North Yorkshire Council chiefs say they are trying to reduce the number of days Allerton Waste Recovery Park (AWRP) is shut down and waste has to be sent to landfill amid further concerns about the plant’s performance.
Councillors were told this week that a rise in the amount of rubbish going to landfill earlier this year was caused by a 44-day closure of the incinerator near Knaresborough.
A report to members of the council’s executive committee reported that the plant was stopped for planned maintenance in April, although this was followed by additional work and a phased return to service during May and part of June.
More than 21 per cent of waste collected by the council during these three months went to landfill, compared to around eight per cent during the same period in 2024 and 2023.
Asked about the issues at the plant, Councillor Richard Foster, executive member for managing our environment, said:
“It’s a case of can we find somewhere else to put the waste in that period that isn’t landfill. Unfortunately, other sites tend to be booked up at the moment.
“There is more capacity coming into the north of England, which might make it possible for us to when we’re not operating to move that waste elsewhere.
“But as it stands at the moment, we’re try to reduce the amount of days that are shut down. I think that’s key to keep the facility open and operating for as many days as possible.”
Issues for the £1.2bn plant during the current financial year come after several unplanned periods of downtime in 2024/25 meant waste had to be diverted to alternative treatment facilities or landfill sites.
The plant, which opened in 2018, is yet to hit its target of recycling or composting five per cent of the waste it receives, with the 2024/25 figure well below the target at 1.75 per cent.
Green Party Councillor Arnold Warneken, who represents the Ouseburn division, claimed that the issues faced by the council now were raised by campaigners who opposed the incinerator before it was built.
He added:
“In my view, they relate to the council’s decision at the time not to insist on the highest standards of technology and techniques during planning and commissioning.
“We are facing the consequences of that now. York and North Yorkshire are tied into a contract that means we will be among the last councils in England able to compost food waste – not until 2043, which is 19 years after the legal requirement came in.”
Cllr Warneken said the downturn had implications for local residents’ health as well as the council’s performance.
He added:
“Industry evidence suggests that emissions can be higher during start-up and shut-down periods, yet emissions during these periods are not required to be reported. That gap in data needs addressing.”
The councillor is calling on the council to increase air quality tests around the incinerator, ask operator Thalia to release more data on the operation of the plant and prioritise state-of-the-art recycling infrastructure in the future.
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