CHESHIRE West and Chester Council will write to Michael Gove raising concerns about a Northwich waste incinerator’s expansion plans.

At an online meeting of Full Council last night (Thursday), a majority of members voted in favour of a motion tabled by Cllr Bob Cernik, calling on the Secretary of State to reconsider the terms of the licence for the Lostock energy-from-waste plant, as well as any future expansion proposals.

The plant is currently under construction after being granted planning permission by the Government in 2012. But even though it has not yet been completed, the operator is about to apply to increase the amount of waste burnt from 600,000 to 728,000 tonnes of waste a year, prompting fears around pollution from the plant and what would be 434 daily lorry movements on the local road network.

Addressing members at the virtual meeting, Cllr Sam Naylor (Lab) said the increase in traffic would be a ‘living hell’ for residents and urged the use of rail lines instead.

He said: “There’s a fully functioning railhead with full UK connectivity on the site.

“My argument is we’re not going to stop this site, but we need to stop this increase in waste and we need to say let’s be sensible, and say if you’re going to have this incinerator, at least bring in the waste by rail and not by road.”

He added: “The junction at the roundabout on the A556, to the junction at Broken Cross, that’s going to be so busy with HGVs that for residents living along that road it’s going to be a living hell."

Cllr Mark Stocks (Con) added: “More than 12,000 residents in Northwich campaigned against this incinerator but the secretary of state approved it, but there are many things we as a council can do to protect residents in that particular area.”