Public meeting on proposed pyrolysis plant

A public meeting has been organised so that Taylor Pass residents can ask questions of the company wanting to set up a new pyrolysis plant near their neighbourhood.

The meeting, which will be open to all members of the public, will be at the Elim Centre in Burleigh Road at 7pm on Monday 14 August.

“This is a new idea for Blenheim and we know there are lots of questions about the process. This meeting will be a good opportunity for people living in the area to learn more about the proposal, how pyrolysis works and how the company would manage any effects. We encourage everyone to come along and ask their questions,” says Council Solid Waste manager Alec McNeil.

The private sector business, Waste Transformation Ltd, already operates a pyrolysis plant in Timaru.

Council has identified a site for the pyrolysis plant at its Bluegums Landfill which currently takes the district’s waste timber.

“Up to 8000 tonnes of treated and untreated timber goes into our landfill each year, almost three quarters of this is treated timber. Council’s interest is in reducing our reliance on landfill to manage our waste,” says Mr McNeil.

He says the Bluegums location offered efficiencies with most of the required infrastructure already there, from weighbridges to drainage and roading. However, the company would have to satisfy all the conditions of the consenting process before it could go ahead.

The company hopes to lodge an application for resource consent by the end of August 2017.

Council chief executive Mark Wheeler says, once the application is received, a decision can be made as to how widely the application is notified. He says, as is usual in cases involving technical data and where council is a party, an independent commissioner would oversee the consent process.

Further explanation of the consenting process could be made at the meeting if residents have questions, he said.

More information about the proposed pyrolysis project can be found on the Council website; www.marlborough.govt.nz/services/recycling-and-resource-recovery/pyrolysis-site-bluegums-landfill

ENDS

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