Vote to move forward with incinerator plans

ENVIRONMENTAL CAN COST CONCERNS RAISED AT PUBLIC MEETING

- By DANIEL HODGSON

MIDDLESBROUGH’S Labour executive has voted in favour of moving forward with plans for a new incinerator in the region.

The decision was made by councillors after they had been reassured by officers on the financial implications, as well as the environmental impact of the new development.

The Tees Valley Energy Recovery Facility, to give the incinerator its proper name, will be located in Grangetown. All local councils in the Tees Valley (and others) are involved in the wider project.

Papers detail that the total value of the contract is estimated to be £2.1bn and at a meeting on Wednesday, October 8, the timeline to get to this point was laid out. When questions were opened up to non-executive members, there was a wider discussion on recycling rates and contamination in the town.

Geoff Field, the council’s director of environment and community services, explained that when it comes to the proposed incinerator, the local authority is moving towards financial close, hopefully by the end of March 2026, with the preferred bidder following an “extensive” procurement process. The scheme will deal with the disposal of the authority’s waste for the next 29 years, plus a possible extension, which council documents set out as a further 11 years.

He said that the waste facility demonstrates an improvement in terms of environmental credentials, which will be “much more” sustainable than the activities currently undertaken. Once the contract is all signed off, building can get underway, with an expected completion date of 2029/30.