Company bids for early start

Johnsons Aggregates and Recycling Ltd have applied to vary their operating rules to include an earlier start and allow them to shift an increased volume of ash.

The company says the rule change will help them clear the “unsightly, smelly” waste that was abandoned on the 12-acre Ketley site by the previous owner, and point out that the early start will keep HGVs out of rush-hour traffic.

Two parish councils have objected to the plans, and the Telford and Wrekin Planning Committee will consider the company’s bid at a later date.

A planning statement, prepared by planning consultant Peter Bond on the company’s behalf, says Johnsons Aggregates and Recycling handle construction and demolition waste and incinerator bottom ash, which can be used as an aggregate in construction.

Their growth means they will need to open a site, south of Sinclair Gardens and north of the M54, in addition to their two others in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, he adds.

“The application site was, until around two years ago, operational,” Mr Bond writes.

“However, the previous operator has entered administration and left the site with a significant volume of abandoned waste thereon.

“This abandoned waste is unsightly, likely to attract vermin and generate odour issues.”

Mr Bond says the company plan to remove the waste and develop the site for its own needs “as soon as possible”.

Weekday operating hours are currently 7am to 7pm, and the company are now applying for “up to 10 pre-loaded HGVs” to be allowed to leave the site between an hour earlier.

Mr Bond says this means their cargo will be on building sites in time for a 7am start, and “also provides a wider local benefit of avoiding these HGVs on local roads during the early-morning peak traffic”.

No more than 72,000 tonnes of waste is currently allowed to enter the site per month, but the company want to nearly treble that to 200,000 annually, while maintaining the “50-in, 50-out” HGV limit.

Mr Bond writes: “This is possible due to the wet and dense nature of the IBA that is to be recycled at the site when compared to previous waste streams such as paper and general skip waste.”

Two parish councils have objected. Lawley and Overdale Parish Council’s letter says: “We would ask the applicant to consider the residential nature of the surrounding area.

“We appreciate that the number of lorry movements will not increase, but are concerned that the size of the lorries will be larger to accommodate the volume of waste to be removed.”

Ketley Parish Council’s “call-in” request also outlines traffic concerns.

“Traffic safety at the S-bend near the Wrens Nest [sic] public house is a major concern.

“Large vehicles already have problems negotiating this bend safely."

Story by Local Democracy Reporter Alex Moore