The Incineration Campaign Guide The Incineration Campaign Guide Introduction 1 Section 1 - Campaigning 7 Section 2 - Overview of Incineration Campaigns 11 Section 3 - Incineration Policies 15 Section 4 - The Environmental Problems of Waste Incineration 21 Section 5 - Campaigning on Waste Plans 29 Section 6 - Establishing the Facts About a Proposal 39 Section 7 - Who Gives Planning Permission? 43 Section 8 - Objecting to the PlanningApplication 49 Section 9 - The Local Planning Authority and How to Lobby Them 63 Section 10 - Who Gives Incinerators Licences to Operate ? 69 Section 11 - Campaigning Against the Licence Application 73 Section 12 - The Environmental Statement 77 Section 13 - Campaign Case Histories 83 Section 14 - Northern Ireland - Planning and Waste Disposal Licensing 91 Annexes 1. The Arguments 95 2. Air Pollution and Health 99 3. Municipal Waste Incinerator Emission Limits (to Air) 104 4. Energy Use and Greenhouse Gases 107 5. Some Planning Decisions 117 6. How Incinerators Work 125 7. Reading List 129 8. Abbreviations and Units 135 Appendices 1. Don’t Burn it or Bury it - alternatives to landfill and incineration 2. Up in Smoke...why Friends of the Earth opposes incineration. Friends of the Earth’s Incineration Campaign Guide, December 1997 Introduction This introduction explains C why Friends of the Earth has produced this guide C how the guide can best be used C why there are separate references to Northern Ireland. Here we present a summary of our arguments, some ideas for finding your way around this book, and an overview of each separate section. Why an incinerator campaign guide? C Incinerators rely on landfill sites to dispose of Incinerators present serious environmental threats. polluting ash, which is still a considerable volume - around one half of the volume as compared with Friends of the Earth opposes incineration for the 3 following reasons: compacted landfilled rubbish . Landfill sites have their own problems. C Incineration wastes valuable resources. Research by Friends of the Earth suggests that we need to reduce How to use this campaign guide resource consumption by 80-90 per cent1 . We cannot continue to burn valuable resources in Friends of the Earth believes that communities and incinerators. Incinerators, through their very individuals should be involved in the debate about existence, encourage our “throw-away society”. waste prevention, waste disposal and particular proposals for incinerators. This guide should enable you C Recycling resources, as compared with burning to develop confidence with incineration issues and help waste and exploiting virgin resources, saves energy you anticipate and prepare for the opportunities which consumption and production of greenhouse gases are presented as the campaign develops. (global warming gases) such as carbon dioxide. If possible, do not wait until there is a proposal for an C Incinerators need considerable certainty of waste incinerator on your door-step. Decisions about supplies for 20 years or so. They almost literally particular incinerators often relate back to earlier demand creation of waste as feedstock, thus closing decisions on planning policies or waste strategies, so we off alternative strategies for dealing with the waste. have included sections to help you campaign at these earlier stages in the process (see Sections 2, 5 and 13). C Incinerators cost a huge amount of money to build, This guide should help you whether your local authority and incineration, according to a report for the is just considering incineration or other waste European Commission, is set to become the most management strategies for the future or if you are expensive method for dealing with waste2 . opposing a specific proposal for an incinerator. C Incinerators produce toxic emissions and heavily The focus of this guide is on municipal waste contaminated ash. incineration (i.e. the general household and commercial wastes collected by the local authority for disposal) and 1 McLaren, D., Bullock, S.,Yousuf, N. (1997). Tomorrow’s World - Britain’s Share in a 3 Department of the Environment/Welsh Sustainable Future. London, Earthscan. Office (1995). Making Waste Work. A strategy for 2 European Commission, DGX1 (1996). sustainable waste management in England and Cost-benefit analysis of the different municipal solid Wales. The Stationery Office, London. Figures that waste management systems: objectives and talk of the ash volume as one tenth that of the instruments for the year 2000. A report by Coopers original waste are comparing the uncompacted & Lybrand/CSERGE. Luxembourg, Office for volume of the original waste, rather than its final Official Publications of the European Communities. compacted state in the landfill. 1 Friends of the Earth’s Incineration Campaign Guide, December 1997 Box 1: Where should I begin...? If you are new to campaigning and have not had much experience with waste management issues, have a look at Section 2 on incineration campaigns (which summarises the stages of waste management planning and incinerator proposals), and the case studies in Section 13. The case studies should give you some insight into the possible scenarios and give you a good idea of how campaigning might proceed. These examples have been written by local campaigners active in Friends of the Earth’s local group network and we hope that their stories illustrate that campaigning is absorbing and fulfilling. There is no book that can substitute for direct experience, but we have tried to bring you a flavour of campaigning alongside the wealth of information here. Annex 5 summarises some planning decisions and will be useful if you have not been involved in planning issues before. It’s easier than you think... Don’t be put off by the detail in this guide! It’s even OK to say that you don’t understand everything “but Friends of the Earth says...”. Common sense and asking questions go a long way. There are sensible alternatives to incineration and most campaigning is about persuading politicians and other decision-makers that they will be very unpopular if they insist on incineration. Although we have put in lots of technical detail, we have done this to help you understand the process and be able to cope with technicalities when they arise. You may not have to absorb all the details - think about recruiting other people to help on specific bits or try to get your elected representatives to do the legwork. Remember that if politicians feel enough pressure, they will start looking for ways out themselves and will be able to garner the technical resources of the council officers too. the prospects for recycling, but much of this guide (e.g. replaced with new legislation which will bring it planning law, operating permits) will apply to other broadly in line with the rest of the UK. However, more specialised facilities such as incinerators for although Northern Ireland should achieve legislative clinical waste, sewage sludge and chemical waste parity with the rest of the UK in 1997, a number of incinerators. Arguments against cement kilns burning factors will help to create confusion over the next 1-2 hazardous waste as fuel4 and incinerators or power years. plants used for disposal of BSE-infected animals are not addressed specifically either, since there are The introduction of the new legislation must be specific concerns and studies and politics which are followed up by regulations issued by the Department of beyond the scope of this text. the Environment, which may result in further delays before the legislation is actually in force “on the ground”. Northern Ireland Additionally the Department of the Environment has This guide is written predominantly from the just awarded a contract to consultants to write a perspective of England and Wales. Both the Strategy for Sustainable Waste Management for administrative structures responsible for waste Northern Ireland. Until this strategy is published management and legislation differ drastically in (probably not before early 1998) there is likely to be a Northern Ireland. We have included a separate chapter great deal of confusion on the part of local authorities to help, and some further guides are mentioned in the over what government policies apply in Northern Reading List (Annex 7). Remember that there will be Ireland. many similarities whether you are campaigning in England or Northern Ireland, but that you might need to FOE’s Northern Ireland Campaigner has written a check on the particulars of legislation and process. briefing sheet on Waste Management in Northern Ireland for local groups as a supplement to this guide. As stated in the text, the existing legislation governing Telephone 01232 664131 (Northern Ireland FOE) for waste management in Northern Ireland is about to be details. Scotland 4 FOE is working on the issue of cement kilns burning toxic waste. A briefing is available: Although much of this guide has general relevance for FOE (1997). Gone to blazes...burning hazardous anyone concerned about incineration, this guide does waste in cement kilns. not specifically cover Scotland, which has separate 2 Friends of the Earth’s Incineration Campaign Guide, December 1997 legal and administrative organisations. Friends of the Section 2 - Overview of incineration campaigns Earth Scotland can be contacted in Edinburgh, telephone 0131 554 9977. This section - C gives a broad overview of the path to incineration Feedback Please C explains briefly the plans, policies and authorisations affecting waste incineration Do give us your thoughts on what was the most useful C touches on the scope of the arguments that will part of the guide. What was the least useful? What was be useful covered in too much detail or what was covered in too C notes that the pro-incineration lobby will also be little? What were the most grievous omissions? Has it active. helped you win a campaign? All constructive criticism will be gratefully received and your experiences might Section 3 - Incineration Policies be useful to share with other campaigners in a later edition of the guide.