “credit c crunch” became quite so secure eponymous. work .

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How the Recession is Affecting Environmental Careers Joe Heppenstall Allen & York Business Manager

“This is the moment when we must come together to save this planet. Let us resolve that we will not leave our children a world where the oceans rise and famine spreads and terrible storms devastate our lands.”

President Barrack Obama spoke with concern about the future of our planet calling for immediate action to be taken to secure a sustainable future for the next generation.

This article identifies the impact the global recession is having on the environmental industry and how environmental professionals may help to bring us out of the current economic downturn.

The recession has been called the ‘downside of globalisation’ as the crisis began in the United States, the most powerful nation in the world; a knock-on effect was seen in all the major economies. The collapse of global giants such as Lehman Brothers, Wachovia, Washington Mutual and other household names has seen the US unemployment figure rise to above 7%, with over 10 million Americans out of work.

Despite the obvious effect on many individuals, one of the most unpredictable effects will be that of job losses across the globe. The US saw 524,000 job cuts in December 2008 alone. Across the UK we have also seen substantial job cuts and many environmental initiatives and developments ‘put on hold’ or abandoned. January saw Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, cancel the Green Homes Service, a scheme committed to insulation and renewable energy (such as wind power), in homes. This would have created many green roles in and around the London area. The Greater London Authority also announced a further £10 million project cut to the London Cycle Network Plus, which looked to improving the safety of cyclists and encouraging cycling in an effort to reduce carbon emissions.

The ‘restructuring’ City Hall project was put on hold with no less than 50 jobs being lost in the cost minimisation process. Protests over potential redundancies have come from the Green Party, however these cuts look imminent and it is not only the GLA who are tightening their purse strings and consequentially trimming back their environmental spend.

WRAP – Waste Resources Action Programme – is a Government advisory body that provides resource efficiency advice for businesses and general households and is now to become the only body to deliver Government funded recycling and waste programmes. Businesses will feel an impact from this change as 30% of their funding is being cut from £59m to £43.2m alongside 31 redundancies made this year already and with the expansion, supposedly making it easier for businesses and individuals to access green advice and support, there may be additional job cuts, less services provided and a fall in the overall budget for WRAP. The construction industry has been hit hard as the housing market has plummeted with 50,000 job losses in 2008 and more expected in 2009. A total of between 7.5% and 8% of the total workforce in the UK have lost their jobs in this market including a high number of environmental monitors, construction waste managers and land condition experts.

The unseen effect here was that of the knock-on effect to the lower margin consultancies who support the various developments but for whom the previous abundance of work has dried up.

So how can we be positive about the environmental sector given all this gloom and doom?

In the current crisis it is hard to stay optimistic with only 21% of CEO’s confident their business will grow. The decrease in confidence has changed attitudes to do with the environment - now less than 1 in 10 CEO’s worry about diminishing natural resources and fail to put the issue high on the agenda. Sir Stuart Rose, M&S Executive Chairman, however insists that green remains high on the agenda. His Plan A is award winning and there is evidence showing that CSR is on an upturn as many more firms instigate their push towards the environment and energy improvements; RBS, Tarmac, Co-Op and Samsung are just some of the large corporates that see the crisis as an opportunity to focus on CSR and grow their business, establishing new positions in their markets above their competitors.

Remaining optimistic is difficult but there is evidence that careers in the environmental sector are showing some elasticity and could drive new economic growth. Careers including ecologists, hydrologists and environmental chemists are expected to grow 25% over the next decade - basically jobs that are required and continue in demand when there is no extra discretionary money to spend.

Construction roles may have been reduced but this reduction is being counteracted by huge demand for climate change and carbon-reduction services, as the Government introduces its’ low-carbon strategy to create a new green economy to pull us out of the recession and work towards a sustainable future.

Plans have been announced by the Mayor of London that 15,000 jobs could be created in an effort to cut energy and tackle climate change. Targets have been set in place of reducing London’s carbon emissions by 60%, contributing £600m to London’s economy by 2025 and being established as a low carbon hub. Green collar jobs would play an important role, therefore employing green professionals would gain a company the best long-term value out of their investment.

The NHS announced a major campaign to reduce their carbon footprint (currently employing one and a half million people), in-house and contracted environmental professionals will lead the campaign. With low carbon targets to achieve and campaigns in place, the new global low carbon economy is worth £3 trillion employing 880,000 people in the UK. The latter comes under the term the ‘green new deal’ which means spending money to stimulate the use of ‘green technology’ such as renewable energy and public transport to create jobs, environmental preservation and economic upturn.

The UN have been in talks proposing ‘a global green new deal’ to be presented at the G20 where economic stimuli of all countries are expected to devote billions of public spending to green projects. The US economic stimulus has amounted to more than $2,800 bn with around $430 bn (15%) going to be spent on green measures. The UK

is only allocating £535 million (7%) of their economic stimulus, which is said to be too small with MP’s suggesting the Treasury should spend £11 bn on green stimulus measures as this would lead to net job creation, cut emissions and improve energy security.

Greenpeace suggested that if £5 bn was invested in energy efficiency measures, 55,000 jobs could be created.

Green job creation would range from the science behind clean energy systems to their physical installation, including every function in between.

EU diplomats have viewed the election of President Barack Obama as the most positive change in the US he commits the US to cut emissions 16% by 2020 and 80% by 2050. Obama also plans to spend billions of dollars on renewable energy. The Government in the UK has proposed for the creation of the Office for Renewable Energy Deployment to deliver targets of sourcing 15% of the UK’s energy by 2020. Governments are committing to energy efficiency projects as they are labour intensive creating construction sector jobs, which have been worst hit, energy sector jobs, reducing energy use, producing cost savings and a sustainable future, and most importantly it is the best route to economic recovery.

In summary, let’s face it, the US needs a boost and if building a better, bigger environmental industry is what Obama brings, then good for them. In terms of the UK we have a great industry and for us it’s about how we adapt to these times in both the public and private sector and what we can do to change in the face of the market conditions.

The consultants in the UK are some of the best in the world and have a habit of being able to switch strategy to meet demand through retraining, recruiting new skills and refocus on sectors that are very much alive. Similarly the blue chip organisations are recognising that the green agenda will not go away.

The financial crisis has had large implications on the environment industry but at the same time created huge economic, social and environmental benefits likely to arise from combating climate change and pollution, generating many varied opportunities.

Famous Last Words WHAT A LOAD OF RUBBISH?

Because metals are nice little earners for a whole host of modern Steptoes!

Also metals are easily separated and reclaimed from rubbish.

Some glass can be recycled, as new glass requires around 7% of cullet or old glass to kick start the process, although more would reduce the quality of the new stuff. Other old glass can be ground and made into synthetic surfaces and even synthetic clothing. Great!

Like good manners, not scattering rubbish everywhere should be essential learning for every person, young or old. “Tidy manners, tidy mind” was often a moral slogan in Victorian schools and would not go amiss today.

However, the idea that we can stop creating rubbish is rubbish. Preventing waste creation can be a waste of time and effort.

Every few weeks, we each shed about 2 square metres of skin and I wouldn’t like to guess how much natural waste we flush down the toilet in our lifetime. Even when we pop our clogs, we have to be disposed of.

Today, burial often involves using ground already full with those who have gone before, so the majority choice is cremation. If we have learnt to adapt with something as serious and gloomy as that, how come we are confused over how we get rid of the rubbish we create through our modern lifestyle?

By far the greatest source of waste is our lifestyle of intense consumerism. You could say we are far too self indulgent and yet buying clothes, furniture, homes, ornaments, electrical goods and a huge variety of food and drink is part of our celebration of progressing through life. They are each a pat on the back from ourselves for working to achieve these advantages.

They are part of our enjoyment of life. So persuading everyone to stop buying anything other than the bare essentials is doomed to failure and wrong, as it would greatly diminish our quality of life. Also, if we cut consumerism by half, we would reduce our careers, jobs and ability to earn by the same amount.

Consumerism creates waste and we will not alter that fact.

Now the people who package the stuff we buy have reduced commendably both the weight and amount of packaging, but they are often hampered by health and safety rules, especially with regards to food. An MP on radio suggested a tax for each bag of rubbish we produce. Someone rang in with the brilliant reply, “I do not make the waste. That is produced by the people who sell things to me. I am only a conduit of waste.

Why tax me for that?” I agree with this and feel that most ordinary people are doing very little wrong. Ask us to separate our waste so that some can be recycled and we are mostly happy to comply.

So the problem lies with what happens to our rubbish once it leaves us and to the detriment of the United absolute rubbish.

Now recycling is no bad thing. In fact it is not a new thing either. Ships timbers from the 16th century ended up in houses in the 18th century. For the past 70 years over 95% of all metals are recycled. Why?

However, for all waste like paper, plastics, polystyrene, cellophane, wood, tyres; all of this stuff is more costly to recycle, than it was to produce in the first place. But all of it is made from carbon and as such will burn. Yet the same people who condemn consumerism also condemn us burning all this waste. So we bury it. What is the point of picking up our rubbish and dropping it into a landfill site around the corner? Perhaps once buried, that is the end of it? Don’t you believe it! The Methane spewing from a site 2 miles from my home, will need careful control monitoring for at least the next 50 years and so you can’t build on it. The only thing you can put on top of it is grass - so the land is basically lost.

In the UK, to bury burnable rubbish, we require an extra 64 new square miles of landfill sites every year.

That means in just 22.5 years, we require an area the size of Kent, (1,440 sq miles) just to hold our rubbish.

This requirement is vastly greater than any other country in Europe, mostly due to the rubbish that some politically minded people fill our minds with.

Denmark and most other European countries incinerate in a big way and produce vast amounts of electricity and heat. You might ask, “But what about the air pollution?” Well, what about it? Cement Industry chimneys are allowed by European law to belch out 1000 parts per million (1/1000th) of what we might call “nasties” into the air. But not so civil incinerators! They are only allowed 10 ppm of “nasties” (1/100,000th) which is practically undetectable. But modern technology achieves it. Paris has 4, Hamburg 4 and each have no raw landfill. Ken Livingstone would not allow even One to be built in London during his mayorship?

If the UK had just 1 per county (around 70) the energy they produced would eclipse the 8 most polluting fossil fuel power stations and save all that fuel. But we would also save 75% or 48 sq miles of landfill each year, and the fuel is FREE, because it is our waste and it has to be collected anyway. There is an ash residue that has to be buried, but that is benign and not harmful and some can be issued in building materials.

We really have to change our attitude to waste and to how we educate our kids. Worry and taking extra care, should not dominate a child’s every day life. Kids should be allowed to be kids. They should not be asked to save the world now, but to perhaps qualify as scientists and technologists and then from an eventual position of both acquired knowledge and responsibility, make changes far greater and beneficial for the future good of everyone and the planet.

Johnny Ball

CABI global summit food security in a climate of change By 2050 it is estimated that we will need to grow double the amount of food to feed the world’s people.

This high-level meeting will consider the policies, practices and technologies that will enable us to grow more and lose less to meet the challenges associated with food security. It will bring together agricultural and environmental ministers from around the world, representatives from international development organizations, major funding organizations and the corporate sector. attend the meeting to: VË Listen to the latest thinking in this area from world-leading experts including, Professor John Beddington, UK Government Chief Scientific Advisor Professor Rudy Rabbinge, Chairman CGIAR Science Council Sindiso Ndemo Ngwenya, Secretary General COMESA Professor Robert Watson, Chief Scientific Advisor DEFRA Dr Akinwumi Adesina, Vice President, Policy and Partnerships, AGRA VË Discuss and share experiences and ideas about dealing with the challenges of food security VË Network with high-level colleagues from around the world to develop business and trade opportunities

Date: 19 – 21 October 2009 Location: Royal Garden Hotel, London, UK about CABI CABI is a not-for-profit international organization that improves people’s lives by providing information and applying scientific expertise to solve problems in agriculture and the environment.

To find out more about this unique meeting and to register go to www.cabiglobalsummit.com

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