UK Rubber clears another hurdle in its plans for tyre recycling in Scotland
Planners Set Aside Network Rail Objections to UK Rubber Plant
UK Rubber is a new company that has plans to recycle almost all of Scotland’s tyre arisings. Tyre and Rubber Recycling interviews UK Rubber’s Gerry Cairns and David Ashurst in Podcast No.8, coming soon on our YouTube Channel.
The company plans to initially bale tyres but has an order in the pipeline for size reduction equipment, including a cryogenic process and eventually a microwave pyrolysis operation when the time is right.
Network Rail objected to the proposals for the tyre storage at Dalzell Steelworks, close to a mainline rail route. However, council planners set aside the objections and gave UK Rubber the go ahead to start operations.
Network Rail’s objections were based on the potential impact in the event of a fire. They claimed that a fire at Motherwell, so close to the West Coast main line would have an impact throughout the UK.
The planners stated; ““It is understandable that Network Rail should wish to avoid any such risk, but it is not considered reasonable or proportionate to prevent any activity involving waste tyres from taking place near a railway line unless there are particular risks arising from the nature of the business or the location.
“In this case, the nature of the operation and the security of the site do not appear to involve an unacceptably high probability of fire, and in the event of such a fire occurring it does not appear that the risk to public safety or railway infrastructure would be unusually elevated.
“Whilst the site is close to a busy and important section of railway line whose temporary closure would lead to significant disruption to local commuter rail services, and some disruption to long distance services, the impacts on the national network would be much less severe than at most other locations adjoining the West Coast Main Line because of the availability of an alternative route through the area.
“Overall, given the low probability of fire and the existence of other railway infrastructure which would help to reduce the disruption arising were such an event to occur, it is not considered that there are sufficient grounds to refuse the application.”
Keep an eye out for Podcast No 8 – The UK Rubber Interview.