Waste site plans rejected again
CONTROVERSIAL plans for a major waste facility have been thrown out for a second time.
The plans that would have seen waste company Veolia build a transfer station in Widnes sparked opposition from residents of Hale Bank, who feared the area was being turned into “the dustbin of the North West”.
But permission to build the waste transfer station on the former J Bryan Victoria site in Pickerings Road has now been refused by a planning inspector.
The inspector, Ian Jenkins, said Veolia had failed to demonstrate that an alternative site near Fiddler’s Ferry was either unsuitable or unavailable.
The decision comes more than a year after the High Court overturned Halton Council’s approval of Veolia’s plans following a judicial review launched by Halebank Parish Council.
Parish councillor Kieran Reed said he was “delighted” with the planning inspector’s decision.
He added: “It’s about keeping
Hale Bank clean and green.”
The High Court decision in October 2019 found Halton Council had failed to provide key documents or adequately explain its reasons for granting permission when the site was not included in Merseyside’s Joint Waste Management Development Plan (JWDP).
The judge, Mrs Justice Lieven, then returned the application to the council requiring its planning committee to make a new decision on Veolia’s proposals.
However, the council failed to make any decision and Veolia asked the Planning Inspectorate to step in July last year.
The appeal was supported by Halton Council, but backfired when Mr Jenkins ruled that Veolia had failed to show why a site in Moss Bank Road, which had been included in the joint waste plan, was unavailable or unsuitable.
Mr Jenkins did say that the proposal would be “beneficial in a number of respects”, including “contributing towards meeting the need for waste management facilities and providing new employment, albeit limited”.
However, he found that this was not enough reason to deviate from the waste plan and dismissed Veolia’s appeal.