I AM sorry that Vale Royal's Labour leader, Bob Mather (letter, August 21), chose to indulge in political point scoring rather than discussing the serious concerns which local Liberal Democrats have about one aspect of Cheshire's waste strategy.

It is particularly sad given that there is in practice much common ground between the parties on the issue of recycling.

The EU Landfill Directive requires substantial reductions in the amount of waste being thrown into holes in the ground. The Liberal Democrat fear is that too much incineration, with all its potential for air pollution, is going to be used as a means of meeting the Government targets. This is a fear shared by Friends of the Earth.

There can be a role for incineration in a waste management strategy. It makes good environmental sense, for example, to burn an oil-based yoghurt carton rather than heat up water to clean and recycle it. The most modern equipment should be used to reduce any risk of pollution, and both electricity and hot water should be generated as part of the process. Even so, it should always be regarded as a last resort.

In Copenhagen, for example, which has one of Europe's best recycling records, a £30 per tonne landfill tax is matched by a £27 per tonne incinerator tax to discourage burning from being considered a cheap option. An absolute limit is placed on the amount of waste which can be disposed of in this way, and the incinerator is owned by a recycling company which treats waste in a different way whenever possible.

I hope that Clr Mather will agree with me that, as it stands, Government policy simply does not give local authorities sufficient financial incentives to encourage recycling on the scale needed if Britain is to match best European practice.

CHRIS DAVIES

Liberal Democrat MEP for the North West