Ireland

Strabane Waste Transfer Centre and New Works Depot

The construction of a state-of-the-art Waste Transfer/Recycling Centre and Works Depot in the town of Strabane, Northern Ireland is well underway.

Strabane District Council began planning a change to the town’s civic amenity site/recycling site, waste transfer station and works depot in 2006. The previous facilities were separate and extremely outdated so a site selection process began in a bid to find a suitable location for the new combined Waste Transfer/Recycling Centre and Works Depot.

A site at Strahans Road was chosen and Strabane District Council managed to secure planning permission on that site and statutory permissions in early 2012. Work commenced on the site in July 2013 with the demolition of existing farm buildings taking place before the new build project could commence.

Premier Construction caught up with Donal Doyle from RPS Consulting Engineers who act as the project managers and lead designers on the project. Strabane District Council set out to procure a Project Manager and a Design team in 2008. RPS was selected to fulfil this role on behalf of the Council.  GEDA Construction was then selected after an EU procurement to undertake the construction works; Architects, Consarc Design Group work as a part of the RPS team.

Donal said the works are progressing well so far with the structures erected on the two main buildings. Upon completion the site will comprise of the Works Depot building which will contain a garage for the refuse collection vehicles to be maintained, as well as office space for the management and admin staff. The depot will be self contained in one block spanning two storeys, and will also house canteen facilities, training rooms and showers.

The Waste Transfer/Recycling Centre and Works Depot is the second main building on the site covering 60 metres by 30 metres. Refuse collection vehicles will deposit waste in the centre before it is bulked up and transported away from the site.

The building has been designed so that members of the public can deposit their segregated waste materials straight into the transfer/recycling centre. The back wall of the building interfaces with the civic amenity site and has various portholes for different types of waste; enabling the public to pull up alongside the wall and deposit their waste in the appropriate place. This method saves staff from having to empty the containers in the civic amenity site as the public can deposit waste straight into the main waste transfer/recycling centre.

Donal added:

There have been some access restrictions for the local residents while the main access route to the site was upgraded and residents were directed to their houses via different routes. This was the only real disruption to people in the area and it has been managed extremely well by GEDA Construction.”

Donal said the project will offer a brand new state-of-the-art facility for the Council’s staff that combines a modern work environment with all the necessary equipment needed to carry out their roles. In terms of the provision for the public Donal said Strabane District will be given modern waste management facilities which it has never had before. The New Depot will provide a modern facility for the delivery, management and administration of frontline services to the residents of Strabane District.

He said:

The site is a huge improvement to the previous separate sites and allows for the easy separation of recycled materials. It has been a great project to be involved in right from conception through detailed design to construction. It is a high profile project in the Strabane area which has cost approximately £4.2 million to construct. A lot of local people have been employed throughout the construction phase and it has been positively received in the area.”

Chairman of Strabane District Council, Councillor Ruairí McHugh has warmly welcomed the advancement of the new Waste Transfer/Recycling Centre and Works Depot. Commenting on the Project he said:

The need for this facility was identified by Council in recent years and the development of the new Waste Transfer/Recycling Centre and Works Depot is a fulfilment of what Council set out in its current Corporate Plan. This facility will provide Strabane District Council area residents with a much needed new state of the art facility that will serve the community for many years to come.”

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