The long-awaited Dublin Waste to Energy Poolbeg Incinerator facility opened its gates to accept its first delivery of waste from its first customer –  Thorntons Recycling.

The familiar shiny red Thorntons Recycling trucks began the process that will see a supply of electricity to 80,000 homes with a district heating system awaiting the development of infrastructure.

Following on from this first delivery Thorntons Recycling will provide 150,000 tonnes per year of unrecyclable municipal waste for the conversion to energy. The company has a recycling and recovery  rate that sees over 90% of waste collected recycled and diverted from landfill.

Thorntons Recycling CEO Gary Brady explained the benefit of the new facility in reducing the need for landfill. “There have been issues with capacity in landfills in recent times so this new 600,000 tonne facility will  ensure that there is a home for material while at the same time producing electricity and heating. This is a more sustainable long-term local solution for waste management and will improve our national Recovery effort”

Thorntons Recycling prides itself on utilising best available technologies and practises.

How does the process work?

The facility will handle general non-recyclable waste, which up to now may have been landfilled or exported.

Waste delivered to the facility is  placed onto the 2,000 square metre mixing floor and lifted by crane from there to ‘hoppers’ that feed  the combustion area where it is burned.

The combustion chamber burns the waste and the resulting heat is channelled through steel tube lined walls converting to steam, which drives a turbine-driven generator producing electricity.

This electricity will be sent to the grid while the cooling steam returns to the water boiler tubes effectively completing a ‘closed loop’ efficient system.

Paul Thornton oversees the first deliveries from Thorntons Recycling.

20 Year Project

Since 1997 when the four Dublin local authorities approved a waste management strategy focussed on recovering energy from thermal treatment there has been much research and discussion about Ireland’s newest waste incinerator.

An Bórd Pleanála granted permission in 2007 for the plant to be built on Dublin’s Poolbeg peninsula.

In 2014 work finally began on the plant by US energy firm Covanta at an estimated cost of €600 million.

Thorntons Recycling were the first company to sign a long-term agreement with Covanta for the supply of material.

It is expected that the facility will be fully operational by September 2017.

The plant is expected to be operational for 45 years.

Paul Thornton with Covanta Energy Ireland Managing Director John Daly