Plans for Harlow waste transfer plant pushed through by Essex County Council

FURIOUS residents and business owners have spoken of their disbelief after controversial plans for a new waste transfer site in Harlow were approved by Essex County Council.

Despite receiving hundreds of objections opposing the proposals for the waste station on the Templefields Industrial Estate - including a recommendation from Harlow Council advising against the plans - members of ECC’s development and regulation committee voted in favour of the development on Friday.

Residents and business owners protest against the plans

The Star understands that Michael Garnett, county councillor for Harlow North and current Harlow Council chairman, was one of the six councillors who voted in favour of the proposals.

With no overall majority, the decision was pushed through by the committee chairman's casting vote.

"Everyone is absolutely horrified," said Bernadette Miele, headteacher of Tany’s Dell Primary School, which is located less than 250 yards away from the site of the new waste station. 

"Although the school building is 250 yards away from the proposed site, our school grounds - which the children use for play and outside learning - are much closer.

"I have already had worried parents say that they will take their children out of the school – I am extremely concerned."

The new waste transfer station has been designed to handle up to 55,000 tonnes of household and garden waste from Harlow and Epping each year, and will require up to 100 extra collection vehicles to pass through the town every day.

"It will be a disaster for Harlow and my confidence in the whole consultation system has been lost," added Ms Miele. "We will continue to do anything we can to stop this."

Harlow MP Robert Halfon said he was "very disappointed" with the decision, and criticised the county council for a lack of public consultation on the plans. "This is not the right site for the waste transfer plant and I will be looking at all possible avenues for an appeal," he added. 

Councillor Shona Johnson, chairman of Harlow Council’s development management committee, said the district council shared their residents’ concerns.

"Our objections to the planning application were sympathetic to the concerns of local residents and we felt the more suitable location for the station was the previously identified site in North Weald," she said. 

"Clearly we share our residents’ disappointment about this decision and we will continue to monitor developments closely."

However, Michael Hustwitt - who previously said he would consider moving his electronic manufacturing business from the Templefields site if the waste transfer station went ahead, remained resolute.

"The battle isn’t over yet," he told the Star this week. "They haven’t made anything official and there are discrepancies that still need to be addressed before they can go through with the development."

Essex County Council had failed to provide a comment on the decision tothe Star by yesterday (Wednesday) afternoon.