Winter 2023 marks the launch of the UK’s first ever ‘super shredder’ at Barking Riverside, in a groundbreaking move towards sustainable living. The installation will bring a giant 88-cm wide cardboard shredder that can handle packaging as large as TV boxes to the neighbourhood, helping local people increase the amount they are recycling.
Developed by Envac, global pioneers of the vacuum waste collection system, this innovative solution is set to transform the way residents manage large volumes of cardboard waste, preventing tons of cardboard from ending up in landfills.
The state-of-the-art shredder is not only the largest ever to be used in a residential neighbourhood, but also marks the very first time that bulky cardboard has ever been collected through a vacuum system in the UK.
The introduction of the ‘super shredder’ is the result of the collaboration between Envac and master developers Barking Riverside Limited.
The ‘super shredder’ will be connected to Barking Riverside’s existing Envac system, the underground pipe network that transports waste and recycling from inlets above ground to the collection station on Northgate Road every day. Launched in 2018, the Envac system currently transports the waste of approximately 2,000 homes through an underground pipe network using airflow, helping residents of Barking Riverside achieve an impressive average recycling rate of above 40%, surpassing the London average of 12%.
Located on Pond Street, residents at Barking Riverside will access the cardboard waste recycling system through their existing Envac fobs. When residents have cardboard waste to recycle, they can simply take it to the shredder and feed it through the opening. From there, high powered fans in the collection station will ‘suck’ the waste through the underground pipes, which can transport four cubic meters of material in just 26 seconds.
For more information on the new shredder, visit the MyBarkingRiverside portal.
By Sarah Phillips
Barking Riverside Limited
