Still hope of stopping Wisbech’s planned mega-incinerator says lead campaigner
A leading opponent of the proposed Wisbech incinerator is urging people not to lose hope after a decision to deny a legal challenge to the scheme.
News that a judge has denied Fenland District Council’s request for a judicial review of the plans by MVV Environment Ltd for a 54megawatt incinerator on land off Algores Way had left many feeling deflated.
However, Ginny Bucknor, one of the founders and leaders of the Wisbech Without Incineration (WisWIN) campaign, said that while she is disappointed with the judge’s decision she has not lost all hope.
She said: “I must admit I wasn’t surprised by the decision, we didn’t hold out much hope at all for a different outcome. We have tried to help Fenland Council with their application for a judicial review with the professionals who have been supporting us offering to provide quality material.
“But even though we submitted it we have had no acknowledgment, so we have no idea whether or not it was used – but we suspect not.
“Fenland also refused help from the county council and simply would not engage with them – it is all so political instead of everyone fighting together.”
She said Fenland now has to decide whether or not it will appeal the judge’s decision.
“That’s for councillors to decide,” said Ginny. “But we do have the support of Cambridgeshire’s Labour mayor Dr Nik Johnson. He has spent quite a lot of time with us and he has reports ready to submit to whoever the new Secretary of State might be after today.
“Our big hope is that we have a change of Government and that Labour will take a different view to the current Government, and will listen to the empirically proven fact the UK is already oversubscribed when it comes to incineration.
“The parliamentary committee for climate change promised to look at whether or not the country had enough incinerators, but then never did anything about it.
“Instead in May the Government approved permits for 10 new incinerators including the one for Wisbech. Hopefully, Labour will listen and will agree we don’t need any more incinerators and will overturn that decision.
“I have always believed the Wisbech incinerator makes no sense. It will be three times the height of the Cold Store, it will send out pollution into the air close to our local schools – there are 1,400 pupils at the Thomas Clarkson Academy which is just up the road from the proposed site.
“We have no infra-structure, our roads are already congested and having 300 more lorries a day serving the incinerator is going to add to that. This area produces 25 to 30 per cent of the food for this country, and the incinerator is going to be putting out pollution over the land where that is being grown.
“The Conservatives issued the 10 permits in May, and then in the same month in their election manifesto said they were opposed to incinerators, how does that match up?
“All the MPs in the area – who have all been Conservatives - have said they are opposed to the Wisbech incinerator, I suggested to Steve Barclay that they join forces and lobby the government as a group, but he declined to do that.”
Ginny continued: “We do not know on what grounds the judge decided to reject Fenland’s application for a judicial review. It should be made public and we await for that to happen. But we do know the judge recognised there were ‘several deficiencies in the Secretary of State’s decision’ and that the council was justified in pursuing a judicial review.
“As I said Dr Nik Johnson and UK WIN are ready to meet with whoever the new Secretary of State is as soon as they get their feet under the table, and we are hopeful that a case can be made to stop the Wisbech incinerator – we have not lost all hope yet.”
