Middlewich under threat again – EA issue draft permit

The Environment Agency have announced that they intend to issue a draft permit to Covanta in respect of their proposed Incinerator in Middlewich. The text of their draft permit reads as follows:

“The document is in draft at this stage, because we have yet to make a final decision.
Before we make this decision we want to explain our thinking to the public and other
interested parties, to give them a chance to understand that thinking and, if they wish,
to make relevant representations to us. We will make our final decision only after
carefully taking into account any relevant matter raised in the responses we receive.
Our mind remains open at this stage: although we believe we have covered all the
relevant issues and reached a reasonable conclusion, our ultimate decision could yet
be affected by any information that is relevant to the issues we have to consider.
However, unless we receive information that leads us to alter the conditions in the
draft Permit, or to reject the Application altogether, we will issue the Permit in its
current form.”

Naturally CHAIN are dismayed at this turn of events, particularly as we believed that our objections at the Public Inquiry had carried some weight. There is also the recent issue whereby other incinerator proposals have been rejected at a national level, combined with a general decline in the waste volumes available leading to a turning tide against incineration. Even Weston Point incinerator, which is nearly completed, is having extreme difficulty in securing a feedstock, with it’s only confirmed contract so far being with South Lanarkshire council to burn Scottish waste in Cheshire.

The EA are holding a public meeting on 4th April 2012 at 2pm-7pm in the Middlewich Community Church where you can go along to object.

CHAIN are holding a meeting for Middlewich supporters on 29th March at the Boars Head with a view to discussing our next move in the light of this permit and all are welcome.