Bore Hill Farm has become the first anaerobic digestion (AD) plant in England to be certified under a new performance scheme.
The plant, based in Warminster in Wiltshire and run by Malaby Biogas, processes inedible food waste to create biofertiliser and renewable heat and power. Annually, it generates enough green electricity to power 2,500 houses.
Certification under the Anaerobic Digestion Certification Scheme (ADCS), an industry-led initiative, is designed to raise standards and recognise good practice in the running of AD plants.
The scheme provides an independent audit process and report that help operators ensure they are meeting the required standards, as well as helping them to identify areas for further improvement. It focuses on good operational, environmental, and health and safety performance.
The ADCS has been developed in collaboration with a range of industry stakeholders including regulators, insurers, investors, and operators, and is managed by the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA), the UK’s trade body for AD.
The first in England
Bore Hill Farm becomes the second UK plant to be certified under the scheme following the certification of Granville EcoPark in Northern Ireland earlier this year.
Plant owner Thomas Minter said certification was a “milestone to be proud of”.
“I am very proud of the work our staff have put in to enable us to achieve certification so smoothly,” he said.
It is a testament to the management systems we have developed, the innovations and optimisations on site and everyone’s professionalism that have allowed us to take a leading position in this new scheme.
“Seeing regulators and insurers so actively involved in the development of the ADCS has been encouraging and now we have the basis for them to help in supporting and promoting the scheme across the industry.”
Nick Johnn, director at Aardvark Certification, the ADCS’s official certification body, said: “Mr. Minter and the team at Malaby Biogas provide a great example of the high standards which can be achieved within the AD sector, from design and construction of a good AD plant through to operational practices which minimise health-and-safety and environmental risks.
“We are pleased that they have been able to realise the benefits available to AD operators in the UK through achieving certification to the ADCS.”
Charlotte Morton, chief executive of ADBA, added: “The scheme is vital for making the UK AD industry a mature and thriving sector that delivers consistently excellent projects.
“ADBA will continue to speak to AD operators about the many benefits of the ADCS, both for operators themselves and for the wider industry, including increased support from politicians, regulators, insurers and investors.”
