TPN pallet recycling scheme doubles monthly input

TPN’s scheme for free recycling of broken and expired pallets proves huge environmental and commercial success

22 February 2021 Minworth UK: THE Pallet Network’s pallet recycling scheme which allows Partners to take their expired pallets to the Hub for use in carbon-neutral energy generation, has saved 300 tonnes of wood from landfill in its first six months.

January’s total input to MDF or energy production reached 78 tonnes – and that does not include the pallets TPN salvaged for upcycling and re-use.

“We’re very proud of this scheme and of how wholeheartedly our Partners have committed to ensuring that their end of life pallets do not meet unsustainable ends,” says commercial director Allen Rees.

Typically hauliers face large bills for sending broken or expired pallets to landfill or resort to burning them, which can cause air pollution and unmitigated carbon release.

TPN’s scheme encourages its haulier Partners to use spare trailer space to transport broken pallets to the central Hub in Minworth, where they are sorted and loaded into a trailer bound for a recycling centre. The service is free of charge to Partners, and because it uses spare trailer space, reduces the carbon footprint off the scheme itself.

The scheme started in July 2020, and had recycled 144 tonnes of pallets by November, an average of 28 tonnes a month. However, by mid-February it had more than doubled these figures with January alone contributing 78 tonnes.

“This is a typical TPN solution, in that it is win-win for everyone. We can provide a free solution for our Partners, which saves them the cost of disposal,” says Allen. “More importantly we are also lowering the carbon footprint of the industry and removing the strain on local landfills all over the UK.”

He says that TPN has always intended this scheme to inspire other logistics companies to take similar action and is delighted that TPN.ie has started to accept Partner pallets for its own carbon-neutral energy generation plant.

“The best solutions benefit everyone so it makes sense for everyone to participate, or to find or create a similar alternative,” says Rees. “The carbon footprint of the logistics sector is substantial and it is incumbent on us all to innovate in finding ways to combine environmental sustainability with commercial sustainability.”