Belfast rejects landfill alternative

Belfast City Council has voted against plans to site a new waste incinerator in the region.

The BBC reports that councillors rejected the development proposed by Arc2 - an umbrella waste management group involving a number of councils in eastern Northern Ireland.

Instead, the council are opting to support a mechanical and biological treatment plant on land at Belfast Lough's north foreshore rather than the construction of the waste incinerator, that would also have been able to produce power to supply 40,000 homes.

Ricky Burnett, Arc21's policy and operations director, explained that there had been strong public support for the waste incinerator project.

"Arc21 will continue to implement its waste management plan which aims to encourage people to reduce waste in the first place and boost recycling rates to at least 50 per cent," he added.

Northern Ireland is already facing European Union fines if it does not take positive steps to reduce the amount of waste being put in landfill sites.

Meanwhile, the Environment Agency has granted permission for Veolia ES Recovery Nottinghamshire to construct an incinerator that will use heat energy generated from burning waste to produce electricity.