Why resist?
1. Incineration creates dangerous toxins,
including cancer-causing dioxins & nano-particles not all of which can be filtered even when filters work (they often fail). These can be breathed in & enter the food chain via grazing animals. We wish to protect our children, our farms & communities.
2. Incineration is bad for the planet,
proven to discourage recycling, raise climate-affecting emissions and encourage more waste. It is a nonsense to phase out fossil fuel vehicles while burning rubbish 24/7 & electricity produced this way is dirtier than coal.
3. This contract is hugely expensive for local residents.
It uses our taxes to build & run the incinerator & will cost over £4 million more per year than stopping landfill & simply using available waste processing elsewhere. It will cost up to £10 million more per year than a good recycling solution. That is our money & could be far better spent on education, housing & social care.
4. This contract has been reported as illegal
for its anti-competitive pricing structure which charges huge bring-or-pay costs upfront for fixed waste amounts (discouraging recycling), then drops the price very low (again discouraging recycling). Innovative & more environmentally friendly solutions are thus forced off the playing field. Continuing to build when the contract could be made void for this reason is reckless & irresponsible.
Moreover, the County Council's external auditors are still investigating the contract & have not signed off on it regarding Value for Money (something the Council is duty-bound to provide in its contracting).
5. This incinerator is unwanted -
the council’s own planning committee refused it, thousands of locals oppose it & have done for nearly a decade. It will be huge, ugly, polluting & wasteful. It has only got this far because the Council kept the contract secret until forced by a judge to reveal it.
