Leeds is the second largest local authority in the UK.
On average, every household in Leeds produces 470kg of household waste per year at the kerbside– which is the equivalent of 5 baby elephants!
With 346,000 households in Leeds, we collect a massive 306,000 tonnes of waste each year from homes, household waste sorting sites and other recycling sites across the city.
We currently recycle around 40% of this waste. From households alone, in 2015/16 the amount was equal to the weight of 3,200 double decker buses. Our vision is to reduce waste, increase recycling and recover value from all waste in Leeds. We are achieving this in a number of ways. Through our education work with communities, we support residents to engage more with recycling, while continually seeking to improve our wide range of recycling services and facilities across the city. Part of this work is the creation of the Recycling and Energy Recovery Facility (RERF) at Cross Green.
Recycling and Energy Recovery Facility
The RERF, managed by Veolia, uses state-of-the-art technology and engineering to recover recyclable materials and energy from the city’s black bin waste. With our move away from the use of landfill sites, we have also reduced the amount of greenhouse gases being released into the atmosphere by the equivalent of taking 29,000 cars off the road each year.
As well as the environmental benefits, this has already helped to realise huge savings, which will be used for other improvements and valued services.
The RERF’s modern construction and cutting-edge features include an iconic timber-framed building, hosting the largest living wall in the UK.
Would you like to visit the Recycling and Energy Recovery Facility?
Two hour group tours are available Monday to Friday 9am to 7pm. For further tour information and to request a place, please complete the booking form (WORD 89KB) and return it to leeds.enquiries@veolia.co.uk.
Additional information
Veolia UK
