Fornax welcomes Ministerial letter supporting modern well-run incineration facilities
Fornax has welcomed a letter sent to Durham County Council by Emma Hardy MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, setting out the Government’s position in support of modern, well-run incineration facilities.
Fornax is developing a best-in-class high temperature thermal waste treatment plant for the treatment of clinical and hazardous waste at its site on Aycliffe Business Park in County Durham.
Ian Jones, CEO of Fornax, said: “We very much welcome and echo the informed comments made by the Minister in her letter to Durham County Council.
“As the Minister clearly points out in her letter ‘in England, all hazardous waste incineration facilities must comply with strict emission limits. The EA will only grant a permit if they are satisfied the proposal would not give rise to any significant pollution of the environment or harm to human health. The UK Health Security Agency’s position is that modern, well-run and regulated waste incinerators are not a significant risk to public health. This view is based on detailed assessments of the effects of air pollutants on the health of nearby communities’.”
Ian continued: “Two independent, thorough assessments of the Fornax facility have previously concluded that it will have no significant impact on the environment or human health. Fears that the plant will be harmful are unfounded and not based on fact.
“The Fornax plant will utilise best available technology and will have sophisticated management systems to ensure it is safe and efficient. This is a small plant, processing only 10,000 tonnes a year, designed to deal with only the clinical and hazardous waste from the North East and North Yorkshire region.
“The Environment Agency has consulted widely and is in the process of considering our application for a permit to operate. In the meantime, we actively encourage local councillors Members of Parliament, and others to engage with us. They are welcome to visit the site to see for themselves the investment that is being made to bring this state-of-the-art facility to the region, whilst creating much-needed jobs and training opportunities too.”
