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Greenstar forms €40 million partnership with Bedminster

Greenstar and Bedminster to lead the way in development of national composting infrastructure

The project involves the investment of circa €40 million over three years and will assist the company achieve its objective to maximise the diversion of biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) from landfill. The proposed facilities, which are subject to site selection, planning and licensing, will service specific waste regions.

Ireland's proposed national biowaste strategy, as laid out in the Government's 1998 policy document "Changing our Ways", requires the diversion of 50% of household waste and 65% of biodegradable municipal waste from landfill by the year 2013. The policy requires that alternative waste management methods are found to treat circa 300,000 tonnes of biodegradable municipal waste per annum thereafter. Once all plants are operational, the new joint venture expects to handle over 100,000 tonnes of organic material per annum.

The project will also bring Ireland a step closer to meeting its obligations under the EU Landfill Directive, which is due to be enacted into Irish law within the coming 12 months. It will also help Ireland reduce carbon emissions as required under the Kyoto Protocol.

The patented Bedminster bio-energy technology uses a biological process to convert the organic material by way of a digesting system to a clean bio-fuel, which has the same energy value as peat. The investment in composting infrastructure is part of an ambitious expansion plan announced by Greenstar earlier in the year.

Steve Cowman, chief executive of Greenstar, commented on waste management infrastructure in Ireland; "As the amount of waste we produce continues to soar, the only option is to invest significantly in infrastructure that will allow us meet our legislative obligations in the short term and reduce costs and environmental impacts in the medium to long term. In the future, much attention will focus on diverting organic waste from landfill, recovering the resource and deriving valuable horticultural product or engineering material as a result, and we in Greenstar will be at the forefront of providing solutions in this regard."

On the partnership, Cowman stated that; "Our decision to utilise the technology developed by Bedminster International is testimony to its track record across the globe. It is the most efficient, environmentally positive solution available and, coupled with Greenstar's success in waste management infrastructure development, we are very encouraged about what can be achieved by this partnership".

Martin Scully, chief executive, Oyster Capital said: "This agreement with Greenstar will see the introduction to Ireland of the unique Bedminster technology for the treatment of organic waste in a most effective and efficient manner."

"Bedminster International continues to expand internationally in several major markets where it is used to convert organic material to compost and biofuel with the added benefits of significant volume reduction, the elimination of gases and leachate and the diversion of waste from landfill" he added. "Two thirds of the average waste stream is organic and the Bedminster Technology converts this into a high quality carbon neutral biofuel that can be used as a substitute for fossil fuel in the production of energy, which will greatly assist our emission reduction requirements under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme in line with the Kyoto Protocol."

Earlier this year, Bedminster, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bill McCabe-chaired Oyster Capital, signed a $200 million 25-year deal in New York for the treatment of 400 tonnes of organic waste per day with Tully Environmental.

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