Permit issued for Battlefield waste incinerator plan
Tuesday 22nd June 2010, 1:30PM BST.
Controversial plans for a £60 million incinerator proposed for the outskirts of Shrewsbury today moved a step closer to becoming a reality after environmental bosses issued it with a permit.
The Environment Agency said it had agreed to issue an environmental permit for an energy-from-waste facility at Battlefield in Shrewsbury.
Last year Veolia Environmental Services Shropshire Limited submitted plans, which has sparked strong objections from some residents and campaign groups.
Veolia claims it could generate enough power to supply 10,000 homes and reduce the amount of waste going to landfill to just five per cent.
The permit, which has been issued under the Environmental Permitting (England & Wales) Regulations 2010, will require the company to comply with all relevant legislation including strict air emission and monitoring standards.
Although the permit has been issued, following consultation, it will still need planning permission from Shropshire Council before it can be built.
And the agency said it would also closely monitor the facility once it is up and running if plans for it are approved.
Dafydd Evans, area manager at the agency, said: “We have carefully considered all the responses made during consultation and have issued this permit because we are satisfied it contains the necessary conditions and control measures to ensure protection of human health and the environment.”
“Issuing the permit is only the first stage in our regulation of the facility.”
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this is a disgrace, incinerators are proven to pollute with deadly gases and dust and must not be allowed, further more we cannot afford to pay for this thing any way as the labour guy said “there is no money left”
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incinerators are expensive a wasteful, all the heat is lost to the sky and the rubbish turned into thousands of tonnes of ash which still needs to be landfilled, better to take that rubbish and get all the recycling out of it with magnets and machinery
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if they made recycling more straight forward and simple for people more people would join in and they would not need to dispose of so much rubbish, where my aunty lives they have a single bin for all recyclign and the recycle all types of plastic not just bottles its much easier for all and so everyone does it because its not such a hassel
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correction – the whole point of the Environment Agency issuing a permit is that they have permission to pollute because the process is of minimal risk to health, safety / environment, so the head line should be Waste Plant Ruled OFFICIALLY CLEAN
the NIMBY Green groups need to study the science
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Indeed, Daniel.
The technology in-built into such Energy From Waste / Combined Heat & Power schemes is fascinating, clean, and incredibly more efficient than a comparable windmill on a hillside.
Much better to cleanly burn waste material, than waste a clean conscious on the millions of tonnes of recycling shipped to other countries at huge expense.
As you say Daniel, the science needs to be examined. Being involved in the industry (well, water / waste / CHP / biomass projects) I can – if asked – post some links and specifications to the performance of similar EfW plants in the country.
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Local people quite reasonably want to protect their families’ health and their local environment.
daniel thomas and winja want them to ‘study the science’.
Locals wanting to know what sort of science winja would like them to study may be interested to know that he thinks UKIP’s Deputy Leader Lord Christopher Monckton and the Heartland Institute (a right-wing US think-tank) are more reliable sources for the science of climate change than the IPCC and the national scientific academies of 32 countries (see winja’s comments on this thread http://www.shropshirestar.com/news/2010/06/15/wrekin-mining-group-in-call-for-support/ #17 reply June 18, 2010 at 19:49 and June 19, 2010 at 18:22.)
It takes all sorts, as we all know… but winja’s science may need a large sign post on it from now on saying ‘Beware’ or ‘Diversion’ or ‘Dead End’ .
Anyway, I’m sure that the more that locals study the science of fine and ultrafine particle emissions, or study how unsustainable it is to burn valuable resources, the more they will conclude that they don’t want this expensive, unpopular incinerator, which will undermine recycling and saddle us all -if it is possible!- with yet more debt.
So, in a funny sort of way, I agree with daniel and winja.
We should all study the science.
But our conclusions may be different from theirs.
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huw makes a good point, the “science” that says this burner is safe is the same scientists who want us to eat Genetically Modified food and Floride in the water, the same people who thought radiation, tabacco and themidilide would be “safe”
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Just another example that public consultation is a waste of time. The views of local people count for nothing against vested interests.
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i am very suprised by this because it is so close to housing and schools, i hope the environment agency are very clear of their view on this as it will undoubtedly be subjected to legal challenge by concerned environmental and health organisations about the dioxin and the dust and the acid rain which are all dangerous to human health and local wildlife
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we are totally against this and thankfully our MP Daniel is too and with the councillors support we can still stop this folly
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Lets see what happens to the value’s oN property of those who are unfortunate enough to be in the path of the drop-out or fall-out from this mess from the sky.
This is not taking into account of the smell that WILL COME, so stop it now. Be for it’s to late.
Once it’s built there will be no turning back.
Is it any wonder why property to the South of town is in such demand?
Would you want to live near this? I THINK NOT.
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Still, it’s only Harlescott so what’s the problem?
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exactly that place is a dump already why not put all the rubbish there!! haha
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London Road v Whitchurch Road. The Incinerator has nothing to do with the house prices mate.
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In the light of today’s budget where does £60million for an incinerator fit in with cost saving.
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its not just £60m is it, the Council is “renting” it on hire purchase through a PFI scheme so it will pay more than twice that, just like you do when you take out a mortgage, its a total rip off and its more like £400 m when you add in the waste disposal fees charged by the operator and the credit card interest rates charged on the PFI loan
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the problem with this project is that its PFI funded so its like being bought on a credit card, i would expect this from labour but hope the new conservatives will put an end to such folly. besides this it actually takes money away from recycling and waste reduction programmes thus it becomes a self feeding little money trap sucking in taxpayer money for years to come
i just hope the councillors remember their electorate, there are no votes in incineration
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i would rather my taxes were spend on better collection services for a starter weekly collections should be the norm and all plastics should be recycled that is much more of a priority than this white elephant
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i am against this because it diverts financial resources and physical resources in the rubbish away from recyclign
if this is turned down for planning the council will save hundreds of millions of pounds
some of which could go on improving recycling which would be more popular, cheaper and greener than this burner idea
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i am not suprised the “science ” said radiation from nuclear power would be safe too, this is crazy we must hope that the planning committee will recall that the local plan specifically rules out mass burn incineration at this site and turns this burner down
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forget the environment, as bill clinton said its the economy stupid, and in the current climate this is simply unaffordable
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Forget the environment and our children’s future becomes unaffordable.
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Oh come on now Huw, This hardly signals the end of the World.
Stop worrying so much about the future because it will just make you miserable today.
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Did you say the same to these campaigners in Telford, spencer? http://www.shropshirestar.com/latest/2009/12/08/joy-as-burner-bid-is-binned/
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Not too sure where you’re coming from with that one Huw. You posted the link so read my comment.
I was clearly in favour of burning waste to make electricity. Isn’t that what recycling is all about. So much better than just sticking it in a whole in the ground and forgetting about it.
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from the information I’ve seen producing electricity is not a priority or even one of the reasons for building the Shrewsbury incinerator.
There are much safer, more creative and useful things to do with many classes of waste than to use huge amounts of electricity to burn them. The incinerator is a cash cow for Veolia but bad for the council’s long term finances as well as potentially damaging to the health of the population.
SABC and SCC haven’t been at the forefront of recycling and waste management but they are making an effort. For those of you who make so much waste that your bin is full in a week I suggest you learn the three Rs. At worst the wheelie bin for our family home is usually only half-full when emptied each fortnight. And
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indeed if this goes ahead it will put your council tax up for years to come and could bank rupt the council. the finances of the whole thing doesnt add up – it will be far cheaper to recycle more instead
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OK, spencer, if you are not sure what my point was, here are a few snippets from the article I gave the link for.
‘Thousands of campaigners were celebrating today after winning their battle against controversial plans for an incinerator in Telford.’
‘Planners last night unanimously threw out the Sita UK scheme for the waste plant saying it was in the wrong place and would ruin the landscape.’
‘More than 3,000 people signed a petition put together by protest group Telford Pain and the council also received 250 individual objections from residents.’
‘Councillors unanimously voted against the plans during last night’s meeting of Telford & Wrekin plans board.’
‘Councillor Veronica Fletcher said: “Everything will be put into that incinerator and burnt and we don’t know what’s going to go into it and I’m concerned that there will be toxins in it. They are not looking at this in an ecological way.”’
Councillors refused the application on the grounds that it was on a green network site, would be visually harmful to the area and not in keeping with the council’s plans to reduce waste.
After the meeting Stephen Pessall, co-founder of Telford Pain, said: “We are extremely pleased as a group.
A lot of people have been campaigning on this for over 12 months and what we were saying was picked up in the report and by councillors.
“Thousands of people have won tonight.”
Objections were also received from Friends of the Earth, five parish councils and Mark Pritchard, Wrekin MP, and David Wright, Telford MP.’
Do you think the people quoted above sounded ‘worried’ or ‘miserable’, spencer?
To me, it sounded like they were extremely pleased that the democratic process had worked.
Those people clearly understand that burning waste to make electricity is neither ecological nor what recycling is all about.
Please explain why you think all these people are wrong.
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well im totally against it and i think any councillor who votes to put this into shrewsbury will pay for that decision at the ballot box, its not what we want in our pretty medieval county town there are cleaner solutions besides which there is no need for this facilities there is ample already with nearby burners in stoke, birmingham, wolverhampton all under used at present because higher levels of recycling have made them unneccessary, further more there are plans for lots of new ones in the west midlands already in Staffordshire, coventry and more, so we dont need to pay for one in Shrewsbury when you can use other peoples for a much cheaper rate, also there is still actually quite alot of landfill capacity left in the midlands too and there is so much more potential for recycling still unexploited think of all the plastics which could be recycled for starters if they provided a half dsecent service for this there would be nothing left to burn/bury
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indeed it is cheaper to just use capacity at other councils facilities in the west mids but what is even cheaper still is too recycle more and this should be the main way to save the council millions of pounds
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Wasn’t the plan for the PFI-funded £1bn new Coventry incinerator halted on 8th June, apollo?
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if they just improved the recycling service so it was less effort i think they could save the £60 m, i mean they give you a dirty box with no lid, expect you to hand wash and sort it all out for them, carry it 200 yards down the road and put it out a 6AM, its a joke, we PAY them for this service and they dont even collect plastics, i mean what do they expect if no one bothers its not exactly made user friendly or simple for people is it!!!
i would axe the polluting chimney and spend the money on more men and trucks and collect more types of recycling in a more customer focused way please
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well said trev i totally agree the recycling boxes are rubbish – im a strong person for a lady but i can barely lift mine when its full with paper or glass, much easier to chuck it in the wheely bin for me, let them sort it out if they think recyclings so important!
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Shills.
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nope, that hasn’t answered the question i asked, unless you can trawl through the SS archives and find the question, ” does Huw Peach read a lot “.
Does the Shrewsbury Incinerator signal the end of the World ??
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No, but those are your words not mine, spencer.
What I said, in response to #14 was that if society forgets the environment, then it will only store up unaffordable costs for our children. This was a general statement, which covers hundreds of ecological issues, which face society.
Now, could you explain why you think the Telford incinerator campaigners should, in your words, have stopped worrying and making themselves miserable? Were they really wrong, in your opinion, to have pushed for greener alternatives?
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the council claims it wants to cut costs and this is the obvious thing to go because its not really needed anyway now we are all recyclign so much more, i think if councillors really want to prove they are serious about keeping council tax levels low and balancing the books they must turn down this unpopular white elephant
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call me a nimby but i am not totally against it in theory its just the location in wrong – i dont want it in Shrewsbury because it will tarnish the area, its too close to houses and schools and we know too little about the pollution outputs to be sure its really safe besides it looks all modern and shiny its not in keeping with our historic townscape
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Safe as houses right!? from the same guys who permited sellafield nuclear waste processing plant, buncefield oil depot and various other catastrophic safety problems which they said was well monitored, clean, green and safe.
the environment agency is soft on business, it has no teeth and is an unelected QUANGO, they have no right to tell us what is and isnt safe when we can see with our own eyes that burning rubbish gives off soot and smoke and dust and dirt,
we have a right to clean air
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green guru, there was a mention of ‘potentially harmful emissions’ but no mention of ‘soot and smoke and dust and dirt’ in Telford and Wrekin Council’s recommendation to refuse the Granville incinerator.
It’s important to stick to the facts, isn’t it?
TWC did, however, say, ‘the scheme has the potential to undermine Government and council objectives of minimising waste and … [maximising recycling]‘
Isn’t this the best argument against incineration from a green perspective?
A 27-year incineration contract will undermine the zero-waste policies which the new Environment Secretary, Caroline Spelman, called for on 15th June 2010.
what do you think, green guru?
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Have you got any ideas as to how many people have so far been killed by the Wolverhampton Incinerator.
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‘Diversion’.
Has the Wolverhampton incinerator helped or undermined recycling, twisting?
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see my comment below Huw, the PM10 and unregulated PM2.5 put out by this chimney IS a big pollution/health issue but the real concern should be the CO2 emissions
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See above, avenging angel, I used T&WC’s words, ‘potentially harmful emissions’.
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the facts are that whatever the regulator says incinerators emit deadly pollutants
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wat a loada rubbish
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this is typical of shropshire county council, take all our money – put it in a big pile – and set fire to it, thats analygous to what they do every year
what a waste of money
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all those against are just NIMBYS
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Some maybe but not all, ian.
Many people, including Caroline Spelman, the new Environment Secretary, are talking about
a ‘new approach to waste’.
She said recently, ‘We cannot keep putting recyclable and biodegradable material into landfill.
It threatens the environment and wastes what are incredibly valuable natural resources.
We have an unprecedented opportunity to create the green jobs, green growth, and take our share of the green jobs of the future.’
The coalition government’s exact policy on incinerators is still not entirely clear, but if government is seen to be throwing money at an expensive linear system of waste management, while at the same time brutally slashing public spending and hinting at a new circular waste system, I think the public would want some explanation.
Isn’t it the case that there are more jobs in massively expanding recycling than in incineration?
Some Shropshire councillors are exploring the possibilities of anaerobic digestion and food waste collection, like in South Shropshire.
All of this is encouraging news.
The idea that everyone opposed to this burner is a NIMBY is demonstrably untrue.
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Just incinerate Harlescott.
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it is interesting telford and wrekin councils planners turned down their incinerator because there was too much capacity in the region already and it would limit recycling, surely telford and shrewsbury are the same region so shrewsburys planners must inevitably come to the same conclusion
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this is all so democratic a big contract signed behinded closed doors, our elected representatives need to take control of this situation and let the public mood be reflected, in these tough times we want no more gradeose projects on PFI, this must be rejected at the planning stage as part of a drive towards more customer focused, democratically accountable and lower cost local public services
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what about CO2, the UN says this is the most pressing pollution issue of all but the Environment Agency and Health Protection Agency dont regulate on this because its not immediately harmful in the same way as say arsenic or sulphur dioxide
CO2 is still a major pollution issue though and waste incinerators emit thousands of tonnes of the stuff every year burning black bag waste is mainly plastic which is oil so its like worse for the atmosphere than a coal fired power station, surely the Agency would not permit this process if CO2 was regualted in the same way as the other gases
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Incinerators DO produce CO2, avenging angel, and you are right to be concerned about it, but I think it is wrong to say that they are currently ‘worse for the atmosphere than a coal fired power station.’
According to Friends of the Earth’s 2006 document ‘Incineration: Dirty Truths’ page 3 (which I recommend to people interested in accurate information on this issue) incinerators currently produce 40% less CO2 than coal-burning power stations.
So, yes, incinerators produce CO2 but not as much as you are saying.
However, there ARE much greener alternatives if we want to slash CO2 emissions.
Anaerobic digestion, gasification and burning organic waste in a dedicated biomass plant produce NO FOSSIL-FUEL-DERIVED CO2 (see page 4).
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un believable have these so called environmental experts not heard of pm2.5, particulate matter of less than two and half microns which is so small it can be breathed deep into the inner lung where it can lead to respiratory ailments and cancers. these fine particles are so small they cant easily be monitored and so they generally get excluded from environmental regulations and ignored
seriously there are major health concerns for locals here and then there is the whole issue of dioxins which are deadly and again dont even get monitored
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i think its a white elephant/vanity project there is no real need for it especially in these times of public austerity and declining waste / increasing recycling
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i can only pray that there is some democracy left in this country and the planning commmittee will vote in the public interest as the whole contracting out of waste services in this county was done behind closed doors to a foreign firm, aginst the public interest – at least stopping this will shave soimething off their profit margin and keep alive the hopes of some UK jobs in recycling instead
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its easy to say NIMBY but would you really want that ugly thing chuffing away in your area? they are ugly as sin – fine in the city or telford or whatever but not in our pecious pretty town and surrounding historical battlegrounds and special countryside
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Many of the above seem to be trying to confuse what is a pretty straightforward issue.
Telford and Wrekin Council rejected the burner out of concern about ‘potentially harmful emissions’ and the undermining of recycling.
The Environment Secretary, Caroline Spelman, has said that ‘zero-waste’ should be our target.
donovan, you said that an incinerator is ‘fine in the city or telford or whatever’.
Perhaps, as spencer has gone AWOL (#16, #17 and #20), you might say why exactly you think T&W councillors were wrong, donovan.
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this must never go ahead now surely we cant afford it any more there are more cost effective treatment technologies now like gasification and anaerobic digestion, the economics of these plants are different today than five years ago when this contract was signed – come on shropshire county council needs to keep up with the times and be flexible to evolve to modern technological changes in waste management practices
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