Seal Sands Toxic Waste Incinerator Impact Home page

Factsheet

Incinerator Factsheet

SUMMARY

Cory Environmental Ltd have a site to build a toxic waste incinerator on Seal Sands, on the north bank of the Tees Estuary. This Factsheet provides background information for residents who might be affected.

CURRENT SITUATION

In 2002, Cory's applied to renew their ten-year old planning permission to build the incinerator. In view of objections and publicity, the local authority (Stockton-on-Tees) decided at its Planning Committee meeting meeting on 13/12/02 to defer a decision. Then in March 2003 Cory's suddenly withdrew their application. However, they still have the site and the ambition to build when the market is right. (See the Cory withdrawal letter).

THE INCINERATOR

(as initially proposed) The incinerator is designed for continuous operation, to burn 30,000 tonnes of hazardous wastes each year. It is said that the heat produced would be used to generate electricity.

It would be one of three in the UK. The other two are at Fawley (Hampshire) and Ellesmere Port (Cheshire). In the last three years two hazardous waste incinerators have closed (in South Yorkshire and South Wales)

BRIEF HISTORY

These plans were first submitted in 1988. There was massive public opposition, mostly expressed through the pressure group STINC. The (then) planning authority Cleveland County shared the concerns and turned the application down. The applicants appealed, leading to a 2-year public enquiry that also dealt with Northumbria Water's requests to build sewage incinerators on Tyneside and Teesside.

In 1992 only the Cory application was approved - and Environment Secretary Michael Howard refused the Inspector's recommendation to refuse the right to burn imported waste.

Cory's didn't build, though. The market wasn't right, they said (Incinerators need guaranteed supplies of hazardous waste over a long period to justify the capital investment)

Permission normally lasts five years before it needs renewing. In 1997, with little if any publicity, Stockton-on-Tees Council agreed to a further five years permission. That has now now expired in turn - hence the new application.

WHO LIVES NEARBY?

The incinerator would be built on Seal Sands Road, close by the CATS north Sea gas treatment plant (Grid Ref 523 243). It's in the heart of the chemical complexes, with workers at companies like PetroPlus, Fine Organics, Titan Products, and the nuclear power station as near neighbours. Plus lots of seals and wading birds.

The nearest homes are at the Clarences some 2.5 miles away. Marginally further are Middlesbrough's St Hilda's and the 'prestige' new housing to be built at Middlehaven, also South Bank in Redcar & Cleveland borough. A five-mile radius takes in most of Middlesbrough, Eston, Billingham, Redcar and Hartlepool.

JOBS

Hard to say. "Up to 40 permanent positions" according to a spokesman (N.Echo, 13th December)

HAZARDS

We don't have a detailed analysis of what would be burned, let alone the impacts on health - we only know that this would be hazardous waste, most probably drawn from the chemical industry (BUT see below), and classified as needing special treatment. Hazards are most likely to come from the stack as emissions to air, or in the general handling of the feedstocks and the highly toxic fly ash (residues trapped in the filters)

It is notoriously difficult to demonstrate the impact of incineration on local people, even when there is no other industry locally to confuse the picture. There's no doubt, though, that toxic waste incinerators make very bad neighbours; those that have closed recently both have long histories of complaints from local communities and allegations of adverse health effects.

THE MARKET - SOURCES OF WASTE

Cory's say they have identified three 'providers' of hazardous waste to justify construction of an incinerator. Their names have not been disclosed, but one is on Teesside, one in 'the north-east' and one in 'the north'.

The European Landfill Directive is intended to progressively reduce landfilling of biodegradable and hazardous wastes. Undoubtedly that will tempt some producers toward incineration as a disposal method.

The lack of incinerators in other parts of the country may encourage Cory to import wastes from other industrial areas.

There are fears among some activists that a bid by Able UK to dismantle the US 'Ghost Fleet' at Graythorp, Hartlepool, will encourage Cory to offer merchant incineration as a solution to the hazardous waste disposal problem, to deal with the POPS (persistent organic pollutants) that these very old ships contain.

WHAT TO DO NEXT

With the application withdrawn, there's no need for direct opposition at present. But we know Cory's will be looking for new hazardous wastes that they could exploit. Opponents of toxic waste incineration will want to make sure the opportunity doesn't present itself! Meanwhile, we're keeping the "Comments and Concerns" page available on this site

Finally....

You could join us in the "Impact" group. We're residents, concerned about the impact of industry on our quality of life, our health, and our environment. We're independent of industry and local councils, and we aim to provide a resource and a platform that local communities can trust and use to improve local conditions.