Go-ahead for waste treatment project

Jan 30 2008 by Liam Murphy, Liverpool Daily Post

A CONTROVERSIAL waste disposal and power plant in Wirral was last night given the go-ahead by planners in the face of strong opposition from residents and campaigners.

They have grown increasingly vocal in their protests about the Biossence scheme to build a 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 in waste, mostly from Liverpool, to the site.

But they also fear the untested recycling plant is located in a dangerous place near a terminal which stores 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 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 a range of products, including chemicals and petrol.

But last night Wirral Council’s planning committee finally approved the scheme at a meeting held at Wallasey Town Hall, attended by around 20 protesters.

Eastham Ward Lib Dem councillor Tom Harney, who spoke against the development last night, said: “I’m disappointed and the residents who have been campaigning against this development are upset.

“One always hopes there’ll never be a problem with it but we have to plan for the worst.”

According to a report to the planning committee, Kanebsaid they had concerns about potential traffic congestion and said on and off site emergency plans will need to be adapted to cater for the new development. They also said there are concerns about waste storage affecting their staff members’ health.

The Environment Agency objected that no flood risk assessment had been carried out, but that has since been done.

A decision on the plans was deferred last month so further inquiries could be made with the Health and Safety Executive, 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 to Biossence’s proposals.

After last night’s decision, Biossence Managing Director Dr Ralf Trottnow said: “We are very pleased our application has been approved which means we can now press ahead.”

liammurphy