Incinerator battle is on

A 500-page dossier of objections has been drawn up by campaigners ready to fight plans for a £120 million incinerator in Hartlebury, it has been revealed.

As the end of a public consultation looms, protesters are preparing to hand the document to Worcestershire County Council.

The Worcestershire Residents Against Incineration and Landfill (WAIL) has brought in legal and planning experts over the last six months to help their cause.

Chairman Terry Harrop said members had gone through the application with a "fine-tooth comb".

They have then listed in minute detail their objections to the proposed site to create energy from waste at Hartlebury Trading Estate.

Residents say the development will be a blot on the landscape; cite concerns about pollution; complain the volume of lorries heading into and out of the site would make their lives a misery; and argue the scheme is inappropriate use of a prime regeneration plot.

The group will hand the document in to planning chiefs next Monday. Chairman Terry Harrop said he is "confident" they will defeat the application, made by Mercia Waste Management.

More than 500 people have submitted their views on the plans as part of the consultation, which ends next Friday. Worcestershire County Council has not revealed how many responses are for and against.

But Mr Harrop said he expected the majority to be objections. He added: "We're very happy with the way things are going."

According to Mercia Waste's application, the facility could deal with 200,000 tons of waste, while generating electricity to power 20,000 homes.

The council's cross-party Planning and Regulatory Committee will make a decision about the application, but no date has yet been set for a decision to be made.