New Planning Application for Carranstown Incinerator will be made after Waste Policy changed to allow Dublin Waste to be burnt in Meath

The Green Party has accused the Minister for the Environment Dick Roche of bowing to pressure from Indaver after he made changes to Waste Policy that will allow regional incinerators to accept waste from other regions. These changes were announced in a Policy Direction published by Minister Roche on 3 May 2005 after his predecessor Martin Cullen TD had met with Indaver in the Customs House on 8 June 2004.

At that meeting Indaver made a presentation indicating that they had difficulties with Condition 4 of the Carranstown Planning Decision which stated that waste accepted for incineration 'shall be strictly limited and confined to waste generated and produced in the North East Region area of counties of Meath, Louth, Cavan and Monaghan'. Indaver suggested a revised wording stating that the incinerator "shall be primarily for waste generated and produced in the North East…"

Green Party Environment spokesperson Ciarán Cuffe TD stated:

"Yesterday's announcement that Indaver intends to make a new stand-alone Planning Application for an incinerator that would take 33 per cent more waste is a clear indication that their lobbying has paid off. The Minister for the Environment Dick Roche issued new a Policy Direction under Section 60 of the Waste Management Act 1996 on 3 May 2005.

"The Policy Direction that was issued by Minister Roche marked a sea-change in the Government's policy on waste. No longer would Waste Regions be limited to accepting waste from their own areas. Consequently, the people of Meath may well have to accept thousands of tons of Dublin's waste every year if the new proposal by Indaver gets the go-ahead.

"Local communities are now at risk of more waste from outside their own areas being trucked in to incinerators in their region. More traffic will be generated, and more waste will be incinerated in regions where it was not created in the first place.

"It now seems clear that Indaver intended to make a revised Planning Application as they even proposed to the Minister a precise wording that the County Council could use in the even of a new Planning Application being made to them.

"In the light of the proposal for a new Planning Application by Indaver it now appears that the Government pandered to business interests," concluded Deputy Cuffe.