Whilst every effort is made to recycle this waste, a significant proportion of the ‘residual’ rubbish is currently placed in containers and transported down the Thames by barge to a landfill site in Thurrock. However this site is scheduled to close in 2010.
Waiting in the wings along the Thames’ south bank in the London Borough of Bexley, is part of the answer to the problem - a brand new energy from waste facility. Capable of managing around 585,000 tonnes of residual waste each year, the new Riverside Recovery Resource plant is expected to generate up to 72MW of electricity.