Shrewsbury incinerator planning inquiry begins
Tuesday 27th September 2011, 1:20PM BST.
Building a £60 million incinerator in Shrewsbury would be the ‘the wrong type of development, in the wrong place, at the wrong time’, a planning inquiry today heard.
Waste firm Veolia wants to build the facility at Battlefield Enterprise Park and began its appeal today against last year’s decision by Shropshire Council to refuse it.
The application is being re-examined by planning inspector John Woolcock in a hearing which may last for about five weeks.
In his opening statement, Hugh Richards, representing Shropshire Council, said there were a number of reasons the mass burner should not be built.
“It’s size and scale will adversely affect the setting of the nearby registered Battlefield site and will be out of keeping with the character of the surrounding area,” he said.
“There is general local concern about the effects on the economy and the health of the population. For these reasons the council opposes the proposed developments at this inquiry. It is simply the wrong development, in the wrong place, at the wrong time.”
Veolia claims that the burner could generate enough power to supply 10,000 homes, as well as reducing the amount of waste going to landfill to just five per cent.
Rhodri Price Lewis, QC representing Veolia, said that he intended to prove the importance of the incinerator to Shropshire as well as dealing with concerns raised about the size and scale of the development.
He added: “The proposals will enable the sustainable management of waste, then recover renewable and low carbon energy and form an integral and pivotal part of a sustainable waste management service provided under the terms of a contract awarded to the appellant by what is now Shropshire Council.”
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looks like quite a good turn out for the protestors – sorry i couldnt make it but i have signed the petition against this toxic chimney and im supporting the anti burning camp
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this is a hangover from the spendthrift days of labour, a pfi project to construct a gargantuan combustion unit the likes of which they have in paris, london and new york. Little Shrewsbury probably produces about 20,000 tonnes of rubbish a year – it doesnt warrant such expense, the analogy for me would be getting a big double decker bus to run round the rural lanes it would just be the wrong place for it, its a one size fits all solution imposed from whitehall which no one wants in our pretty medieval town
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another white elephant like the famous quantum leap, more of my money up in smoke, wish they would put as much effort into actual waste collection, basic service and they cant provide that proper
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lets hope the enquiry backs the will of the people and democracy wins and they turn down this un needed burner
lets have cleaner, greener, cheaper solutions like recycling instead please
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cant dump it in the ground any more, why not dump it in the sky!
Now thats joined up thinking
Crazy
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