Sandwell chronicle: turning old chip oil into energy to cut carbon

19 February, 2010, 3 comments

Coverage of this launch appeared in the Sandwell Chronicle , 19 February 2010.

Ever thought of recycling your used cooking oil ?

Thanks to an innovative new service at Shidas Lane household recycling centre in Oldbury, Sandwell residents can now add used cooking oil to their recycling routine.

The new collection tanks are designed to hold up to 1,250 litres of used cooking oil .Once eco-friendly residents have deposited the oil, it is collected and processed into a biofuel called LF100, which is then used to produce electricity.

Councillor Mahboob Hussain, Sandwell Council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for neighbourhoods&housing, said: “This new service is an excellent way of re-using a product that would have previously ended up being thrown away. Often used cooking oil is poured down the sink, but this can block sewers and has a devastating impact on local wildlife.”

He continued: “I thank Sandwell residents for their recycling efforts and encourage them to support this extra service now available, which will help us to continue reducing our waste as a borough.”

Once full, the oil from the collection tank can be used to generate sufficient electricity to power an average family home for a whole year.

Dan Gillert, commercial manager at Living Fuels, the company behind the innovative scheme, said: "Every time another collection service is launched, it’s an opportunity to get over the message that used cooking oil causes major environmental damage when poured down the sink.It costs water companies literally millions to clear blockages caused in sewers by this build-up of oils.

“Added to this, the use of used cooking oil in electricity generation reduces carbon emissions meaning that everyone can play a part in building Britain’s renewable energy capacity.”

May Gurney – which manages the household recycling centre, has welcomed the new service, which fully supports its ambitions to extract the maximum value from a wider range of recycled materials in order to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill or down the drain.

The centre is located on Shidas Lane in Oldbury (B69 2BP) and is currently open between 8am and 6pm Monday to Friday and between 8am and 4pm Saturday and Sunday.

For more information on the wide range of recycling services available at the local household recycling centre, visit www.sandwell.gov.uk/recycling

To check if the centre is busy before leaving your home you can call 0845 352 0123 or view the web cam at http://sandwell.ectrecycling.co.uk:3000

Residents can sign up to the reduce, reuse, recycle for Sandwell e-newsletter by emailing “subscribe” to recycleforsandwell@sandwell.gov.uk

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