A DECISION is expected tonight on whether a company will be allowed to build an innovative waste disposal and power plant in Wirral.

Campaigners in Eastham have grown increasingly vocal in their opposition to the Biossence scheme to build the waste treatment and energy recovery plant at Hooton Park.

People living in the conservation village of Eastham fear they will be overwhelmed by lorries bringing waste, mostly from Liverpool, to the site.

But they also fear the untested recycling plant will be in a dangerous position near stored petrol, which they say makes it a “potentially hazardous environment”.

Marjorie Armstrong, chairwoman of the Eastham Village Preservation Society, said they were not against recycling and it was not a case of “not on our doorstep”, but they had genuine concerns about safety.

She said her group and local residents had safety at the heart of their objections, given the proximity of the nearby Kaneb Terminal which handles chemicals and petroleum.

According to a report to the planning committee, Kaneb Terminals Eastham Ltd said they had concerns about potential traffic congestion and said on and off site emergency plans would need to be adapted for the new development. They also said there were concerns about waste storage affecting their staff’s health.

A decision on the plans was deferred last month so further inquiries could be made with the HSE, Fire Service and Environment Agency and last night a spokeswoman for the council said all had made submissions concerning the application but none had objected.

Biossence’s plans involve building a plant which could handle up to 400,000 tons of waste a year, processing it through an combination of autoclaving and gasification, and using the resultant gas to produce electricity.

Biossence managing director, Dr Ralf Trottnow, said they intended to bring in much of the waste by barge , although those opposed to the scheme say no concrete plans have been put forward for this.

Dr Trottnow said: “It will be conditional on all our contractors and sub-contractors that they do not use village roads to access the site, either in the construction phase or when it is operational.”

Planning officers have recommended the application be approved.

Hundreds of residents living near North Road, Eastham, have contacted the council opposing the plans.

And a petition from 638 addresses in the area, plus 240 letters of objection have been lodged with the council.

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