WESTBURY Town Council will be hosting a public meeting to discuss plans to build a new waste treatment plant on the Northacre Industrial Park.
The planned facility, owned by Northacre Renewable Energy – a company owned by Hills Group – has attracted concern from members of the public and environmental groups who have spoken of concerns of airborne waste emissions from the plant.
Representatives from Hills Group, the Environment Agency and Wiltshire Council have been invited to the public meeting.
Hills Group will be attending the Westbury Area Board meeting at the Laverton this Thursday, 7th December, to present their proposal for the waste treatment plant to the public.
But the town council feels a public meeting is necessary to provide an opportunity for the council and community to ask questions and share their concerns and to hear more about what the incinerator is, and what the health implications are.
Westbury Town Council also plans to ask Wiltshire Council to carry out a full health risk assessment prior to any operation taking place.
Cllr Mike Sutton said, “There is great unease in the town about the health and traffic risks from the proposed incinerator and the residents of Westbury and surrounding areas would like some answers to their concerns. A health risk assessment seems very little to ask for at this stage.
“We have no faith in consultations and would like a public meeting with the relevant parties to both express concerns but also maybe to have those concerns allayed.
“Having recently had one polluting chimney pulled down, it is understandable that residents have concerns about another one replacing it within the community.”
Mayor of Westbury, cllr Gordon King added, “I am keen that this meeting will be part information, part education and mostly an opportunity for the public voice and as such, I am talking to Hills, Public Health, Public Protection and the Environment Agency with a view for their participation.
“Owing to the proximity to Christmas and an already crowded calendar, my initial thoughts are that it is unlikely that we will be able to hold this meeting before January or early February.”
As well as the meeting hosted by the town council, the community have been promised a public consultation by the Environment Agency that will allow all concerns to be addressed about the planned facility, owned by Northacre Renewable Energy. The public consultation will be triggered when an application is made for a permit to allow waste emissions to air under the Industrial Emissions Directive.
The power plant, owned by Northacre Renewable Energy has received planning permission to be built on land between the Northacre Resource Recovery Centre and Arla Dairies on Stephenson Road, just over a mile from Westbury town centre. Its main chimney will stand at 60m (200 foot) tall – nearly half the size of the chimney at the old cement works.
The 22 megawatt power station would be expected to operate 24 hours a day and would produce electricity via ‘gasification’; a process involving heating special fuels made from rubbish at temperatures up to 1,600ºC.
Any emissions from the proposed gasification plant would have to comply with the requirements of the Industrial Emissions Directive before the plant could be issued with an environmental permit by the Environment Agency.
Northacre Renewable Energy Ltd has until 2020 to start building the incinerator.
