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| |  | | Opposition to Incinerators is Rising
by Roger Harrabin | | | | Research for this programme has revealed a growing wave of public opposition to incinerators.
Since the start of last year, seven out of 12 planning applications for incinerators round the country have been turned down by local councils after fierce local opposition. This reverses the previous trend when the majority of applications were approved.
Waste policy is fast becoming a deeply uncomfortable issue for the government. Councils have been told by the European Union to reduce the amount of household waste sent to landfill to a third by 2020 but they're lagging so badly that Britain will face large fines unless they radically improve.
Ministers had expected new incinerators to take up much of the waste currently sent to landfill - but our research shows that growing public animosity may reduce this option or ultimately remove it altogether. Friends of the Earth say they have more calls on incineration than any other issue.
Opposition is also mounting to other waste options. A major row over a large composting site bringing lorries and possibly unpleasant odours to the village of Longham in Norfolk is seen as a precursor of nationwide composting battles to come.
The Prime Minister's think tank will report in the autumn on its ideas for getting Britain out of the mess on waste. It's a massive problem for the government which provoked anger in the Press after a leak of a Downing Street suggestion that people should be charged by the bag to have their rubbish taken away.
BBC RESEARCH SURVEY OF INCINERATORS IN THE UK
PLANNING APPROVED
| Plant name | District | Capacity (tpa) | Date | | Under Construction | | | | | Kirklees | Kirklees | 135,000 | Apr 98 | | Chineham | Baskingstoke and Deane | 90,000 | Jan 00 | | Crymlyn Burrows | Neath Port Talbot | 35,000 | Summer 00 | | Approved but not yet constructed | | | | | Allington | Maidstone | 500,000 | Nov 99 | | Colnbrook, Slough | Slough | 400,000 | Autumn 00 | | Marchwood | New Forest | 165,000 | Spring 01 | | Grimsby (Stallingborough) | North East Lincolnshire | 55,000 | Spring 01 | | South Portsmouth | Portsmouth | 165,000 | Nov 01 | | Cleveland B (Haverton Hill) | Stockton-on-Tees | 130,000 | Jul 00 | | Derby Gasifier | Derby | 50,000 | Apr 02 | | Capel | Surrey Mole Valley | 110,000 | Dec01 | | TOTAL | | 1,835,000 | |
PLANNING REFUSED
| Plant name | District | Capacity (tpa) | Date | | Planning Refused | | | | | Redhill | Reigate and Banstead Borough Council | 215,000 | Dec 01 | | Ridham Dock | Swale District Council | 225,000 | Oct 01 | | Kidderminster | Worcestershire County Council | 150,000 | Apr 01 | | Hull | City of Hull | 165,000 | Dec 01 | | Richborough | Kent CC | 150,000 | Jul 01 | | Slyfield | Guildford | 225,000 | Dec 01 | | Edmonton B | Enfield | 300,000 | May 02 | | TOTAL | | 1,430,000 | |
(Sources:Commons Research Paper 02/34 and Friends of the Earth)
According to these figures, then, ten were approved and seven were refused.
In terms of capacity (measured in tonnes per annum), this translates to 1,835,000 approved and 1,430,000 refused. In other words, nearly 45% of planning applications have been refused (in capacity terms).
At least 35 new incinerators are being proposed across England and Wales as part of various local authorities' Waste Local Plans, but - given the reluctance with which local authorities seem to be granting planning permission for such projects - it would appear that many of these incinerators are unlikely to gain planning approval. There has been a noticeable swing away from approvals in the past year.
LINKS
Britain Fails to Recycle Enough WasteUK Waste Summit
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| |  | | An incinerator near Pontypool. | | | | | |  | |
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