"The feedback we have received, and which continues to come in by post and via our website is predominantly supportive of our proposals"
Dan Cooke, Viridor's external affairs manager
Viridor Waste Management is currently assessing the responses received to its public consultation on the proposed energy from waste, combined heat and power facility for Oxwellmains, near Dunbar.
The company says that all comments received, whether supportive or otherwise, will be made available in the Statement of Community Engagement to be submitted as part of the proposed Planning Application. The current proposal is to submit a planning application in Autumn which will take into account the comments received through the public consultation.
“The feedback we have received, and which continues to come in by post and via our website is predominantly supportive of our proposals,” said Dan Cooke, Viridor’s external affairs manager. “Our next steps are to review the comments received and to ascertain what further information is needed by stakeholders and the community.”
In early August the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) backed energy from waste (efw) in Scotland saying that efw is a safe, tried and tested way to deal with waste that cannot be recycled, and is commonly used across Europe. It is not an alternative to recycling – it is just one component of a sensible and practical waste strategy.
Proposed Oxwellmains, Dunbarton Efw-CHP facility (Artistic impression - Viridor)
Viridor considers that Scotland is lagging behind the rest of the UK in building the necessary resource recovery infrastructure to meet its Government set targets.
The proposed development
The proposed energy from waste (efw) plant is expected to process around 450,000 tonnes of waste a year and deliver 34 MW of electricity to the National Grid. In addition heat would be made available to local businesses and, potentially, new homes making it a combined heat and power (CHP) facility.
The facility will treat residual waste, i.e that remaining after recyclable and compostable materials have been removed.
It is expected that 47 jobs will be created by the development of the new plant should it receive planning clearance.
The proposed site lies within Viridor’s non-hazardous landfill at Oxwellmains, approximately 4.5km south east of Dunbar. It is located between the Lafarge Cement Works and Torness Power Station. The site is well screened from view in a lightly populated area and has excellent road and rail access, according to Viridor.
It is proposed that there will be increased use of rail transport for waste materials destined for the site wherever possible. Even though the intention is to maximise deliveries by rail, nevertheless a detailed highways assessment will be made.
Opposition to the scheme
As is often the case with waste management proposals, there has been considerable opposition to Viridor’s plans. In particular the locals are concerned about the scale of the CHP plant which it is reported would accept over twice the amount of material produced by the City of Dunbar nearby.
The Green movement also consider that better use could be made of the materials incinerated, through recycling and composting though Viridor has emphasised that the plant would be used for the treatment of residual wastes.
Public exhibitions
Public exhibitions were held at Dunbar, and Innerwick the nearest community to the Oxwellmains site at the end of August which Viridor says were well attended.
“Naturally a few concerns were raised,” continued Dan Cooke, “however we were able to reassure people in respect of air quality and emissions. This will be re-confirmed in the detailed air quality assessment to accompany our planning application. It should be noted that besides planning consent the project will need approval from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA).”
Similarly, Viridor is looking again at the visual aspects of the plant and the surrounding land.
“A lot of work has already been done to minimise the visual impact of the facility, which is to be set below existing ground level in the former quarry at the site. We are currently reviewing feedback to see how else the design and landscaping could be addressed so that the visual impact is satisfactory. We have had some great suggestions from local people and we aim to take these points on board,” Dan Cooke added.
The way forward
Viridor says that it will write to all relevant Community Councils to ascertain if any additional consultation activity is required at the present stage. The company is willing to meet interested parties from the local community where they require in-depth information on particular elements of the proposals.
The company is proceeding with the detailed planning application for submission in the autumn, taking all feedback received into account. In addition the company will be writing to everyone who either attended the public exhibitions or responded to the consultation to keep them up to date with progress.