A huge £10 million state-of-the-art recycling complex is set to be built in Bradford.

Former bus driver Thomas Crompton believes the plant, to be built by his company Thomas Crompton Developments Ltd on a 17-acre site between Neville Road and Barkerend Lane, will revolutionise the way building waste is treated in the district.

Work on phase one of the project is due to start next month, after Bradford Council granted planning permission for a dedicated recycling plant.

Non-hazardous building waste, including brick, wood, stone, glass and metals, will be sorted and stored there.

Phase two will see a £6 million recycling unit constructed which is expected to create 50 jobs when it is fully open.

Mr Crompton, whose Bradford-based company already employs 60 people, said he was keen to help Bradford Council meet and surpass its recycling targets.

New figures released by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs show Bradford recycled only 17 per cent of its waste compared with a national average of 22 per cent in 2004/05.

"We have a strict environmental policy which the new plant will enhance," said Mr Crompton.

"Our business is all about utilising recycled products. Such work is not only good for the environment but can also provide jobs and generate money.

"Once the new plant is up and running, we are confident that Bradford will be able to meet its recycling targets.

"We plan to use Bradford people, work with Bradford businesses and keep our profits in the city in support of Bradford causes."

Over the past three years, Thomas Crompton Developments has bought a steel plant, a former motor manufacturing site and a 19th century iron-making plant on which to develop the complex. It will also feature offices, a lorry wash, wood recycling and paper bailing operations, and a water recycling unit.

About 500 lorries a week are expected to roll in when it is completed in 2007, carrying 10,000 tonnes of recycled material. Jobs ranging from lorry drivers to plant managers will be available.

"We have got several national companies interested in working with us and a road construction company wants to order 37,000 tonnes a year of materials for road building in West Yorkshire," said Mr Crompton.

"We also hope to be in an excellent position when the Council puts out a tender for its £440 million recycling contract in 2008."

Last year Bradford threw away nearly 250,000 tonnes of waste, 30,000 more than in 2002. However, Mr Crompton believes this figure will be significantly reduced when the new plant is at full tilt.

"The work we will be doing will play a key role in reducing landfill and the need to quarry," he said.

Recycled materials from Thomas Crompton have been used in construction work at Bradford Royal Infirmary, St James's Hospital in Leeds, the new Leeds Sports Stadium and house building across West Yorkshire.

Within two years Mr Crompton expects materials from the Barkerend Lane site to be used in construction projects nationwide.

After leaving his job as a bus driver in Bradford in 1998 Mr Crompton set up his own property development business before buying a haulage lorry four years ago.

The company now boasts more than 40 vehicles.

"It's my view that you can be more profitable and successful by being environmentally-friendly," he said.

"We want to play our part in putting Bradford back on the map."