Decision Day for Giant Incinerator Project (Kenilworth and Southam Liberal Democrats)

Decision Day for Giant Incinerator Project

March 29, 2010 5:28 PM

The future of Project Transform, the £1 billion partnership project between three local authorities to build a new residual waste disposal facility to replace the current Coventry incinerator, could be decided tomorrow (Tuesday).

Warwickshire County Council will debate a motion put forward by the Liberal Democrats, which calls on the three project partners (Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull) to halt the current joint procurement process and to develop alternative strategies.

Liberal Democrat spokesperson Cllr John Whitehouse (Kenilworth Abbey), who is proposing the motion, said:

"We think Project Transform is now heading in fundamentally the wrong direction. The opportunity for a radical re-think within the current project has been lost, so it is time to stop it altogether. The waste facility proposed will be too big for future needs, too costly, and almost certainly based on incineration rather than one of the newer, more environmentally-friendly technologies.

"The running costs of this project are £25,000 a week, so to let it continue when it is clear a changed strategy is needed would be to waste an awful lot more of public money.

"We hope that elected members from the other political groups on the Council are willing to grasp the nettle and back this motion."

THE FULL TEXT OF THE MOTION READS AS FOLLOWS:

That this Council should seek the agreement of its partners in Project Transform, namely Coventry City Council and Solihull Borough Council, to:

• halt the current procurement process for a joint residual waste facility;

• delay for a minimum of 1 year any re-start of joint procurement;

• develop joint alternative medium/long term strategies for residual waste disposal;

• reduce the size of the project team to minimise costs during the development of alternative strategies.

If agreement to this course cannot be reached across all three authorities, the Council should withdraw from Project Transform, as provided for under the Joint Working Agreement between the partners, and pursue an alternative medium/long term strategy for residual waste disposal.

Kenilworth and Southam Liberal Democrats