Planning officers have released their assessment of Veolia's planning application for the incinerator. They have recommended that the application should be accepted.
They have also recommended that the application be sent to the Government Office of the West Midlands as it is 'not fully consistent with the Waste Local Plan'.
This comes as little surprise to anyone. The application will be heard on Monday 26 July at 2pm at Meole Brace School, Shrewsbury. We strongly recommend people to try and attend this meeting even if it is only beforehand outside to demonstrate the strength of feeling against the incinerator.
Shropshire Star has put the news on the front page today with brief comments from Safe Waste in Shropshire. The planners' report is flawed and we will strongly challenge it. More news about this in due course!
There are some good comments on the Shropshire Star's web page at:
http://www.shropshirestar.com/news/2010/07/12/shropshire-council-backs-shrewsbury-incinerator
Here is ours:
Veolia claims that with the incinerator, only 5% of waste will go to landfill. So what will they do with the 25% left as ash? Even after metal extraction that is a lot of landfill. Some ash is too toxic for 'normal' landfill so it will get trucked off to special sites - in lorries past people's homes. Who trusts Veolia not to make mistakes with this?
Every time the Shropshire Star mentions the incinerator it repeats Veolia's claim that the incinerator will 'generate enough electricity to power 10,000' homes'. This has led some people to believe this means free electricity for homes near the incinerator. Think again! It means big money for Veolia and will not in any way affect local electricity bills.
The incinerator is a licence to print money - for Veolia. The planners have advised passing it on old and faulty figures which paint a picture of waste rising and landfill costing the earth.
Remember: an incinerator is actually a 'giant landfill in the sky'. It doesn't magic away our waste; it burns it and it goes up in the air - and comes down again in the form of toxic material, most of it invisible, on you, your children, your gardens, fields, animals. The tiny particulates in the 'plume' enter your bloodstream via your lungs and the very young and the vulnerable will be the first to suffer. Many credible studies have shown this but our elected representatives and Quangos prefer to pretend that this isn't the case. Is anyone surprised that the Environment Agency considers incineration to be safe when its pension fund is known to have investments in Veolia?
Do we really want to take this risk when cheaper, safer alternatives exist to incineration (and landfill)?
Question: why have some Shropshire Council officials been telling people that there are 'problems' with the Ludlow anaerobic digester? It couldn't be anything to do with the clause in the Waste contract that obliges Shropshire Council to support Veolia's planning application for an incinerator, could it? Surely not?
Many past developments have caused those who came after to curse those who passed them: asbestos, smoking, high-rise developments. Those who have the power of 'life and death' over Shropshire residents must think long and hard about their decision on 26th July if they wish to avoid leaving a deadly and expensive legacy for their electors and their electors' children.
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