Heavy rain hits output markets for composters (06.07.2007)
The recent "freak" weather has been causing problems for composters around the country - particularly in the Midlands - including some major disruption to their markets.
The rain is also speeding up vegetation growth considerably, while it is also causing headaches for composters having to deal with excess leachate. The weather affects composting more than most recycling activities
Dr Stephen Wise, general manager for SITA UK organics said "People aren't buying compost as the ground is saturated, making it harder for both landscaping and gardening."
Continuing rain mean contracts for composters to supply the landscaping industry are being delayed and "in extreme cases pushed across to next year", Mr Wise revealed.
The process of open windrow composting is also being disrupted by the weather, as the saturation from the rain makes it more difficult to aerate organic waste as it is composted.
Leachate
A number of open windrow sites are having to tanker off large volumes of leachate from their lagoons, to avoid overflow problems. The lagoons are conventionally used to drain small quantities of leachate from the composting process.
Viridor regional manager Chris Jonas Viridor said: "The rain is putting up the cost of leachate disposal because of the sheer volume."
Dr Wise said that SITA typically has to pay around £10- 20 per cubic meter for the water to be treated at waste water works.
Stockpiling
At the moment composters are building stockpiles on site for processed material not being sold. If the rain continues, some composters will have to begin giving the material away to the agricultural markets to avoid exceeding their capacity.
People aren't buying compost as the ground is saturated
Dr Wise explained that this can be an expensive move, since the agricultural market does not pay for compost, and some composters could have to pay up to £10 per tonne to spread it on farmers' land.
In the worst case scenario where agricultural land for spreading is not available, composting companies could have to reduce the amount of organic waste they accept from local authorities.
However, Dr Wise said: "This depends on the size of the site and the tonnages involved - there is a lot of flexibility in the system and hopefully it won't reach that stage."
The rainfall the UK has experienced over the last month follows a relatively buoyant time for the compost market, with good weather in March and April seeing more people out in the garden pruning.
The extra rain this month is also acting to speed up growth considerably, which could be a help to composters relying on gate fees.
Charlie Trousdell, managing director at TJ Composting Group Ltd, said a "surprising amount of green waste" was coming in thanks to the rain spurring on extra growth of grass and weeds.