WEYMOUTH Town Council has voted against proposals for the waste incinerator on Portland.

At a virtual planning meeting on Tuesday evening, members of Weymouth Town Council's Planning and Licensing Committee voted against the plans, proposed by Powerfuel.

The planning application had previously been considered by the committee in October, where members voted to request an extension of time for fuller consideration of the application which was granted by Dorset Council - which will make the final decision on the proposal.

As previously reported, Portland Town Council also voted against the proposal at an Extraordinary Planning Meeting last week.

At Tuesday's meeting, both Powerfuel and campaign group Stop Portland Waste Incinerator gave 15-minute presentations which were subject to questions by councillors.

After hearing the presentations, the council voted on the proposal - seven voted to object the plans, one voted in favour of the plans.

The main reasons that were given by councillors when they cast the votes in objection to the application were issues surrounding the potential detrimental impact of the incinerator on wildlife and the environment as well as possible air pollution.

Cllr Jon Orrell, who is a general practitioner at Royal Crescent Surgery in Weymouth, voted to object the proposal on health grounds. He said: "I don't want my patients breathing in particulates that come out of this stack. You can't see particulates but they can still kill and I don't want any of my residents killed by this power plant."

Councillor David Northam gave the only vote in favour of the proposal. In summing up his reasoning, he said: "I note the very strong views of residents and I admire their diligent research.

"One of the things that has struck me is that landfill is a terrible producer of greenhouse gases. Avoiding landfill is very beneficial and the energy produced by a waste incinerator will contribute to this.

"The other great benefit is that the plant will generate electricity with direct shore power, enabling modern ships to turn off their generators and plug in.

"On balance, I feel that this proposal has merit and should proceed to the next phase."

To watch the full planning meeting, visit the Weymouth Town Council Facebook page.