Construction work set to begin on divisive waste plant scheme

Construction work is due to get underway as soon as next month, contractors AmeyCespa confirmed, whose newly sealed waste management contract with North Yorkshire County Council lasts for 25 years.

The Allerton Waste Recovery Park (AWRP) will be built at an existing landfill and former quarry site off the A168 near Knaresborough, but the plans have been met with fierce opposition from campaigners.

The Tory MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, Andrew Jones, has been one of the stuanchest opponents and admitted he was “very disappointed” the scheme was to go ahead.

He said: “We have to dispose of our waste but I wanted to see less waste generated in the first place by programmes to minimise it and to increase recycling.

“The contract is over-spec for the amount of waste that will be generated in the county and I felt that the financial risk as the project proceeded disproportionately places risk on the public sector rather than the private sector.”

Building work that is expected to last 36 months will start in December. Once complete, the waste facility will process some commercial waste and around 320,000 tonnes of household waste from North Yorkshire County Council and York Council each year, and is expected to generate renewable electricity to power the equivalent of more than 40,000 homes.

The scheme will create 400 jobs during construction and 70 permanent posts once operational. In total, the cost of the project is £319.5m, but the project’s future was thrown into doubt last year after the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs decided to axe £65m in funding. However, the UK Green Investment Bank announced yesterday that it would be providing £33.1m towards the costs.

Its chief executive, Shaun Kingsbury, said: “This innovative project is a best-in-class example of how local authorities can improve recycling and generate significant amounts of renewable power from household waste. GIB is proud of its track record supporting innovation in the waste and recycling sector and particularly pleased that this impressive facility is the first to feature the full complement of waste treatments and new technologies.”

Further funding is being provided by Aberdeen UK Infrastructure Partners and Equitix.

The county council claimed anticipated long-term savings on waste treatment costs add to up £250m over the life of the contract, although it admitted commercial waste will also be dealt with at the site as well as household refuse. A spokesman added: “It will result in a significant reduction in North Yorkshire’s and York’s ‘carbon footprint’ and produce enough electricity to power a town the size of Harrogate.”

The plant will add about £220m to the economy over the life of the contract through jobs creation, the council said. But opponents argue it is based on overestimates of the amount of waste that will be generated in the coming years.