HUNDREDS of thousands of tonnes of Merseyside’s rubbish could be taken 140 miles away to be burnt in an incinerator, waste officials confirmed yesterday.
Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority (MWDA) announced its preferred sites to host a huge waste disposal facility capable of handling at least 300,000 tonnes of rubbish a year.
One of them is on the other side of the country near Middlesbrough, in Teesside.
Environmentalists last night labelled the plans “unethical”.
The MWDA is also considering a plan to build an incinerator in Ince Marshes, on the banks of the River Mersey, in Cheshire.
It wants to build an “energy from waste” plant which will burn non-recyclable waste and use the heat to generate power or warm people’s homes.
The announcement of the two sites followed an unsuccessful four-year trawl of Merseyside and Halton for suitable places for the plant.
Earlier this year, the Daily Post revealed the MWDA paid £100,000 to a landowner to secure the exclusive rights to negotiate the purchase of a site in Hooton Park, near Eastham.
The authority last night admitted the cash was wasted because the option to buy the site was not being taken up.
The shortlisting of Ince Marshes and the Teesside site, known as Wilton International, means Merseyside and Halton households will avoid seeing rubbish burned in their own back yards.
But last night, Liverpool Friends of the Earth (FoE) said communities should take responsibility for their own waste. FoE spokesman Frank Kennedy said: “Waste which arises in a fixed area should be dealt with in that given area. It makes no sense to be transporting Merseyside waste to Teesside – but also there are parts of Merseyside which are not on the doorstep of Ince Marshes.
“If we all produce waste, we are all responsible for dealing with it. There is no point in turning a blind eye and hoping someone else mops it up – that is unethical.”
Two firms are bidding to run the facilities.
Covanta wants to run an incinerator on the Ince Marshes site, and Sita is hoping to open one in Teesside.
Asked about the huge distance between Merseyside and its proposed site, a Sita spokesman said: “We will be putting forward a transport plan as part of our bid, which would include rail transport.
“We are in a competitive dialogue process. Both bids will be evaluated through the proper procedure.”
Defending the £100,000 Hooton Park exclusivity deal, MWDA director Carl Beer said: “The commercial environment meant the authority was in competition with other interested parties, and it was important at that time to secure a site for the authority’s use.
“The decision to make the payment was made in the full knowledge this amount was non-returnable if the authority decided not to use the site.”
MWDA chairman Cllr Kevin Cluskey said: “I am delighted the elected members of the authority’s board accepted these two sites to go forward in the procurement process.
“I am confident the future contract will provide the best solution for Merseyside and Halton, with value for money for taxpayers in these times of austerity.”
