Braintree District Council has requested that the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government call in additional planning applications submitted for the Rivenhall Incinerator.
Braintree District Council has requested that the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government call in additional planning applications submitted for the Rivenhall Incinerator, expressing its concerns that the applications are moving away from the scope of development originally presented and approved.
Braintree District Council expressed its objection to the building of the Rivenhall Integrated Waste Management Facility (IWMF) at Rivenhall Airfield when it was considered by the Secretary of State in 2010. However, the Council had to accept the decision of the planning process when they decided that the proposal was acceptable in principle. Since then, the Council has sought to work proactively with the statutory planning and licencing bodies (namely Essex County Council and the Environment Agency) to minimise the impacts on local residents, amenity, infrastructure and the environment.
Since the original application was approved by the Secretary of State, the owners of the Rivenhall site have submitted a number of planning applications to amend the permitted use of the site, which have been approved by Essex County Council in their role as the Minerals and Waste Authority.
Braintree District Council has recently been consulted by Essex County Council on further additional planning applications, which are asking for more amendments to the original planning permission that was granted. One of the requested amendments would allow for a visible plume of smoke to be emitted from the Waste Management Facility, which would amend a key planning condition that the Secretary of State had previously imposed. In response to these consultations, Braintree District Council has formally objected to these new applications.
Cllr Gabrielle Spray, Cabinet Member for Planning at Braintree District Council, said: “We have submitted a letter to the Secretary of State asking for a call-in of these new planning applications as we have serious concerns that the changes they could make to the operation of the Rivenhall Incinerator are a considerable move away from the scope of development originally approved. Whilst we haven’t been able to stop the incinerator from going ahead, we hope they will take our concerns seriously and we will continue to ensure our concerns are recorded and considered to try and get the best possible operational solutions for our communities.”
The letter is available for the public to view here.