Ipswich Borough Council to spend £18m on green waste hub

Plans for the site include electric vehicle charging points and a carbon neutral main building

A council has agreed to spend £18.2m on a new "green" depot for waste, street cleaning and maintenance teams.

Ipswich Borough Council will spend the money on converting the former Lebronze Alloys site in Hadleigh Road/New Way into a hub for the teams.

The site will have electric vehicle charging points and a carbon neutral main building.

A planning application is expect to be submitted in the new year by council-owned Handford Developments.

A dedicated vehicle maintenance unit will also be on the site

If the plans are approved, the teams will move out of their existing Gipping House base, which the council said was ageing and no longer fit for purpose, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The site would also house a bulk fuel tank that could accommodate hydrotreated vegetable oil fuel capabilities in case the council decides to use the fuel for its refuse vehicles.

Phil Smart, Labour portfolio holder for the environment, said: "This is a very exciting time for the council's operations, to be investing in a new depot of its own.

"The plans are still subject to a little bit of tweaking and refinement, but it is very close."

If approved, the site could be operational by September 2023.