Janet Finch-Saunders MS – the Shadow Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs and the Member of the Welsh Parliament for Aberconwy – has called on the Welsh Government to provide a dated expectation for delivery of a moratorium on new large-scale incinerators in Wales.
Following consistent campaigning on the issue by the Welsh Conservatives, the Welsh Government announced a pivot in their policy approach in their Beyond Recycling strategy. In a passage on page thirty-two, the document states that the devolved administration will:
“Place a moratorium on any future large scale energy from waste developments, as the increase in recycling and reduction in waste already seen means that we will not need any new large scale energy from waste infrastructure to deal with the residual waste generated in Wales.”
Mrs Finch-Saunders wrote to the Minister on this issue in October 2020, and further called for a moratorium during two Plenary debates on the Beyond Recycling strategy at the close of last year.
Outlining the need for further clarity, Janet said:
“The wholesale incineration of our waste continues to be a damaging and short-sighted approach to the issue. This was borne out by the findings of a report from WRAP Cymru, which found that 75 percent of commercial and industrial waste sent to incineration or landfill in Wales is actually recyclable.
“As I consistently made clear in the Senedd, with such a high proportion of recyclable material being sent to landfill or incineration, their continued use clearly stands as a barrier to Wales meeting our target of achieving a recycling rate of 100% across all sectors by 2050.
“Whilst I welcome the fact that the Welsh Government has now begun to listen to our concerns, the Minister should come forward with a dated expectation for when this moratorium will be implemented.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
- You can read strategy by clicking here.
- You can read Janet’s Plenary contributions by clicking here and here.
Photo: Etienne Girardet on Unsplash
