OVER 3,300 people have so far put their names to the latest petition against the planned waste incinerator for Westbury.
The document on Change.org is entitled Say No to the Westbury Incinerator and was started after Wiltshire Council’s planning committee gave the green light to the proposal by Northacre Renewal Energy Limited.
Steve Bennett started the petition which had 3,327 signatures as White Horse News went to press.
He says, “The proposed incinerator in Westbury will have an impact far beyond this small town in the shadow of the historic White Horse.
“The pollution caused by the process itself and the impact of an additional 300 HGVs a day carrying waste through our already stretched road networks will impact all our lives and the lives of our children even more.
“The air quality is already poor and a round-the-clock operation …will impact a huge area and a huge number of people. The plans say that up to 45 jobs will be created… what about the 250 that may be lost by Arla who produce the famous Anchor butter brand right next door to the proposed site of this incinerator?
“The plans were opposed by all local parish councils, by Arla, by local residents and even by our own MP – yet they were given the green light at council level.”
He concludes, “Say no today. Spread the word and share with your friends and families. We must and will be heard!”
Signatories commented, “This will have huge health implications in Westbury and surrounding towns. Westbury is also struggling with the volume of traffic as it is. The increase in heavy lorries will cripple the town and increase pollution.”
And, “This is a relatively small area that would suffer greatly from having an incinerator. This should not be allowed in towns and villages. Apart from pollution and the illnesses caused by that, it will also reduce the area’s natural beauty and bring house prices down.”
Another said, “Democracy is dead…This is clearly another case of big brother and big companies riding roughshod over the future of local communities and wildlife ecosystems.”
And another supporter said, “Wrong technology in wrong place, bad for locally and globally, definitely not appropriate so close to a residential area.”
You can sign the petition at https://www.change.org/p/uk-government-say-no-to-the-westbury-incinerator/c
