Message from the Chairman

It is now well over a year since I was appointed as Chairman of the Board of Directors of SELCHP Ltd. It has certainly been an eventful and enjoyable year for me and I am very pleased to report that the plant has continued to fulfil its important role in the local community.

Many people will have noted the change of the Onyx name. This now associates its image more directly with its parent company, Veolia Environnement. The change serves to emphasise that waste management is closely linked to energy services, transportation and water management. These topics are obviously linked with critical national issues that extend from climate change caused by the growth of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, to the security of electricity supply and the imminent water shortage in the Southeast! We can be proud of the fact that SELCHP is making an important contribution to mitigating many of these problems.

Firstly, by recovering electrical power from that part of waste that cannot be economically recycled or reused, we are providing a contribution to a nationally secure source of energy. Furthermore, because the fuel is largely renewable biomass, which does not make a net contribution to atmospheric carbon dioxide, we also assist in the reduction of UK greenhouse gas emissions.

Secondly, by diverting waste from landfill, we are helping to avoid the emission of methane from rotting organic material in the landfill site. This is important because methane is more than twenty times worse as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.

Thirdly, by disposing of 90% of the volume of waste close to its source in the city, SELCHP is making an important contribution to reducing the transport of waste from its source to distant landfill sites. The lessening of road congestion and reduction of the associated vehicle emissions are both beneficial factors. The significance of this is apparent when one realises that there are hundreds of lorries taking waste daily from other parts of London to landfill sites near Bedford and elsewhere.

Finally, according to a new report from the Greater London Authority, there are significant opportunities to create heat networks that will provide affordable heat and power to London homes and businesses. It is appropriate that SELCHP should provide some of the clean and secure heat for such schemes. We can therefore anticipate exciting developments in this area in the future.

Professor Jim Swithenbank
BSc, PhD, FREng, FInstE, FIChemE