News & Media > Environmental Services
02:09:2010
From oil to electricity
In Bridgend, cooking oil is being used to power electricity generators at council depots as part of Bridgend County Borough Council’s recycling drive.
Living Fuels has supplied recycling facilities for used cooking oil at four household amenity and recycling centres in the borough, which are run for the council by May Gurney. Cooking oil collected at the sites is refined into biofuel and used to create electricity in dedicated generators.
John Spanswick, Bridgend Council’s cabinet member for communities, said: “We are committed towards making the area a cleaner, greener place for people to live, work and visit.
“The waste cooking oil facilities compliment out recently launched new household recycling collections and will help us achieve our aims while offering residents more choice in the types of material that can be recycled locally.”
North Somerset residents can now take their waste oil to collection facilities in Portishead and Backwell, which are managed by May Gurney on behalf of North Somerset Council.
Daniel Gilbert, Living Fuels’ commercial manager, said: “Many people don’t realise that thousands of tonnes of used cooking oil is poured down the drain each year, costing UK rate payers around £15m to clean up.
“By recycling used cooking oil, you’re not only helping to solve this problem but also making use of what was previously a waste material.
“Once refined, the biofuel ‘LF100’ has huge potential. Just one litre generates enough clean electricity to make 240 cups of tea, while one tonne provides enough to power the average home for an entire year.
“Using this process to create electricity vastly reduces carbon emissions, meaning that everyone can play a part in building Britain’s renewable energy future.”
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