Say no to a huge expansion of incineration
28 May 2009

Help stop dozens of new incinerators, which will waste valuable resources and contribute to climate change.

Incinerator map

A new interactive map of the UK shows the location of current and proposed incinerator sites.

It shows 150 sites being considered, in order to build around 80 new facilities.

Incinerators contribute to climate change by:

Releasing large amounts of carbon dioxide.
Wasting energy that could be saved through recycling.

Misspent taxes

£2 billion of Government funding is helping councils to pay for many of these incinerators.

At the same time, the Government has cut funds for promoting recycling by a third.

Climate friendly solutions

Maximising recycling and composting rates would be much better for the climate than incineration.

We should deal with the left over waste by using more sustainable alternatives to landfill and incineration, such as mechanical biological treatment.

Please take action by asking the Minister responsible for waste - Jane Kennedy MP - to stop wasting taxpayer's money on subsidising incinerators and instead invest in green alternatives.

Fight the expansion of incineration

Dear Minister,

I am writing to express my concern that around 80 new incineration facilities are currently being considered by UK local authorities. I object to my taxes being wasted through the PFI funding that is encouraging councils to build these expensive incinerators. Research indicates that treating waste with incineration has one of the biggest climate impacts out of all possible options. Incineration also locks councils into long contracts to supply large, fixed amounts of waste. This will create a ceiling on recycling rates, particularly now there are signs that waste volumes are stabilising. This potential over-capacity is also likely to lead to commercial and industrial waste being incinerated when it should be being recycled. I urge the Government to abandon this wasteful and old-fashioned technology by stopping all incinerator funding and investing in real green alternatives, including reinstating more adequate funding levels for WRAP. I also encourage you to introduce an incineration tax and a ban on recyclables being incinerated or landfilled, in order to maximise recycling of all wastes. I look forward to hearing from you.

You can contact me by email (preferably - to save resources) or at the following address:

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Say no to a huge expansion of incineration28 May 2009