Peel Marina silt could be recycled, Department of Infrastructure says

A temporary silt lagoon has been in place since 2020 near to Peel power station

Silt dredged from a harbour could be recycled and reused in the future.

Some 44,000 tonnes of waste dredged in 2020 from Peel Marina has been held in a temporary lagoon to dry out, with more added in 2021.

Firms capable of processing the sediment, which is contaminated with lead and cadmium, have been asked to register their interest with the Department of Infrastructure.

The department wants proposals to treat, sort and reuse the silt.

More than 3,000 tonnes of contaminated silt flows into the harbour each year.

A spokesman for the department said research had indicated soil treatment and grading could "improve its quality to such an extent that the majority would no longer be classified as waste".

That would "avoid the need for most of the material being disposed of through landfill, and provide several thousand tons of useable sand-like material for the successful contractor", he said.

Contaminated silt flows into Peel harbour each year leading to a build up of the material in the marina

In its information notice, the department said it was "seeking solutions in respect of the initial 16,000m3 of stored material" with the potential to be extended to a further "2,000m3 of sediment each year" for up to five years.

"The Department at this stage is looking to gain an understanding of the level of potential interest of companies in providing these services and more details of the services that the companies could provide," the notice said.

Interest in providing the services can be registered via the government procurement portal until 8 September.

Waste from earlier dredging of the marina in 2015 has been stored at a landfill site at Rockmount, adjacent to a government-owned quarry on Poortown Road in German.