Cooking up power – from used oil

Kirklees residents can recycle cooking oil at one of the council's waste recycling centres so that it can be collected by Living Fuels and used to generate electricity.

Tanks where waste cooking oil can be disposed of have been put at four of Kirklees Council’s five recycling centres.

The oil is collected by Living Fuels, who use it to generate power for homes and businesses in the UK.

Rob Murphy, operations director for eco-friendly firm Living Fuels, said: “We are delighted the residents of Kirklees have shown such a pro-active attitude to used cooking oil recycling.

“Thanks to their efforts we are helping to reduce climate change and bring about a more sustainable future.”

According to research, most people pour leftover cooking oil down their drain, but this damages the environment and costs the UK around £15m each year to unblock drains clogged up with oil.

In Kirklees oil can be recycled at the council’s recycling centres in Dewsbury, Birstall, Huddersfield and Meltham.

Coun David Sheard (Lab, Heckmondwike) said: “These facilities now give our residents more choice in the types of material that can be recycled locally, whilst at the same time helping to generate energy, reducing carbon emissions and saving taxpayers money.”

According to Living Fuels, one litre of used cooking oil can generate enough electricity to power an energy-saving lightbulb for 225 hours, a plasma TV for 50 hours or a DVD player for 440 hours.