The Government has agreed to the controversial expansion of an incinerator plant on the Greenwich/Bexley border in SE London, by granting a Development Consent Order (DCO). Local East London Assembly Member Unmesh Desai AM expressed concern about the impact on Dagenham and says the Mayor of London’s request for a judicial review into the decision is the right call. Cory Riverside Energy park currently has the capacity to process 750,000 tonnes of waste, but the DCO grants permission for the construction of an additional incinerator on the site, which will more than double capacity. This is despite the fact that calculations show London does not need any more incineration capacity if it meets its recycling and reduction goals, including sending no more recyclable or compostable waste to landfill by 2026 and reaching 65% municipal recycling rate by 2030.
Local London Assembly Member, Unmesh Desai AM, says the Government and Cory energy should instead be working with the Mayor and Boroughs to increase its recycling and anaerobic digestion capacity, to keep resources in the circular economy. If all of London’s food waste was sent to produce biogas, this could power approximately 75,000 homes for a year.
There is also mounting evidence of the potential air pollution and other environmental and health consequences of burning waste. Investing in more energy from waste (EfW) can negatively affect long-term recycling rates, as this investment needs to be paid for by an assured income stream, usually through contracts with local authorities to pay the EfW operator to take waste. Contracts are often lengthy – the majority are over 20 years. The terms of contracts, such as minimum annual payments, or a low fee per tonne of waste, can undermine the financial viability for the local authority of reducing waste, or sending it to other destinations such as recycling. Mr Desai said that with London already facing an air pollution crisis, it is unacceptable to be constructing more facilities that could pump put dangerous fumes and particles, just across the river from Dagenham, in his constituency.
Local London Assembly Member, Unmesh Desai AM, said:
“Enlarging the facilities at Belvedere – or any incinerator across London - is not the solution that London needs, so I fully support the Mayor in asking for this decision to be reviewed.
“The Belvedere facility already pumps out too many toxins straight across the river to Dagenham in my constituency. That’s why the local MP, Jon Cruddas, has been fighting hard against this expansion since 2018.
“Instead of burning more rubbish, London needs to focus on reducing and recycling our waste, and diverting resources sustainably into the circular economy. Increasing incinerator capacity discourages recycling and, once London meets the Mayor’s ambitious waste reduction and recycling targets, we will have the incineration capacity we need.”