Avonmouth incinerator plans to be challenged in High Court

The fight against proposals for a waste incinerator at Avonmouth is to go to the High Court.

Viridor Waste Management wants to build on a 20-acre site near Bristol but the city council turned the plans down.

Viridor appealed and the matter went to a public inquiry which referred it the government who over-ruled the council.

The Liberal Democrat-controlled council argues there is already sufficient capacity and the plant is not needed.

Councillor Gary Hopkins said the authority did not want "vast quantities" of waste imported into the area to be burnt and is to take its case to the High Court.

'Localism' denied

"We're responsible for the waste in the West of England and have worked with neigbouring councils on a policy which was agreed by the government who have now over-ruled it.

"We're told by Eric Pickles [the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government] that he believes in localism.

"The last thing we are seeing here is localism."

Mr Hopkins said he feared waste from the Midlands and the rest of the West Country would be shipped into Bristol to be burnt there.

"I don't think Bristol and the surrounding councils should accept this," he added.

The High Court hearing is due on 29 November.

Neither Viridor or Mr Pickles has commented on the matter.

Planning officials at Bristol City Council had previously recommended the 20-acre "resource recovery centre" should be approved.

But in June 2010 all seven members of the council's Development Control panel rejected the scheme, which would have dealt with about 300,000 tonnes of waste a year.