From The Chester Chronicle, Mold & Buckley Edition February 18th 2000
 
 

by George Tattum

A PUBLIC inquiry is on the cards into Castle Cement's plans for a new waste-burning kiln at Padeswood.

The Welsh Assembly has stepped into the controversy  after Flintshire planning committee angered protestors by voting through the application.

Undeterred by the rebuff, the anti-kiln lobby was quickly out on the streets collecting signatures in an attempt to overturn the decision.

The Cardiff-based Assembly was soon inundated with requests for local government minister Peter Law to call in the planning application.

He obliged on Monday and is now trawling through a mountain of paperwork before deciding whether to hold a public enquiry.
 

Campaign Against the New Kiln Chairman, Arnold Woolley, of Buckley, is convinced an inquiry is now the only option.

'We are delighted the minister has intervened and I'm certain a public inquiry must now be held to look at all the evidence,' he said.

'The risk to health from firing the kiln with waste chemicals and old tyres is clear. Public concern must be addressed and the planning committee decision overturned.'

Mr Woolley, a Buckley councillor, said the fight against Castle's application had only just started and his group had amassed enough evidence to show the new kiln would be a serious risk to the health of anyone living within a wide radius of the plant.

Castle Cement has reacted angrily to the latest twist in the saga.

Tony Allan, general manager of the company's Padeswood plant, said: ' we are obviously disappointed that our planning application has been called in by the Assembly as this will lead to a delay in a project which will bring major benefits to the environment and local economy.

'We are confident a full debate was made before Flintshire County Council gave us planning permission and are therefore surprised the decision making process regarding a local issue has been taken away from the council.

'A small group of protestors have used scaremongering tactics to frighten the local and surrounding communities about our plans. They have made false accusations that emissions will increase and will travel over great distances.

'These claims were made on the so called evidence of a Dr van Steenis and at the planning committee on February 2nd the protest group disassociated itself from this ex-GP's claims.

'It is disgraceful that such claims have continued to be used to frighten people into opposing our plans.'

Flintshire planning committee ignored the advice of department chief Richard Jarvis who recommended rejection of the kiln plan.

He said the proposed 360ft chimney would blight the landscape, but di not accept the arguement that the kiln would be harmful to health..