urged to join the fight

CAMPAIGNERS who are fighting to prevent an incinerator being built in Lostock are aiming to get all the region's parish councils on their side.

Lostock Gralam Parish Council plans to contact councils throughout Cheshire to get support for their campaign and prevent different authorities turning against each other.

Councillors decided to take action following last month's Cheshire County Council meeting, when it was agreed that the first draft of the Cheshire Replacement Waste Local Plan should be put out for consultation.

The draft features a number of potential sites for waste disposal facilities, including two in Lostock. One of these, off Griffiths Road, has been earmarked for a possible 'thermal treatment' site, which is thought to mean an incinerator.

Many residents and councillors are opposed to the development of an incinerator on health grounds, saying there is no proof that its emissions would not pose a danger.

The first, six-week period of public consultation will start on May 10, but the campaigners are already considering their options.

Clr Ann McEllin, a Vale Royal borough and Lostock Gralam parish councillor, said they now had eight weeks to respond to the draft.

She said: "It's not explicit that we will have an incinerator here but they've said they're looking to put two waste treatment sites in Lostock.

"We don't have a clue what type they will be."

Clr McEllin said she wanted to have a meeting with representatives from each parish council in Cheshire.

She said: "I think the key to it is that the county council will try to play one site off against another. We need to get everyone working together. It's about reaching all the parish councils that don't have sites proposed for their areas and getting them interested."

The new plan aims to find alternatives to landfill sites, which are currently being overused. There will be a public inquiry in spring 2005 and an inspector's report in the summer before any of the proposed sites are developed.

rbabington@guardiangrp.co.uk