Viridor welcomes environmental permit for Ardley plant

Posted 29 Sep 2010

Leading recycling, renewable energy and waste management company Viridor welcomes the Environment Agency’s decision to grant an environmental permit for the proposed Energy from Waste (EfW) facility at its landfill and recycling site in Ardley, near Bicester.

Speaking on behalf of the company, project manager Robert Ryan said: “We are proposing a facility which will use state-of-the-art technology, capable to deliver an effective alternative to landfill that meets the strictest environmental standards. The Agency’s decision demonstrates that our proposals are sound, safe and robust”.

The decision announced yesterday (28 September) by the Environment Agency is a key milestone in the Ardley project.

Mr Ryan added: “We now look forward to receiving planning permission and concluding the procurement process with Oxfordshire County Council so we can start the delivery of a residual treatment solution for the county that will ensure higher resource efficiency for years to come.”

Matt Carter, area manager at the Environment Agency, said: “We have carried out a thorough assessment of this application and taken into account all of the comments received during extensive consultation. 

“In granting this permit we are satisfied that the plant can be built and operated in a manner that does not pose a significant risk to the environment or public health. We will make sure that any plant that is built will meet high environmental standards and will be operated safely.

“We have involved local people and the wider public throughout the permitting process and we will continue to do this throughout our future regulation of the plant if and when it is built.”

Part of the FTSE-250 Pennon Group plc, Viridor is proposing to build and operate a modern Energy from Waste (EfW) facility at its existing landfill and recycling site in Ardley, north Oxfordshire, which will have a capacity to process 300,000 tonnes of waste.

Viridor’s proposal will result in additional benefits for the local economy – particularly important in the current economic environment – including the creation of around 40 permanent jobs and many more during construction.

Wider environmental benefits include the landfill diversion of at least 95 percent of waste delivered to the facility and the generation of up to 24MW of electricity to be supplied to the National Grid.

Energy from Waste is a well established technology which is safe, robust and cost-effective. There are already 429 EfW operational plants in Europe, providing effective diversion of waste from landfill and an alternative to fossil-fuel electricity generation.

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