Ludlow Mayor Challenges Shropshire Council Over Proposed Green Waste Plant

The mayor of Ludlow conveyed to a high-ranking official at Shropshire Council, “you don’t care what we think,” amidst a dispute concerning proposals for a green waste recycling facility within the town. The county authority intends to convert a previously used anaerobic digester into a facility that will manufacture biochar, which is a type of charcoal. While waste official Mark Foxall presented the plans to Ludlow Town Council, Mayor Beverley Waite expressed her perception that the decision to proceed had already been finalized. Mr. Foxall stated that the standard planning procedures would nonetheless be followed. He informed the members: “It’s a way of generating renewable energy and we can generate money from feedstock and people who deposit their wooded materials.” The official anticipated that the facility would yield a return on investment within a five-year timeframe, with financial support sourced from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). He elaborated: “It’s a black material and very honeycombed in its structure, and that’s where it gets its benefits from. If you apply it to land, it retains moisture and nutrients.” The initiative has received robust backing from fellow Ludlow councillor Andy Boddington, who originally proposed Ludlow as the site for the project. The previous anaerobic digester, which was used for collecting gas from food waste, ceased operations in 2012. Mayor Waite expressed her conviction that the county council had already reached its conclusion. She stated to Mr. Foxall: “It states quite clearly that planning permission will be required and you’re saying it’s going to be done.” “If we turn you down, are you just going to go ahead and do it?” Mr. Foxall replied: “That [planning permission] will be determined by planning colleagues and the planning committee.” The authority for planning decisions rests with a committee of Shropshire councillors, which takes into account the perspectives of town and parish councils and local residents, yet is legally mandated to assess proposals based on planning policy rather than the extent of public sentiment. Additionally, members are obliged to adopt an impartial stance on projects that receive corporate endorsement from their own council. Individuals interested in learning more about the initiative are invited to a drop-in event at Ludlow Library on 6 November, scheduled from 14:00 to 19:30 GMT. This report was compiled by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which provides coverage of councils and various public service entities. For updates, follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X, and Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the material on external websites. Information regarding our policy on external linking is available.