Dublin councillor defends voting in favour of incinerator

A Dublin city councillor is defending her decision to vote in favour of the controversial Poolbeg incinerator.

Deirdre Heney was one of just two members of the council who supported the project at a meeting last night.

Despite overwhelming opposition, the incinerator will go ahead because of the support of the city manager, and the chief executives of the three other local authorities in the Dublin area.

Fianna Fail Councillor Heney says even if they had the power to veto the incinerator, she wouldn't, because it needs to be built:

"We need to be responsible as elected democrats [to] make tough decisions for dealing with the waste programme," she said.

"I feel this is the right way to go - if I had the power, I would certainly not change my mind."

She said the incinerator project was the best way to deal with the waste problem in a safe and responsible manner.