A COMMUNITY council is “strongly objecting” to plans by Powys County Council (PCC) to process black bin waste at a recycling facility in their village near Newtown.
Abermule with Llandyssil Community Council held an open meeting earlier this month before they submitted their comments on proposals by PCC to start taking black bin waste to the North Powys Bulking Facility in Abermule.
Abermule with Llandyssil Community council said: “The council strongly object to the bulking facility at Abermule being allowed to bulk residual waste.
“The council called an open meeting to gauge the feeling of the community and the meeting unanimously called for the council to object to the application on two fundamental grounds.
“PCC have continuously gone against promises made to the Abermule community to such an extent that the community no longer trusts anything they say.
“An ethical council should honour promises made to the community in the past.”
They go on to list all the issues over the years with the facility and stress it was only ever supposed to deal with recycling and not “residual” black bin waste.
The second point of objection is on Odour Impact Assessment (OIA) and Pest Management Plans (PMP).
Abermule with Llandyssil Community Council continued: “The OIA and PMP submitted in the application are totally inadequate given the proximity of the plant’s location, adjacent to a prestigious business park and up wind of a large village.”
“Much is made in the plan about material only being present for short periods of time, but residual waste is only collected every three weeks, so it is likely pests will already be present in the loads delivered.”
Earlier this month the new planning application to allow black bin waste to be processed at the North Powys Bulking Facility was lodged with county planners.
This is because the original planning permission from 2018 does not allow black bin waste to be processed there.
Natural Resources Wales (NRW) issued an environment permit in July 2023 which allows the council to operate the site and deal with 22,500 tonnes of waste a year.
The permit included allowing the council to deal with residual black bin waste there.
At a meeting of the Finance Panel on Thursday, November 20, Conservative group leader Cllr Aled Davies (Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant and Llansilin) admitted that assurances had been given to villagers that black bin waste would not go there.
Cllr Davies was deputy leader in the Independent/Conservative administration from 2017 to 2022 that pushed through the project.
The significance of the objection by Abermule council goes back to the Planning committee meeting in August 2018.
The proposal was approved by just one vote and Abermule with Llandyssil council had raised a number of “concerns” they had with the plans rather than formally objecting to it.
At the meeting, Cllr Huw Williams (Labour – Ystradgynlais and Abercraf) had said that he was willing to back the scheme due to the lack of objection from the community council.
PCC believes that processing black bin waste would save £100,000 as they currently have to take the rubbish to be disposed of elsewhere.
Cabinet member for Highways Transport and Recycling, Cllr Jackie Charlton (Liberal Democrat – Llangattock and Llangynidr) said: “Currently residual waste from the north of the county is taken to a third-party transfer station at a significant additional cost to the council, as well as resulting in more travelling time and carbon emissions from the fleet of collection vehicles.
“By utilising the site to its full potential, we can run our waste and recycling service more sustainability, reducing costs and minimising our carbon footprint.”
She believes villagers would not notice any “changes at all” if black bin waste goes there.
