Major expansion of operations or Whittlesey incinerator and waste facility planned
Residents have been asked for their views on the major expansion of operations.
Major plans have been submitted to expand Whittlesey’s incinerator and waste management facility at the former Saxon Brickworks site on Whittlesey Road.
The facility, which is run by Johnsons Aggregates and Recycling Ltd (JARL), is seeking to increase its output and the amount if can process.
Currently, the site is permitted a capacity of 250,000 tonnes per year of Incinerator bottom ash (IBA).
IBA is the leftover residue after burning waste, it can contain a variety of materials such as metals- iron, aluminium, copper and zinc-, concrete, ceramics, glass and brick.
The site is also permitted to deal with 50,000 tonnes a year of construction and demolition waste (C&D). This waste is imported in by HGV’s deposited, processed and stored in storage bays on the site.
JARL has now submitted an application to majorly increase its operations to 416,000 tonnes of IBA waste a year and 154,000 tonnes of C&D waste.
Currently, the site generates an average of 101 heavy goods vehicle movements per day; approving the application would see this rise to 332 movements per day, 166 in and 166 out.
The increase in production would also see an estimated 20 jobs created, taking the staff numbers to over 50.
The application states that the plans have been put forward to enable JARL “to improve the company’s operational flexibility.”
Considering health benefits, the application states: “The proposed development will have a positive impact on health as it will offer new employment opportunities and encourage employees to adopt active transport modes as part of their commute.
"There will be some potential health disbenefits, largely from increases in HGV traffic, but for air quality, odour and fugitive dust, it is judged that there will be no material change in the health of the existing population.
“Mitigation measures will be in place for noise and transport, including routing arrangements that can be secured by the imposition of planning condition(s).
“Taking into account the demographic of Fenland and the area immediately surrounding the site, it is judged that the proposed development will not disproportionately affect any specific vulnerable groups, for example, the elderly or children, in the population, nor will it have a significant impact on public health.”
Residents in Whittlesey have been invited to comment on the application and can do so via the Cambridgeshire County Council planning portal, search using reference CCC/24/091/VAR.