LOCAL MP Andrew Murrison asked Prime Minister Theresa May for a moratorium on new waste incinerators including gasification and pyrolysis plants at Prime Minister’s Questions – starting with the proposed gasification plant that Hills Waste wants to build in Westbury.
Dr Murrison pointed out that the excess incineration capacity that now exists in the UK is putting downward pressure on efforts to reduce waste generation and to reuse and recycle it, which are much greener and less damaging options. He also pointed out that a moratorium would burnish the UK’s strong application to host the 2020 UN Climate Change Conference.
Speaking afterwards he said, “The PM gave a considered reply suggesting that she was considering the introduction of an incinerator tax to promote recycling. Such a tax would also replace falling revenues from the successful landfill tax and has much to commend it, although I would prefer an outright ban on new incinerators and related operations.”
Local community champion, activist and Westbury Gasification Action Group (WGAG) member Dan Gmaj has welcomed the move, saying, “It is really encouraging to see our MP standing alongside a unified community to call for ‘a moratorium on new incinerator, gasification and pyrolysis applications’ and I applaud his recent inclusions at government committee and his statement made to the Prime Minister on behalf of his constituents, in direct opposition to the Hills / NRE ATT incinerator planned for Westbury.
“We will now have to wait and see if the ATT application (Plan 3), as ludicrously approved on grounds of being ‘almost invisible’ by the ‘experts’ at Wiltshire Council, will now go beyond the ‘call in’ process to public enquiry, or possibly be rejected outright citing the ‘Precautionary Principle’ or more rigorous new information. New information was indeed, presented at the debate and questioned the requirement for new incineration ‘at all’ in the light of current recycling achievements and future targets.
“In all the excitement of last week, it is easy to forget, so I will remind you, that two other applications (1 & 2) on same site, are also ‘still live’ and yet another additional application has just been filed for a ‘cross county border trench’ to connect the locally named ‘Cathedral of Waste’ to the power grid (close to Beckington). This would be ‘renewable’ energy according to NRE/Hills, but in reality a more accurate description would be ‘rubbish renewables’ i.e energy from burning materials that are only renewable so long as we keep producing or getting them in from elsewhere to meet funded burning targets! In simple terms, we are being asked to go along with ‘perverse industry incentives’ as they were called in the most interesting debate led by John Grogan MP.
“Any objections or comments on that application i.e the grid connection trench (19/02481/FUL) must be made by Friday 26th April and the fight goes on! Well done Westbury!”
In response, a spokesperson for Northacre Renewable Energy – part of the Hills Group which is making the application to build the waste plant in Westbury- said, “Northacre advanced thermal treatment facility has the potential to become a critical element of Wiltshire’s waste management and energy infrastructure. The Northacre facility will turn waste, which would otherwise be landfilled or driven great distances to Europe, into enough renewable energy to power 46,000 homes. It will also eliminate the need for thousands of long distance lorry trips, helping to deliver significant local economic and environmental benefits.
“As we progress with the project we are determined to work closely with stakeholders and the local community to ensure that we operate as considerately as possible and address any concerns people may have.”
