Work on an environmentally friendly £39.1million recycling hub in Keynsham is under way with contractors now on site.

The contractor, Farrans, is preparing the site at Pixash Lane where Bath & North East Somerset Council is investing in the state-of-the-art facility to improve recycling for residents and help meet its Climate Emergency aims.     

Councillor David Wood, cabinet member for Neighbourhood Services, said: "I've been along to meet the teams working on this project and I am very pleased to see the progress made on site. Keynsham Recycling Hub is an ambitious project which includes a raft of innovative measures that will help us to tackle the climate and ecological emergencies.

"It will be transformational, expanding public recycling provision while future-proofing our service and meeting the need for household waste and recycling and kerbside collections now and in the future. I'm looking forward to coming back and seeing the construction progress."

The contract with Farrans was finalised after Cabinet approved the total capital of £39.1m needed to deliver the construction phase and the relocation of existing facilities from Midland Road in Bath.

The first stage of the project to be completed will be the public Reuse and Recycling Centre (RRC) which is due to be opened in late autumn.

In line with the council's climate and ecological emergency declarations and policy aims, the site design includes:

• on-site renewable energy generation, via a 3800m2 (783kWp) solar panel array
• office and welfare buildings designed fabric-first to be sustainable
• rainwater harvesting and sustainable drainage

The existing Reuse and Recycling Centre at Pixash Lane will remain open as normal for residents during the construction.

The Midland Road recycling centre in Bath will remain open until an alternative like-for-like Bath site is in place. When the Midland Road site is vacated, it will be released to build new homes supported by Homes England grant funding.

The council and Farrans will continue to work together throughout the construction period to ensure residents are kept up to date with progress on site and any activities that may affect them. You can find out more about the project and sign up for regular updates on the council website: www.bathnes.gov.uk/keynshamrecyclinghub