Walsall Council has completed the construction of a new £32 million Household Waste Recycling Centre and Waste Transfer Station.
The new site on Middlemore Lane, Aldridge, will provide facilities to help residents recycle a wider range of items.
Walsall Council says this will enable the delivery of a new waste strategy, to be launched this year, which will emphasise a shift towards a circular economy.
The station will have the capacity to process 40,000 tonnes of rubbish per year across 19 bays, each housing two skips.
In addition to the construction of the Household Waste Recycling Centre and Waste Transfer Station, the site includes the provision of weighbridges, service yards, ventilation systems, and office and welfare facilities for operational and management staff.
What has been delivered here is truly a state-of-the-art facility…
A reuse shop with a workshop area will also operate at the site. Walsall Council says that staff in the workshop will refurbish items that would otherwise have been thrown away before they are sold at a low cost.
The local authority states that 69% of the project’s workforce was sourced locally, with operatives hired from within a 20-mile radius of the site.
19 apprentices and five graduates were also hired, while nine school visits offering students hands-on experience in the construction industry were held throughout the project.
Walsall Council says the project generated £753,000 in social value, including donations of winter essentials to Walsall Outreach and approximately £12K raised for Acorns Children’s Hospice through metal recycling.
Operations are slated to start in 2025, with plans to be announced in the near future.
Councillor Adrian Andrew, Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Economic Growth and Regeneration, said: “This project is a huge development for Walsall. What has been delivered here is truly a state-of-the-art facility, which will prove vital in ensuring we can continue to accommodate the waste demands we face in the Borough.”