RESIDENTS have another opportunity to have their say on controversial plans to build a waste incinerator on Portland.

As reported, Powerfuel Portland wants to build a £100 million Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) at Portland Port in order to burn up to 202,000 tonnes of non-hazardous waste each year to convert to energy.

As part of the proposal Powerfuel has applied for an environmental permit from the Environment Agency (EA), and the EA is now seeking residents' feedback via a public consultation.

The survey is separate from the consultation held by Dorset Council last year as part of the planning application - the EA has said it is holding its own consultation due to the level of public interest.

It comes amid strong opposition to the site - campaigners are concerned about the increase in traffic, emissions and impact on tourism due to the plant's location on the Jurassic Coast.

But Powerfuel bosses say the facility will power up to 30,000 homes, while Portland Port bosses said the construction of the incinerator is ‘vital to the port’s future.'

An Environment Agency spokesman said: "We are treating it as a Site of High Public Interest. This means we are consulting on the environmental permit application due to the amount of public interest already shown in this site. If planning permission is granted a company can build their facility but they cannot operate the site without an environmental permit from us."

The consultation is open until September 3 and invites comment on a range of issues including:

  • Management of the plant and the system proposed to control environmental risks
  • Control of emissions, including particulate emissions, odour, dust, noise and other forms of pollution
  • Monitoring of emissions
  • Handling and storage of waste
  • Potential impacts on public health and the local environment
  • Any relevant factors which the local community believes have not been considered by the operator

Issues such as alternative locations for the plant, transport of waste, and operating hours, will not form part of the consultation.

To view the full documents and take part visit consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/psc/dt5-1pp-powerfuel-portland-limited

You can also email: pscpublicresponse@environment-agency.gov.uk quoting application number EPR/AP3304SZ/A001.

Paper copies are available at Portland and Weymouth libraries and by calling the Environment Agency's Customer Contact Centre on 03708 506 506 - however there may be a charge to cover copying costs.

All comments must be received by 5pm on September 3, 2021.