Work starts on Westbury incinerator

Construction work has started on the controversial Westbury incinerator.

Northacre Renewable Energy Ltd (NREL), the company behind the scheme, confirmed to White Horse News last week, that they have begun work.

But the news has come under fire from the local community. Local councillor Mark Bailey said it was “a blight on our community and also serves only to undermine recycling efforts” while campaigners Westbury Gasification Action Group (WGAG) say that the energy it would generate would be the UK’s dirtiest form of power.

NREL said, “Initial construction work has started at the Northacre Renewable Energy facility in Westbury.

“The initial work consists of constructing a bund and is expected to be complete by the end of December 2025. Construction work will resume in 2026 once all relevant planning conditions have been discharged, and the facility is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2028.”

Councillor Mark Bailey, Chair of Westbury Town Council’s Incinerator Monitoring Group, said, “I am hugely disappointed that NREL have started preparatory work on this unwanted and unnecessary incineration plan. Far from benefitting the local community, as they claim, it will be a blight on our community and also serve only to undermine recycling efforts.

“Once again NREL have shown their contempt for the residents of Westbury, but the town council will continue to oppose this development and do all in our power to mitigate and monitor its effects should building come to completion.”

Fellow town councillor, Matt Dean, said, “Westbury has been let down by the government and the planning process. We now need a commitment from Wiltshire Council that they won’t be a customer of this incinerator that uses old, unsustainable technology.”

WGAG said they are calling out “the delusionary and purposefully misleading statements made by NREL.

“For example, should we really need to remind them that, as reported by the BBC just a year ago that EfW (Energy from Waste) is officially the UK’s dirtiest form of power.

“Don’t worry, we will remind them of this and much more, because community, town, parish and unitary council all hold the same position, that there must be: #NoWestburyIncinerator.

“NREL / Hills / Qair may wish to keep their dream alive, but we demand an end to this nightmare.”

WGAG, along with Westbury Mayor Jane Russ have also questioned whether NREL are genuinely starting work or merely trying to protect their planning permission.

Cllr Russ said, “It will be interesting to see exactly how far this ‘work’ goes or whether they are just showing they are doing something to hold the planning application open, as they have done before.”

Dan Gmaj from WGAG said, “Our community should know that this is the second ‘apparent start!’  but does not necessarily represent a genuine ‘meaningful start’ to use the correct language. For context, the last time this happened was just days before a previous permission was due to expire and this one too, comes in timely fashion to protect an existing permission due to expire in February 2026.  Put simply, without a ‘meaningful start’ Hills / NREL and partners Qair, would simply lose the existing permission, so this performative exercise is, I believe, what we are now witnessing.  Having said that, the threat of this dystopian mega structure is still very real, and the games being played to keep permission in place are to serve this ever-present possibility.

“We must continue to call them out and end this threat once and for all!”

A spokesperson for  NREL added, “The Northacre Renewable Energy facility will treat waste locally, reducing the need for it to travel long distances.

“The facility is designed to deliver a safe, sustainable solution for non-recyclable waste and will generate energy for the national grid.

“Energy recovery facilities result in less waste ending up in landfill. This is good news for the environment because landfill produces many more greenhouse gas emissions than other methods of waste treatment.

“The facility represents a substantial investment in the local economy and will create more than 150 jobs during construction and further employment once the plant is operational.

“The Northacre Renewable Energy facility will use state-of-the-art technology to work as safely, efficiently and sustainably as possible. It will be regulated by the Environment Agency and will meet or exceed all UK regulatory standards.”

Planning permission for the incinerator was initially approved in 2019 by Wiltshire Council. However, following widespread community opposition, a second application for an incinerator using different technology was rejected by the council in 2022. This victory was short-lived, though, as a government inspector controversially overturned the decision in February 2023, granting approval for the facility.