Pembrokeshire Eco Park: A New Era in Sustainable Waste Management

Andrew Scott Limited has successfully handed over a new Eco Park Waste and Recycling Facility in Milford Haven for their Client, Pembrokeshire County Council.

The new Eco Park Waste Recycling facility will support Pembrokeshire County Council’s waste and recycling programme, in line with the Welsh Government Strategy “Towards Zero Waste”. The facility will enable materials collected across Pembrokeshire to be bulked and sorted prior to onward transfer to processing and disposal facilities across Wales and the UK.

Andrew Scott Ltd were awarded the Contract for Phases 1-3 as detailed below:

Phase 1 – Recycling Transfer Facility and Covered Waste Bay; overall internal floor area 5,855m2; external service yard area 4,340m2; together with associated access roads and infrastructure. This phase also contains an office and visitor centre, offering the opportunity for groups to come and learn about waste and recycling.
Phase 2 – Vehicle Maintenance Bay and Staff Welfare Building; internal floor area 400m2. This phase also includes staff car parking for 138 vehicles and 56 lorry parking bays.
Phase 3 – Residual Waste Recycling facility and Covered Waste Bay; overall internal floor area 2,700m2; external service yard area 3,970m2; together with associated access roads and infrastructure.

As part of this project, Andrew Scott Ltd and Pembrokeshire County Council are committed to maximising recycling and re-use of excavated materials from the existing site to promote and increase a circular economy and reduce the carbon footprint of the project and minimise the amount of construction traffic.

During the main construction phase of this project, Andrew Scott implemented the following initiatives to contribute to Sustainable Development:

100% retention of excavated topsoil on site for re-use on soft landscaping. Zero offsite to landfill.
Excavated subsoil re-used onsite within landscaping bunds and bioretention areas.
Surplus inert subsoil taken off-site to licensed waste disposal facility, for use as capping layer, with recycled imported hardcore fill materials carried on return loads, using same transport.
Use of local suppliers for ready mixed concrete, tarmacadam, sub-base, pipe bedding and filter material.
Use of local supply chain for tree surgery, reinforcement, formwork and concrete placing, security fencing, brickwork and blockwork, drainage surveys and steel fabrication, accounting for over 70% of supply chain spend.
Directly employed local labour to supplement our direct construction team.
Surface water drainage – fully compliant (SUDS) surface water drainage systems comprising major underground storm attenuation/storage systems, rainwater harvesting, bioretention swales and raingardens, flow management/hydro-brake surface water discharge control, pollution control and onsite foul wastewater treatment system.
PV solar array to main warehouse roof to produce a self-sufficient sustainable energy source to operate the full recycling facility.
Environmentally sensitive acoustic fencing and tree planting to northern boundary, to minimise noise and visual impact for adjacent domestic property owners.
SmartWaste and energy usage: recording, monitoring and control system in place for all construction activities, to minimise waste and optimise energy.
Ecology – all early construction activities carried out under strict control of site ecologist’s instructions to minimise risk of disturbance to existing badger sett discovered within the confines of the site as well as the installation of bird and bat boxes and formation of bat corridors.

Throughout the project, a total of 120,000 tonnes of waste was produced, 99% of which was diverted from landfill. A total of 114,000 tonnes of soil and stone biproduct was produced and 100% of this was re-used. Prior to and during the project, Site Waste Management Plans were established to prioritise the principles of the Waste Hierarchy, in order to minimise waste and achieve the targets set. Andrew Scott are extremely proud of the outstanding waste diverted from landfill rates achieved on this project and are highly committed to continue this progress to enhancing Environmental Sustainability on all projects.

As a sustainable business, Andrew Scott Limited’s business model is aligned to the wider global goals of achieving net zero carbon by 2050. We are committed to accelerating this time frame to achieving net zero carbon by 2030, committing to reaching zero carbon emissions across all operations, direct and in-direct. As a socially conscious contractor, our strong community benefits offering is closely tied to the Well-being of Future Generations Act, ensuring cohesive communities and a more prosperous and resilient Wales.

Throughout the project, Andrew Scott supported training opportunities for graduates and apprentices in West Wales, as well as long term sustainable employment opportunities for disadvantaged individuals from the Pembrokeshire area.

Mark Bowen, Managing Director of Andrew Scott Ltd, said “we are delighted to have handed over the new Eco Park Waste and Recycling Facility to our Client, Pembrokeshire County Council. As a Welsh contractor, we are committed to help the Welsh Government reach net-zero by 2050 and also accelerate our net zero target of 2030. We are totally committed to decarbonisation of the built environment, with a focus on reducing our emissions throughout the business and ensured that all stakeholders on this project met the goals of a globally responsible Wales.”

Cllr Rhys Sinnett, Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services, welcomed this county-wide resource for handling the Authority’s recyclate and residual waste streams. He said: “We are delighted to receive handover of this important facility from Andrew Scott Ltd. This will modernise Pembrokeshire’s recycling facilities as we work to increase recycling rates in line with the Welsh Government Strategies ‘Towards Zero Waste’ and ‘Beyond Recycling’. This facility will provide us with greater control over the waste streams we collect. We are also grateful for grant funding from Welsh Government towards the development of the Eco Park to help make this possible.”

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