Today, the Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility has announced that its first-ever open day will take place on Saturday 26th March 2022 at Javelin Park, giving attendees the chance to learn about what happens on-site and how it generates enough electricity to power the equivalent of around 25,000 homes across Gloucestershire. During the three one-hour sessions, taking place at 10 am, 11:30 am and 1 pm, visitors will be able to view the official Facility film, detailing the energy from waste process, as well as see first-hand the various plant and equipment on-site including, waste cranes, combustion grate and stack. Early pre-booking through the portal on the Site Tours and Visitor Centre page on the Facility’s website is recommended to avoid disappointment*.

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility has announced that it will reopen its Visitor Centre for new bookings in May 2022, subject to COVID-19 restrictions. Since July 2021, the Facility has prioritised rescheduled bookings for people who had their visits postponed due to the lockdowns. The Visitor Centre provides space for the local community to learn about sustainable waste management and resource use, with access to a working facility.

In June this year, the Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility welcomed a year 11 student from Denmark Road High School in Gloucester for a week's work experience. The student spent time in different parts of the Facility, including with the finance, health and safety, management and control room teams, to gain a holistic understanding of what is required to deliver a renewable energy scheme. She was also able to see the various plant and equipment in operation to discover how the Facility works.

Working with the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, the Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility has unveiled its Ecological Appraisal. The Wildlife Trust was commissioned to undertake the appraisal, providing an update of the species cohabiting the Facility’s boundaries to inform recommendations for further ecological enhancements to the area. This includes ways to inspire more protected species to access the site such as badgers, bats, birds and hedgehogs among others. 

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility has revealed new photos that have been displayed in their Javelin, Meteor and Typhoon meeting rooms. The Facility is located on the site of the former RAF Moreton Valence Airfield and these photographs show images of the historic aircrafts that were flown at the airfield from the 1950s and 60s. The collection features work from Russell Adam’s Jet Age Photography Collection entrusted to the Jet Age Museum, while others are from the Museum’s own collection. 

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility will have a planned maintenance outage for two weeks from 30th August to 13th September 2021. Across this time, the mechanical process will be shut down and regular operations will cease. The yearly outage allows the inspection, maintenance and cleaning of equipment at the Facility, to ensure that ongoing operations continue to run efficiently and in accordance with environmental requirements. 

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility has released its 2021 Annual Customer Satisfaction Survey. The survey allows local residents, suppliers, visitors and anyone with an interest the opportunity to provide feedback on their experience of the Facility and communications from Urbaser Balfour Beatty as the contractor.

Today (26th July, 2021), the Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility has launched a new film demonstrating how the Facility works. The film describes the energy from waste process and follows the journey household residual waste takes from the Facility’s weighbridge and tipping hall to its combustion and production of electricity which helps to power homes across Gloucestershire. The short film is available to watch on the Facility’s website.

Applications for the 2021 Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Community Fund are now open. The annual Community Fund provides financial grants to support projects that have environmental, social, and/ or community benefits to the constituted community groups and parish organisations from Hardwicke, Quedgeley, Brookthorpe-with-Whaddon, Haresfield, Harescombe, Standish, Moreton Valence, and Whitminster.

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility marked a successful first 12 months of operation at the end October 2020. In this time, it has treated 177,582 tonnes of waste, recovered 41,270 tonnes of Incinerator Bottom Ash (IBA), the collective name for metals, Incinerator Bottom Ash Aggregate (IBAA) and IBA oversize, for recycling. In addition, the Facility has produced 118,920 MWh electricity, that is the net production value, which was exported to the National Grid.

A brand-new short animation has been unveiled by Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility. The film explains how the Facility operates, detailing the energy from waste process and how electricity is generated. It is available to view on the Facility’s website.

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility is proud to champion the 4Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Recover. Through these processes, the Facility helps to divert over 90% of Gloucestershire’s household residual waste from landfill.

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility has released its Annual Customer Satisfaction Survey. The survey provides local residents, suppliers, visitors, Councillors and others with the opportunity to feedback on their experience of the Facility and its employees.

The Gloucestershire Energy From Waste Facility received a £12,850 grant from the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) to develop GCSE Curriculum Education Plans for the benefit of students in and around Gloucestershire. The Engineering Education Grant Scheme (EEGS) provides support for UK-based educational projects that increase engineering knowledge in young people.

The Gloucestershire Energy from Waste Facility will have a planned maintenance outage for two weeks from 25th September to 9th October. During this period, the facility will be shut down and regular operations will cease. The outage allows the facility to ensure equipment is cleaned and processes are running efficiently, helping the facility to run in a way that’s cost effective and environmentally sound.