Campaigners against Poolbeg incinerator take fight to High Court

CAMPAIGNERS against an incinerator which will turn waste into electricity for 50,000 Dublin homes are taking their fight to the High Court.

The Combined Residents Against Incineration (CRAI) action group has lodged papers in court to try to overturn An Bord Pleanála’s approval for the Poolbeg plant.

They want to challenge Environment Minister John Gormley, Attorney General Paul Gallagher, Dublin City Council and An Bord Pleanála in open court over the approval.

The Poolbeg incinerator in Ringsend will burn up to 600,000 tonnes of rubbish a year, creating electricity to light 50,000 homes and providing heat for a further 60,000 homes.

An incinerator would also prevent landfill sites from filling up with rubbish, the plan’s supporters say.

The controversial incinerator would be built in Mr Gormley’s own constituency despite his personal opposition to the plan.

Campaigners say the council can find better ways of dealing with waste rather than burning it in an incinerator, which they claim will pollute the atmosphere.

They also say emissions of carbon dioxide or CO2 from the incinerator will hamper the Government’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and could lead to fines from the international community.

However, supporters say burning waste in controlled conditions is better for the environment than polluting land by dumping rubbish at the tip or illegally.

They also say the electricity created will mean fewer fossil fuels like coal, oil and peat are burned, also reducing Ireland’s CO2 emissions while heating and lighting homes at the same time.

The council says the amount of waste burned would total 600,000 tonnes a year or a quarter of all the household and trade refuse collected in the city.

But the CRAI said Dublin City Council instead could promote recycling more to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill sites.

Campaigner May Kane said: “We do not need an incinerator on the Poolbeg or anywhere in Dublin City. Recycling levels have increased massively and there is the potential for much higher rates.”

The CRAI wants the Government to review the Waste Management Act, which permits incineration of waste.

In the High Court papers, the CRAI alleges the Government has failed to fulfil its obligations under European Council directives on dealing with waste.

The CRAI has argued it is also entitled to have access to a review procedure to challenge the legality of An Bord Pleanála’s decision to grant permission for the incinerator.

The Government’s Environmental Protection Agency announced last November it would grant a licence for the non-hazardous waste incinerator.