Campaigners are taking further legal action as they continue their campaign against a controversial waste plant in Cwmfelinfach.
The plant, on Nine Mile Point Industrial Estate, has faced fierce opposition since it was granted planning permission in 2015.
What is the waste plant?
Plans for the new waste treatment facility on Nine Mile Point Industrial Estate were approved by the council’s planning committee in December 2015.
Hazrem Environmental Ltd, the company initially behind the waste plant, previously said up to 100,000 tonnes of waste would be processed annually at the site, including the sorting and segregating of waste for recycling and the production of fuel.
Campaigners have argued that council officers should have asked Hazrem to carry out an environmental impact assessment before the decision was put to the council’s planning committee.
In not doing so, council officers rendered “any subsequent planning consent unlawful”, the Lower Sirhowy Valley Residents Group has said.
Earlier this year, the site of the proposed waste plant was sold by Hazrem to its directors, who in turn sold it to Hywel NMP.
Hywel NMP was set up in January 2021 and is backed by private equity investment firm Foresight Group, which is based in the Shard in London.
Recently, two planning applications relating to the plant were approved by planning officers at Caerphilly County Borough Council.
On January 13, Hywel NMP – the company behind the plant – was given planning permission to build an onsite sprinkler tank and pump house. This is to ensure the plant is in line with guidance set out by Natural Resources Wales and would be used to put out any potential fires.
More recently, council planning officers approved Hywel NMP’s request to remove its onsite dryer from the plans. The original purpose of the dryer was to dry shredded waste, but this is no longer needed.
According to Cardiff-based planning consultants DPP Planning, on behalf of Hywel NMP, the removal of the dryer will see a reduction in odours from the plant. But this has been questioned by campaigners.
Dr David Platt, who took the council to court last year over the development, has received further legal advice and said the council has “erred in law” over the two latest applications – which he will now be challenging through the courts.
Earlier this month, he sent both the council and Hywel NMP a letter before action – with a view to take them to a judicial review.
What is a judicial review?
Judicial review is a type of court proceeding in which a judge reviews the lawfulness of a decision or action made by a public body.
In other words, judicial reviews are a challenge to the way in which a decision has been made, rather than the rights and wrongs of the conclusion reached.
It is not really concerned with the conclusions of that process and whether those were ‘right’, as long as the right procedures have been followed. The court will not substitute what it thinks is the ‘correct’ decision.
This may mean that the public body will be able to make the same decision again, so long as it does so in a lawful way.
Source: https://www.judiciary.uk/you-and-the-judiciary/judicial-review/
Why are campaigners concerned?
Members of the Lower Sirhowy Valley Residents Group have raised concerns over the mineshaft entries on the site of the waste plant, which sits on what was once Nine Mile Point Colliery.
There are two mineshaft entries near the plant itself.
In a letter sent to Caerphilly County Borough Council on January 10, residents group member Jan Jones, a former Labour councillor for the Ynysddu ward, said she was worried the sprinkler tank and pump house could end up encroaching onto the ‘zone of influence’ of a nearby mineshaft entrance.
The ‘zone of influence’ is an area around the mineshaft entrance which could potentially be vulnerable to subsidence or collapse.
Dr Platt said he has “major concerns” over how the zone of influence size had been calculated. The zone of influence is a 15-metre radius around the mineshaft entry, but Dr Platt believes it should be at least 20m.
He also questioned the amount of space lorries and other large vehicles would have to manoeuvre on the site with the addition of the sprinkler tank and pump house.
“It worries me that we could have 44-tonne HGV lorries potentially coming onto the zone of influence,” said Dr Platt, who also questioned the sprinkler tank and pumphouse.
According to Dr Platt, Hywel NMP has said the water used to extinguish any fire would be stored securely before being taken away from the site in tankers. But he said as this promise is not included in the application, there is no obligation for the company to do so – meaning there is nothing legally stopping polluted water from running into the nearby Sirhowy river.
Dr Platt said he wanted this promise to be included as a condition in the planning application, which would force legally require contaminated water to be stored securely.
Questions are also being asked over the removal of the dryer from the waste plant. Dr Platt suggested the removal of the dryer could see heavier waste going out of the plant, resulting in more lorry movements to and from the site.
While planners say the removal of the dryer would reduce potential odours, Dr Platt has said the removal of the regenerative thermal oxidiser (RTO) from the plant alongside the dryer could potentially create an odour problem – and wants the council to ensure this is not the case.
What is a regenerative thermal oxidiser (RTO)?
An RTO is a commonly-used technology used to control air pollution in chemical plants.
It destroys air pollutants that can be created in chemical plants. The RTO breaks down the pollutants at a high temperature, combining them with oxygen before releasing them into the atmosphere.
They are regularly used to tackle fumes and odours.
Another issue Dr Platt is concerned about is a new system which could be installed at the plant to replace the dryer.
Dr Platt said the system will be provided by German firm Stadler. This is the same as the system used in a similar plant near Heathrow Airport, where an eight-metre wall had to be wrapped around it to reduce noise.
So why is legal action being taken?
Dr Platt his challenging both the council and Hywel NMP because he wants to see measures taken to address the concerns he and the residents group has raised over the two latest planning applications.
He is challenging the two applications approved by council officers this year. These are the addition of the pump house and sprinkler tank, as well as the non-material amendment which will see the dryer removed from the plans.
Dr Platt wants to see issues such as odour, noise and traffic considered as part of the application.
“Whether or not these changes will have an impact on odour, traffic or noise, we don’t know. But the council should be finding this out,” he said.
Residents group member Ms Jones said: “Dr Platt is being supported by the residents of the valley and the Lower Sirhowy Valley Residents Group. We are with him all the way.”
It is not the first time Dr Platt has taken legal action over the plant. In September 2021, he took the council to the High Court in an attempt to force a judicial review, with a view to overturning the 2015 planning permission granted to the plant.
However, it was thrown out by a High Court judge due to the amount of time passed since the planning permission was granted.
What have Hywel NMP and the council said?
A spokesperson for Hywel NMP said it “continues to comply with all relevant legislation.”
The spokesperson continued: “Once operational, all activities on site will be subject to an Environmental Permit, granted by Natural Resources Wales under the Environmental Permitting Regulations (England and Wales) 2010.
“The site will be operated in accordance with the conditions of the Environmental Permit, with compliance audited on a regular basis by Natural Resources Wales.
“The impact of historic mineshafts, the potential for and mitigation of contaminated water runoff from the site, as well as the proposed measures to mitigate amenity issues such as noise and odour have been assessed and considered as part of the planning determination process.”
Meanwhile, a Caerphilly County Borough Council spokesperson said: “The council has received Dr Platt’s claim and is currently considering its response.”
The story so far
December 9, 2015 – Hazrem’s plans to build a waste treatment facility at Nine Mile Point Industrial Estate is approved by the council’s planning committee.
Campaigners against the plans stage a protest outside the council offices in Tredomen.
July 2016 – Campaigners submit around 700 formal letters of complaint to Natural Resources Wales (NRW) about the plans
September 2016 – NRW says it is consulting further with Public Health Wales over the application by Hazrem.
September 2016 – Dr Gillian Richardson, who was then-Executive Director of public health at Aneurin Bevan University Health Board (ABUHB), wrote to NRW, warning that the plant’s emissions could affect local resident’s health, citing temperature inversion in the valley.
January 2017 – NRW turns down an environmental permit application for the waste plant, citing a potential “negative impact on the health of people living in the area”.
The move is welcomed by Chris Evans MP and Rhianon Passmore MS, as well as Ynysddu’s councillors at the time – Jan Jones and Philippa Marsden, who is now leader of the council.
August 2017 – NRW u-turns over its decision to reject the environmental permit application, following an appeal from Hazrem.
NRW says it will not contest the appeal, saying Hazrem included “extra technical information” in the appeal, which caused NRW to change its stance.
Rhianon Passmore MS criticises NRW and pledges to continue fighting against the plans.
September 2017 – Lower Sirhowy Valley Residents Group begins to look for £3,000 to cover legal fees as it aims to continue its opposition to the plans. The group launches a formal objection against Hazrem’s appeal for a licence to build the waste plant. A protest is held on the steps of the Senedd in Cardiff Bay.
October 2017 – A two-day public inquiry is held at Blackwood Rugby Club. A letter by Hollywood actor Michael Sheen is read out at the inquiry, describing the situation as “especially alarming”.
Roger Tunstall, representing NRW, said the body had “found no grounds to defend the initial refusal” following a “full and thorough consideration of the appeal”.
December 2017 – The waste plant is given the go-ahead by the Planning Inspectorate. A Planning Inspectorate report said NRW had based its decision on “worst case scenario” figures.
Chris Evans MP and Rhianon Passmore MS say the community has been “totally ignored” over the decision.
February 2018 – Residents hold a torchlit protest march at Nine Mile Point to continue the campaign against the waste plant. Attendees include Chris Evans MP, Cllr Philippa Marsden and former Islwyn MP Don Touhig.
Sophie Howe, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, writes to NRW asking it to demonstrate how the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act is being applied during the environmental permitting process.
August 2018 – Chris Evans MP calls for a review into NRW following its handling of Hazrem’s environmental permit. He says NRW has “failed my constituents on a number of occasions”.
December 2020 – Residents group submits a Freedom of Information request to the council. After receiving a response, Dr David Platt, of the residents group, said: “We started to suspect that a mistake had been made by the planning officers back in 2015”.
January 2021 – Hywel NMP, which is backed by London-based private equity firm Foresight Group, is set up. Hazrem would later sell the site of the proposed waste plant to its directors, who would later sell it on to Hywel NMP.
February 2021 – Residents group writes to the council suggesting three ways it can overturn the decision to grant planning permission to the waste plant. Included is the suggestion the council takes itself to judicial review – which would avoid compensation having to be paid out to Hazrem should the decision be overturned.
March 2021 – Council responds to letter from residents group, saying it is seeking its own legal advice – and that the residents group may have to wait several months for a reply.
Dr David Platt prepares to take the council to judicial review himself, due to concerns the council is “dragging its feet” over the issue.
May 2021 – The council’s Plaid Cymru and Independent groups call for clarity from the council over the situation, while, campaigners protest in Risca.
August 2021 – Dr David Platt’s application for a judicial review is turned down by a judge, but Dr Platt opts to renew the case, with a court date set in September to determine whether or not the council is taken to a judicial review.
September 2021 – Dr David Platt’s application for a judicial review is rejected by the High Court.
Caerphilly County Borough Council issues a statement to “set the record straight” over “inaccurate and misleading claims that are circulating in the community”.
Council leader Philippa Marsden says it’s “time to move forward and heal the divisions in the community”.
More than 400 protesters gather at the site of the planned waste plant.
October 2021 – Council launches internal investigation into the planning permission given to the waste plant. Campaigners say nothing will change despite the investigation. Internal investigation concludes on October 22.
November 2021 – A motion calling on an external independent investigation into the planning permission is tabled by Blackwood independent councillor Kevin Etheridge. It is rejected by councillors in a heated full council meeting.
January 2022 – Hywel NMP granted planning permission to build an onsite sprinkler tank and pump house. Plans also approved to allow Hywel NMP to remove the onsite dryer.
February 2022 – Campaigners pursue further legal action against both Hywel NMP and the council.
Additional reporting by the Local Democracy Reporting Service
Support quality, independent, local journalism…that matters
From just £1 a month you can help fund our work – and use our website without adverts.
Become a member today