About the application:

Surrey Waste Management Limited (SWM) submitted a planning application to build an energy-from-waste (EfW) facility to deal with household waste generated in Surrey which remains after recycling and composting as much as we can, has been approved by Surrey County Council. The planning approval is for an 110,000 tonne per year EfW facility at the Clockhouse Quarry, Capel (next to the Hanson brickworks).

Rather than sending waste that cannot sensibly be recycled from households to landfill sites, the EfW process releases energy locked inside the waste to generate electricity.

EfW technology has been identified by Surrey County Council as an appropriate, environmentally sustainable and cost effective method for dealing with waste that cannot sensibly be recycled, as defined by Surrey's Joint Municipal Waste Management Strategy (JMWMS).

The strategy covers the period from 2006 - 2025 and is led by the waste hierarchy, which places an emphasis on minimising waste, then recycling and composting and recovering further value from what remains.

Not only does EfW make sense for Surrey, but it is also becoming the accepted method of waste management in the UK and is supported by the Government's National Waste Strategy 2007 and European best practice.

Timescale:

Winter 2006 and summer 2007 - pre-planning application consultation
Autumn 2007 - planning application submitted
Autumn 2008 - planning application determined by Surrey County Council
Spring 2009 - construction starts
Early 2012 - facility opens

Click here to view the virtual consultation, detailing the latest information on the proposed planning application.