Redditch metal refinery given go-ahead amid objections

Kaug Refinery Services Ltd (KRS) wants to move its factory from Birmingham to an industrial estate in Redditch

Plans to build a metal waste refinery have been approved amid hundreds of objections from local residents.

Kaug Refinery Services Ltd (KRS) wants to move its factory from Birmingham to the Moons Moat industrial estate in Redditch, Worcestershire.

After operating in Birmingham for more than 40 years, the company sought to relocate partly to avoid the city's clean air zone (CAZ) costs.

More than 600 residents had objected to the plans, stating pollution concerns.

Planning permission for the site was given the green light by Worcestershire County Council's planning committee on Tuesday.

KRS recovers and refines precious metals from waste, including hazardous industrial materials, such as cyanide solutions and acids.

The company's plan will see an existing industrial unit converted for smelting and chemical recycling.

As the plant will emit nitrogen oxide into the atmosphere, the company must still obtain air quality permits from the Environment Agency (EA) and Worcestershire Regulatory Services.

Residents and councillors had aired fears of "acrid fumes" and the threat of water pollution.

Conservative MP, Rachel Maclean, had also argued the enterprise would be too close to densely-populated neighbourhoods, which included woodland and a kidney dialysis centre.

Matt Dormer, Redditch Borough Council leader, said he was "not surprised" planning permission had been granted but he was "very disappointed" and "sorry" for local residents.

Resident Matt Newman had argued that the refinery would bring no benefit to the town

Speaking in front of councillors, one resident, Matt Newman, argued that the refinery would bring no benefit to the town.

He said he also feared the EA lacked the resources to monitor any fumes emitted from the site.

The factory carried a "potential for additional pollution" and the local woodland might suffer as a result, he told BBC Hereford and Worcester.

Dr David Young, KRS' planning agent, said the company was not being forced to relocate and was currently operating within EA rules.

He stated the firm had deliberately chosen an industrial estate as its new base, and argued that the smelting and recycling would be "extremely small-scale".