On 27th February The Environment Agency granted an application for a permit to operate a new non-hazardous waste incinerator in Portland Port.
Following a number of consultations, the Agency agreed that Powerfuel Portland Ltd had met all of the necessary criteria needed for the environmental permit to be given for the proposed incinerator. Where an application meets the requirements of the Environmental Permitting Regulations (2016) the Agency must issue a permit.
Conditions have been set in the permit on emissions and their monitoring, operation of the plant and the amount and type of waste to be accepted. The permit limits the waste that can be incinerated to refuse derived fuel – that is produced from domestic municipal solid waste (MSW) and commercial & industrial (C&I) waste unsuitable for recycling.
Granting of environmental permit will not impact on outcome of judicial review into planning permission for the site.
Dorset Council leader, Nick Ireland, has responded as follows:
“I am deeply disappointed that the Environment Agency has decided to grant a permit for the proposed waste incinerator on Portland. It is likely that this facility will not adhere to the government’s own newly tightened rules on future waste incineration. We will continue to fight alongside the residents of Portland against the incinerator. It is not needed and, even if it were, a UNESCO World Heritage Site is entirely the wrong location for it.”
Photo: KeeP 106