Controversy over incinerator scheme

But the project has been mired in controversy since the outset and is years behind schedule.

The councils would be able to burn up to 240,000 tonnes of household waste a year at the plant, avoiding the prospect of Government fines and the need to buy permits to send excess waste to landfill.

They say the "energy from waste" facility, which would be operated by waste management contractor Waste Recycling Group (WRG), would provide enough electricity to the national grid to power 40,000 homes.

But opponents claim emissions from the plant would be harmful to human health and say the technology is already outdated.

The Environment Agency revoked a licence to operate the site after concerns about carbon dioxide emissions at a similar project in Sussex, but has since granted WRG a second permit.

Hundreds of people, led by MP Graham Stuart, took part in a protest march against the scheme from Hedon to Saltend last October. Mr Stuart has called on both authorities to abandon the project and consider more "hi-tech" solutions to waste disposal.

The group Hull and East Riding Opposing the Incinerator has launched a fundraising campaign to finance a legal challenge to the scheme.