THE master plan for an innovative £165m 'Plastic Park' near Ellesmere Port has been revealed.

Peel L&P Environmental says it will put forward a planning application for the proposed 30-acre facility at its Protos energy and resource hub in Grinsome Road, Ince, in "the coming months".

The first of many planned throughout the UK, the flagship site will be a one-stop shop for processing different types of plastic waste, avoiding it ending up in landfill, exported overseas or in our oceans.

The scheme aims to help deal with the 4.9m tonnes of plastic waste that the UK generates each year.

The Plastic Park at Protos, which could see more than £165m invested, will cluster together a variety of plastic recycling and treatment technologies, including:

  • A materials recycling facility (MRF) which will take dry mixed recyclables and separate out recyclates such as card, paper, glass and cans and plastics.
  • A plastic recycling facility which takes the plastic from the MRF – and plastic delivered directly to Protos – and separates out different types of plastic.
  • A Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) facility. To be developed by Enviroo , with a planning application expected later this year, it will take PET (the main material used for food and beverage packaging, such as plastic bottles) and turn it into polymers which can be used to make new food packaging products.
  • Waste plastic to hydrogen facility. With planning consent secured earlier this year, the facility is already under development and will use pioneering DMG technology developed by Powerhouse Energy Group to create hydrogen and electricity from non-recyclable waste.
  • Chemical recycling facilities which can break plastic down into its component parts to create new products or fuels.

Richard Barker, development director at Peel L&P Environmental, said: "Currently only around a third of the 4.9 million tonnes of plastic that the UK throws away each year is recycled, meaning we urgently need new infrastructure.

"The pandemic has highlighted how essential this material is to everyday life, but how it is dealt with when it comes to the end of its life needs addressing.

Chester and District Standard:

How the Enviroo recycling facility would look at the proposed Plastic Park near Ellesmere Port.

"Our first Plastic Park will be at our flagship strategic energy and resource hub, Protos. It will bring together a range of technologies each designed to maximise the value we can get from plastic waste.

"With front end sorting we can make sure that as much plastic as possible is recycled and then use innovative technologies to either create fuels, such as hydrogen, or new products from what’s left.

"We can take any type of plastic, whether it’s been mixed or separated, so it’s a simple solution for local councils."

Tim Yeo, chairman of Powerhouse Energy Group added: "We are delighted that our DMG technology is to play such a key role in Peel L&P Environmental’s Plastic Park strategy.

"And we are particularly proud to be part of Protos as one of the key projects driving forward the net zero economy in the North West and part of the region’s plan to become the first low carbon industrial cluster by 2030.

"Being on the Plastic Park will give us easier access to materials from other businesses on site that can then be turned into hydrogen and electricity.

"We can create value from what is otherwise a waste product. We’re looking forward to opening the plastics to hydrogen facility next year, and welcoming neighbours that share our vision."

The Plastic Park will be situated on the existing 54-hectare Protos site which brings together large energy users with sources of low-carbon energy, and clusters together resource management technologies.

Protos was granted outline planning permission in 2009, which included the provision of a plastic recycling village.

It is one of the key projects driving forward Net Zero North West – the industry led industrial cluster which is aiming to develop the UK’s first low carbon industrial cluster by 2030.