News210906

Plans to expand the city's incinerator have been turned down.

But Waste Recycling Group (WRG), owner of the Eastcroft plant off London Road, said it might appeal against the decision by city councillors.

The firm's £50m plan would have seen the amount of rubbish burnt at the plant rise from 150,000 tonnes a year now, to 250,000 tonnes by 2010.

Waste could have been brought in from up to 35 miles away.

But councillors yesterday unanimously rejected the WRG plan.

Council officers advised a meeting of the city's development control committee to turn down the proposal because it would hamper future business, recreation and accommodation plans for land around central Nottingham's east side.

Rejection on environmental and health grounds was not recommended, although this was the main issue for campaigners and nearby residents who opposed the WRG plan.

The city council received petitions with almost 3,000 signatures on them, as well as 158 individual objections.

Coun Michael Cowan, deputy leader of the city's Conservatives, told the meeting the plan should also be rejected because rubbish would be trucked in from afar, increasing HGV traffic, and that there were more environmentally friendly ways of tackling waste levels.

"I would like to move that these are additional grounds for refusal," he added.

Fellow Conservative Brendan Clarke-Smith agreed, saying: "The incinerator is a bit of a blot on the landscape."

But Coun Cowan's proposal was turned down.

Coun John Taylor said: "Rather than strengthening our argument in pure planning terms, this would undermine it."

Around 20 people representing lobby group Nottingham Against Incineration and Landfill (Nail) and Sneinton residents living near Eastcroft were outside the Council House before yesterday's committee meeting.

Jon Beresford, of Nail, told the : "This is fantastic news, we have all been campaigning hard."

He added: "We hope WRG accept this democratic decision and do not subject council taxpayers to an expensive legal bill with an appeal."

But WRG, which had argued that an expanded Eastcroft plant would divert waste from landfill, said it might appeal.

The company said it was "deeply disappointed" with the committee's decision.

"We will now consider the grounds for the committee's decision and will review our options," said a WRG spokesman.