Questions have been asked about odours after a waste incinerator was approved in north Belfast.
Developers have claimed there would be no odour impact from a planned new waste disposal installation, which will be the only centre in the whole of the island of Ireland to incinerate healthcare and hazardous waste while also generating renewable energy.
At the January Belfast City Council Planning Committee meeting this week, representatives unanimously approved the proposed change of use and redevelopment of the existing waste management facility and adjoining plant hire business at 1 and 2 Duncrue Pass.
Unit 1 currently comprises an existing waste transfer station and materials recovery facility operated by Ace Bates Skip Hire Ltd. Planning permission was recently granted to extend this waste management use into the adjoining Unit 2, which is currently leased by Speedy Hire who operates a commercial plant hire business.
The developer is United Energy Waste Management Ltd, of Enterprise Road, Bangor. The application was first due to be considered by the Planning Committee in October 2023 but was deferred after a number of council site visits. United Energy Waste Management Ltd states that the proposal is an “on-island solution and an alternative to shipping waste to GB or Europe.”
The waste it will deal with includes healthcare waste from hospitals, pharmacies, dentists, care homes, as well as veterinary and sanitary waste. It also includes “hazardous waste” – this includes waste from industrial and commercial processes, laboratories and government controlled sources such as confiscated alcohol, drugs and tobacco.
The proposed facility will have a capacity of 20,000 tonnes of waste per annum. On the whole, the island of Ireland currently generates around 43,000 tonnes of clinical waste annually.
The developer states there are no proposals to import waste, which would require additional licensing. Council officers recommended imposing a condition preventing the importation of waste from outside the island of Ireland.
The proposed facility can generate up to 10 megawatts in heat, which could convert to one to two megawatts electricity. The developer states that this amount of energy could power 2,000 to 4,000 homes annually – in order of priority, they say the primary energy use will be as a local heat supply, then a local electricity source, and finally, exported to the national grid.
No residential neighbours were notified as there are none adjacent to the site, the council said.
During the Planning Committee meeting at City Hall, Alliance Councillor David Bell said: “It appears to be buried within an industrial site, but right beside the front door of that site runs a cycle lane which goes from Belfast to Carrickfergus, which I have used several times.
“You become aware of that site before you see it, because it stinks. You are aware you are passing a site that is processing waste. So I would be concerned for people using the cycle path.”
A representative for the developer said: “In terms of the two different types of waste facilities – what you currently have there is a mixed waste facility, that handles everything from your black and blue bins, which might have food residues within it.
“The difference between that, and what we are currently proposing is that this will be a closed facility. All of the waste brought into this facility will not only be brought in sealed bags from the hospitals, veterinarians, care homes, but also in sealed waste bins. It will be stored in a chilled area, and the bins will be directly loaded into the incineration plant.
“The bins will then be lifted and sterilised. It is a very different process, and the waste will not have the same connection with the elements.”
Another representative for the developer, who completed an air quality impact assessment on the application, told councillors: “I don’t disagree that the current waste disposal system, which is a very open air treatment, would likely generate a potential odour. In comparison, this proposal would be a very modern waste management facility, a brand new building which will be built to relevant technical specifications to ensure that everything is wholly contained within that building.”