Bressingham biogas plant's lagoons criticised

Work at the site at Bressingham, near Diss, was halted in November

Retrospective plans for a biogas plant have been criticised for including a "major alteration".

Work was halted on the anaerobic digester at Bressingham, Norfolk, in November, after complaints it was not meeting planning conditions.

Deal Farm Biogas said its fresh application in December was mainly a change in layout and positioning.

Tom Williamson, of South Norfolk Green Party, said three 5,000 sq m (53,800 sq ft) lagoons were a concern.

The plant, which would produce fuel from waste materials, was first approved in 2015 but as construction got under way, South Norfolk Council received complaints the plans were changed without permission, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

In October last year, planning officer Tim Barker questioned its legality and called for the development to be stopped and a new application submitted.

The new plan, currently pending consideration, was submitted in December and includes a lagoon, a storage building and a containment area.

Deal Farm Biogas added: "Critically, the application seeks to further enhance the sustainability of the plant by including carbon capture technology, which will enables the plant to capture and liquify 7,000 tonnes of CO2."

Mr Williamson said he was concerned about the digest lagoons, which turn organic materials into methane and carbon dioxide.

"No such lagoons were included in the original plan. This is a major alteration," he said.

"The lagoons are to be fed by pipelines from the digester, which follow the roadside, presumably located in ditches so any spill will immediately cause environmental damage."

He added there were further concerns over the use of green liquid manure, which could leak and pollute land and watercourses.

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