Twinwoods Incinerator Turned Down: The Right Result!

I was delighted to receive an email from the Department of Communities & Local Government yesterday morning carrying the excellent news that the local decision to refuse planning permission for the proposed waste plant at Twinwoods near Thurleigh has been upheld. This plant would have caused real disruption to local communities, creating an unacceptable increase in lorry traffic in nearby villages and harming the enviroment, working against efforts to increase recycling.

I was very concerned that the views of the local communities would be overridden when it was announced that this decision would be taken nationally, and sought assurances from the Secretary of State on that point. Ultimately, the Secretary of State upheld the view of the Planning Inspector that the Council's Planning Committee's reasons for refusal did not amount to adequate reason for refusal, but rejected the application on the grounds that in light of the IPC quango's decision on the Covanta incinerator near Stewartby, there would be too much surplus capacity in the area with this plant as well. So, this is a case where the right result has been arrived at - which is clearly the most important thing - but not necessarily for the right reasons!

Both the Twinwoods and the vast Covanta proposed incinerators are too big, needing much more waste each year than the total residual waste collected by the Council annually (around ten times more, in the case of Covanta!). Bedford Borough is quite simply no longer prepared to be the dumping ground for waste from elsewhere.

As we continue to send that message loud and clear, it is excellent news that the communities near Twinwoods have been spared the prospect of this waste plant and the damaging effects it would have had locally.