Public inquiry delay could block plans for massive waste incinerator

Sep 13 2007 by Liam Murphy, Liverpool Daily Post

CAMPAIGNERS fighting plans to build a huge incinerator near their homes are hoping a public inquiry will delay the scheme long enough for someone to build one elsewhere.

Chemicals giant Ineos Chlor already has the backing of Halton Council to build the plant at Weston Point near Runcorn.

But those opposing the £330m Energy from Waste plant believe a public inquiry is their best chance of blocking the bid, because of the costs and time delay involved.

They say because other plants have been proposed nearby, includ-ing Ince Marshes near Ellesmere Port, and only one is likely to be approved, then the delay could help them win in the long run.

And despite Halton’s development control committee deciding not to ask for a public inquiry or object to the plans, the action group is con-tinuing to press the Government for an independent inspector to be appointed.

Jeff Meehan, from the Halton Action Group Against the Inciner-ator, said tens of thousands of copies of newsletters had been printed and distributed across the local area and claimed there is a “groundswell” of opposition to Ineos Chlor’s plans.

Mr Meehan said: “There are four other incinerators proposed within something like a 10-mile radius. A public inquiry could look at them and decide which is the least worst place to put one.

“While there are no good places for one of these, some-where with the least impact on human beings would be best. Ineos have vigorously cam-paigned against a public inquiry because there are other proposals for incinerators in this region all bidding to burn the same pre-treated waste, and only one can be successful.”

The anti-incinerator campaigners claim there is a risk of health-damaging dioxins being released into the atmosphere, whereas the industry maintains the plants are far cleaner than earlier versions.

The action group say Peel Holdings, which wants to build a similar incinerator less than 10 miles down the River Mersey, now face a public inquiry.

The Halton group hopes to emulate this by rallying public opinion – this latest meeting is the third since Ineos Chlor revealed their plans, with hundreds attending earlier meetings.

Mr Meehan said the area around Weston Point is more heavily populated than other locations for proposed incinerators and already had a heavy concentration of chemical works. An incinerator with an annual target of 850,000 tons would make Runcorn “the trash bin for the north west”.

No one from Ineos Chlor was available to comment.

THE residents’ action group is calling a public meeting on Monday, September 17, at The Pavilions – across the road from the inciner-ator site, in a bid to bring more pressure for a public inquiry.

liammurphy@dailypost.co.uk