Mark Garnier, MP for Wyre Forest, reaffirms his opposition to the decision to grant planning permission for an incinerator at Hartlebury. The decision, made by the Worcestershire County Council on 1st March, paves the way for a 200,000-tonne energy from waste facility to be built near Hartlebury. Its purpose is to burn waste from across Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
Mark, who signed a petition against the proposals in 2009, has been working with fellow Worcestershire MP Peter Luff. As the MP for the Hartlebury area, Mr Luff is leading Westminster resistance to the incinerator.
Both MPs have written to Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Community and Local Government, asking for a review in light of the planning approval. The Secretary of State will have the final say in whether the incinerator will be built.
Although the incinerator is not in Mark's constituency it is within a few miles of the border and raises serious environmental concerns for Wyre Forest residents. One of the main concerns is that the site is to be built on green belt land.
Mark said: "This is one of those tricky Parliamentary situations where an issue in one constituency is affecting people in another. That is why I am working with Peter Luff to make sure that the residents of Wyre Forest are getting their say on an issue in Peter's constituency.
"This is not the first time residents of Wyre Forest have fought an unwelcome incinerator. A few years ago, a well fought campaign stopped an incinerator being built on the sugar beet site. That is why I have always been dead against the Hartlebury incinerator and why I will be working with, and supporting, Peter in his campaign for a review of the county council's planning decision."