Banbury -- WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) is launching the new Waste Prevention Loan Fund (WPLF) as announced in the Government Review of Waste Policy in England 2011. The Waste Prevention Loan Fund aims to reduce waste at source by supporting organisations to introduce business models and processes which make more efficient use of material resources. Examples include product reuse, repair and upgrading services (e.g. through leasing), and materials recovery and reuse by the manufacturer.

The WPLF has £1 million pounds (€1.1 million) to support businesses, social enterprises and local authorities over the next four years. The maximum investment will be £100,000 and the minimum will be £20,000. The £1m funding will be distributed in phases. In the first phase, a percentage of the funding will be made available as loans to assist with cash-flow for a business (retailer or product supplier) which is switching from generating immediate income through product sales to generating income from service delivery.

Applicants will need to demonstrate new approaches which offer substantial resource savings and can be scaled-up and replicated to have significant benefit at the national level. The loan fund is designed to help introduce solutions where commercial funding is otherwise not available.

Richard Swannell, Director of Design and Waste Prevention at WRAP said: “We’re delighted to be launching this new fund today on behalf of Defra, and really looking forward to seeing innovative and inspiring expressions of interest coming in from the private, public and social enterprises. We think the WPLF offers a unique opportunity for entrepreneurial thinking to make a real difference in the design and development of new products.”

Environment Minister Lord Henley said: “Preventing waste being created in the first place is not only good for the environment but also good for a company’s bottom line. This new £1 million fund will encourage inventive thinking that will be shared to offer resource efficiency savings for businesses and individuals.”

Further details about the WPLF, eligibility and the application process can be found under Waste Prevention Loan Fund.

Quelle: WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme)

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