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MP for Horsham Calls for Horsham’s Incinerator Permit to be Suspended – SIGN PETITION – Ni4H News April 2024

A representative of the new owners, Qair, at the last Community Liaison Group meeting on 28 February 2024 stated that there was little to report. Qair is still in discussion with Hitachi Zosen Inova (HZI) working to finalise design on the construction contract.

Petition – please sign and share https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/658657 

Email from Jeremy Quin MP to No Incinerator 4 Horsham Community Group (Ni4H) 9 April 2024.

Dear Ni4H,
 
I wanted to make you aware of the Dear Colleague I, and other colleagues, received from the Minister late last week.
 
It sets out that a short pause will be placed on the determination of applications for environmental permits for certain types of waste incineration facilities in England. The direction applies to the grant or refusal of applications which the Environment Agency received on or before the 4th April 2024. 
 
While this is welcome it is my understanding that the pause will not affect proposed new developments where an environmental permit has already been granted.
 
I will be writing to the Minister to ask whatever has caused the pause should also impact facilities not yet constructed.  If there is a valid reason for halting plans without an environmental licence I see no reason why the pause should not equally be extended to those with a licence but which have not yet been constructed.
 
Either way the waste incineration industry when looking at this further indicator of the direction of travel from HMG should being asking themselves (as we discussed in our last meeting) some profound commercial questions.  
 
Yours sincerely,
 

Jeremy Quin
Member of Parliament for Horsham

Response letter from Ni4H to Sir Jeremy Quin MP on 11 April 2024 included:

“No Incinerator 4 Horsham Community Group (Ni4H) is delighted that the Rt. Hon. Sir Mark Spencer MP has issued a Direction to the Environment Agency under regulation 62 of the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016, requiring a short-term pause in the determination of applications for environmental permits for certain types of waste incineration facilities in England.”

“Ni4H understands that, in theory, the Environment Secretary also has the power to direct the Environment Agency to revoke previously granted Environmental Permits, such as the one granted to the Horsham incinerator (EPR/CB3308TD/V002). For this to happen, there would need to be a reason, for example, over provision of incineration capacity, harm to recycling rates.”

Feedstock is based on waste reduction targets as set out in

 UKWIN’s Incineration Overcapacity Briefing.

The proposed Horsham incinerator is included in the red section of the above image: incineration capacity in development (consented and under development, yet to enter construction).

Across England there is already more incineration capacity than genuinely residual waste to burn. The South East has a significant amount of incineration capacity that is operational or under construction, yet there is even more in the pipeline. Limiting incinerator feedstock to genuinely residual waste would free up more than half the current capacity, undermining the rationale for building new incinerators.

Our letter also includes information about the Climate Change Committee’s recommendations, 65%+ recycling target and residual waste reduction targets.

Read the letter from Ni4H

https://ni4h.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Ni4H-Letter-to-Sir-Jeremy-Quin-MP-11.4.24.pdf

According to Shlomo Dowen, National Coordinator of the UK Without Incineration Network (UKWIN):

“We are witnessing the start of what we hope will be a comprehensive moratorium on new waste incineration capacity in England. This follows similar moves in Wales and Scotland.

For years UKWIN has been gathering evidence about how the over-provision of incineration has been holding back recycling in England. Wales banned new incineration capacity three years ago and is now achieving 66% recycling. Scotland’s recycling rate rose to more than 62% since introducing their moratorium.

We hope this move, together with other measures, will support England to improve upon last year’s 43% recycling rate.

UKWIN hopes the Scottish Environment Minister will now also direct the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency from issuing new permits for any incinerators that have yet to be built.”

Jeremy Quin’s 11 April 2024 statement

Jeremy Quin, Member of Parliament for Horsham, has written to the Defra Minister, Mark Spencer MP, requesting that the recently issued Direction to the Environment Agency pausing the environmental permitting of waste incineration facilities in England is extended to include sites like Horsham which have been permitted but are not yet under construction.

In November 2022, the Environment Agency issued a permit to the Horsham site allowing for the operation of the facility. The site is yet to be built but concerns remain around the operation of the facility and the impact it could have on local communities.

Jeremy said “I am pleased that the Minister has issued this Direction and I welcome the Government’s direction of travel on this issue. However, the pause will not affect new developments where an environmental permit has already been granted which is the case with the planned incinerator for Horsham.

“I have written to the Minister to ask that this welcome pause is extended to those sites that are not yet constructed.

“It is critical that the Government gets our waste manage infrastructure right and that we continue to recycle as much as possible and reduce the quantity of waste sent for incineration. We do not want an over-capacity of incineration which would harm our recycling rates.

“I am keen that the Minister not only extends the pause to impact sites not yet constructed but introduces a wider moratorium on incinerators so that a full and proper assessment on residual waste treatment capacity can be conducted.”

Jeremy has been actively working with the local campaign group No Incinerator 4 Horsham (Ni4H) since 2017. Ni4H and its volunteers have fought the proposal and include those who disagree with incineration in principle through to those who have no in-principle objection but believe this to be the wrong location.

Jeremy will be providing further updates on his website: www.jeremyquin.com and his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/JeremyQuinOfficial/

https://www.jeremyquin.com/news/mp-horsham-calls-horshams-incinerator-permit-be-suspended

Ni4H hopes for early completion of the review, immediate lifting of the temporary ban and replacement with a more permanent moratorium. Sir Jeremy Quin MP’s continuing support in these matters is very much appreciated.

Please sign and share this petition to UK Government and Parliament

Impose a moratorium on the building of new waste incineration plants

  • We want the Government to take action to move away from greenhouse gas emissions from waste incineration. 
  • We are concerned that further builds will mean we exceed the almost 45% of UK waste that is currently incinerated. 
  • We believe the construction of new waste incinerators jeopardizes our commitments to the Paris Agreement and could even lead to the UK actively sourcing perfectly reusable and recyclable material just to burn. 
  • There could also be consequences to air quality in the UK if any more are granted permission.

At 10,000 signatures, government will respond to this petition.
At 100,000 signatures, this petition will be considered for debate in Parliament.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/658657 

No Incinerator 4 Horsham Community Group (Ni4H)

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