Bedfordshire Energy and Recycling Project (BEaR)
Why do we need this project?
The BEaR Project has been set up to find alternatives to landfilling Bedfordshire and Luton’s waste, a problem faced by every local authority in the UK. Strict Government and EU legislation require that by 2020 the amount of the UK’s household waste sent to landfill has to be reduced to 35% of the levels landfilled in 1995. Currently, over 300,000 tonnes of household waste is produced in Bedfordshire and Luton each year and this figure is set to rise in the future as the area has been earmarked for more housing.
Working together
We have created a partnership with the newly created Central Bedfordshire Council, Bedford Borough Council and Luton Borough Council and we hope by working together we can find the best economic and environmentally friendly solution for managing the county’s waste.
Consulting with residents
We consulted with Bedfordshire residents in 2006 and we received strong support for a process which turns waste in to energy. This sort of technology would produce low emissions - and would be significantly less damaging than landfill in terms of releasing gases that contribute to climate change.
What do we think about Covanta’s proposals?
Statement from Councillor Tom Wootton, Bedfordshire County Council Cabinet Member for Waste, regarding the recent proposal by Covanta Energy to build a large scale Energy from Waste facility in Bedfordshire.
“We would like to reassure our residents that we do not support the proposal from Covanta Energy to build a 600,000t per year Energy from Waste power station in Bedfordshire to treat both Buckinghamshire’s and Bedfordshire’s waste. By applying direct to Government for approval, the company is attempting to take the decision-making process out of our hands. We will be fighting for local democracy and our right to govern such an important proposal, which would have a significant impact on the local community.
The creation of such a huge facility in Bedfordshire, for which we would have no planning responsibility, compromises all the promises we have made to Bedfordshire residents to manage our waste.
The County Council along with the other Partnership authorities are working towards a solution to treat our own waste demonstrating self sufficiency. A joint working agreement between the current Bedfordshire County Council, Bedford Borough Council, Luton Borough Council and the newly created Central Bedfordshire Council has been approved at Executive level and the Partnership submitted an Outline Business Case to Defra on 31st October 2008, in a bid for £110 million of Private Finance Initiative funding. The Partnership will be continuing towards its ultimate goal of delivering waste treatment facilities for Bedfordshire and Luton’s waste.”