A Sutton councillor has spoken out after being denied the chance to debate issues surrounding the Beddington incinerator, despite a previous indication that he would be allowed to.
Labour councillor for Hackbridge Dave Tchil was told by Liberal Democrat MP for Carshalton and Wallington and councillor for The Wrythe Bobby Dean a debate on the matter would be held at the Monday Full Council meeting while trying to raise it at an October 17 local committee meeting.
However, on the Monday night, Liberal Democrat council leader Barry Lewis called for the motion to be immediately put to a vote, with Dean voting in favour of that proposal followed by Tchil accepting the mayor’s invitation to deliver his motion despite his objections at not being able to have a full debate.
Cllr Tchil said: “I did that on the understanding that this would give me the place to not only speak, but also have the debate.”
Tchil added his motion, which failed to pass, aimed to create a system of further accountability and transparency regarding the incinerator’s emissions and their potential impact on health.
According to Sutton Council’s constitution, it will now be six months before Tchil can bring his motion and hold a debate again.
Dean, who voted against Tchil’s motion relating to the incinerator, highlighted Full Council meetings run from 7-10pm and many councillors cannot stay late as they have full-time jobs.
Dean said: “We had two prior debates that night on local government finance and the future of St Helier Hospital.
“By the time we reached the incinerator item it was gone 10pm.
“Councillor Tchil had the option to defer the debate to the next meeting.
“He did not take it.
“So the compromise was to hear statements from the motion’s proposer and seconder and then move to a vote.
“I backed this compromise.”
The incinerator, officially named the Beddington Energy Recovery Facility, has breached its licence conditions several times.
October 17’s committee meeting marked exactly one year since the Beddington incinerator malfunctioned due to a power cut.
Residents saw a dark smoke pouring out from the incinerator’s smokestack alongside a foul odour.
An investigation by the Environment Agency found that Viridior, the operators of Beddington ERF, failed to report the incident immediately.
Instead, it fell on residents, including Cllr Tchil, to report the failure to the Environment Agency.
This failure to report incidents constituted a violation of the conditions of their environmental permit.
Additionally, according to Viridior’s own statistics, from 2019 until the present, there have been 60 occasions where acceptable levels of emissions of certain chemicals have exceeded, the most recent being in September this year.
Dean called on the Environment Agency to step up when it comes to regulating the Beddington facility.
He said: “It is clear we need to see more from the Environment Agency.
“The cuts to their budget over recent years have seriously undermined their ability to monitor and enforce standards across the county.
“I was disappointed to see the Labour government made no new commitments to funding the EA in its latest budget.
“I have written to the Environment Agency to object to Viridor’s proposed expansion of the facility.
“We have to get the balance right.
“We need to handle residential waste in a more responsible way than landfill, while ensuring facilities like this meet their environmental standards at all times.”
An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “An environmental permit sets out stringent conditions that all waste sites must adhere to.
“We will not issue a permit if we consider activities taking place will cause significant pollution to the environment or harm to human health.
“The Environment Agency carried out two public consultation on Viridor’s application to vary its permit to operate the energy-recovery facility at Beddington.
“The aim was to let local people and organisations give their views on the site, and comment specifically on environmental and health issues.
“We consider all relevant comments into account when making our decisions.
“In deciding whether or not to issue the permit, the Environment Agency will also take other relevant considerations and legal requirements into account.”
Image taken from the livestream recording of Sutton Council’s 21 October meeting
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