It might feel like a dark day for Wisbech as work is about to begin on the controversial multi-million-pound incinerator tomorrow, but one leading opponent is not giving up hope.
Virginia Bucknor, who together with her husband Michael, spearheaded the anti-incinerator campaign with their Wisbech Without Incineration (WisWin) group, still believes the town will be spared the "monstrosity".
Speaking as Paul Carey, of MVV Environment, the German-based firm behind the 54-megawatt incinerator, has released new images of what it will look like Mrs Bucknor said she will believe it when it is built and up and running.
Mrs Bucknor said: "Three incinerators have been stopped from going ahead because they have not been able to secure contracts for the waste needed to run them.
"Every council from miles around, including Norwich City, West Norfolk, and Fenland, has agreed not to send waste to this monstrosity of an incinerator.
"It will need tonnes and tonnes of waste every day to make it viable, but without contracts the question is 'where is the waste going to come from?'"
She said investors in the £450 million project need to be confident that it will be able to operate, but it is hard to have confidence when there is no clear source for the 500,000 tonnes the incinerator is expected to burn every year.
"I have heard people say it can be shipped in via the port, but that really is not an option," said Mrs Bucknor.
"When I was a councillor, Wisbech port was my remit, and I know that it is too small for the type of ships that will be needed to bring the waste in. The port has a very small turning circle, so I can't see it being viable for the waste to be brought in that way.
"Then you have to consider it will need to be unloaded into lorries to transport it to the incinerator, where are they going to come from? And again, that is not a viable option."
She said that as someone who has worked in finance and investment, she is confident that investors will be looking hard at the project to determine its viability.
"Much of the investment is coming from Germany, but the German economy is not very strong at the moment. This incinerator is going to take three to four years to build - I'm not sure investors will have enough confidence in its viability for all that time," said Mrs Bucknor.
RECOMMENDED READING: Petrol station on A47 near Wisbech temporarily closes
"That's why I am feeling positive. I am a cup-half-full person, not half empty, and three or four years is a long time."
She added: "I know they are starting the groundworks, that's to be expected, but I am not convinced it will ever be fully built. I will believe it when I see it, and it is up and running.
"Of course, if MVV can explain where the waste will be coming from, then that would be a different story, but I don't believe they can, as I don't believe they have secured enough contracts.
"As long as the councils stand firm and do as they have pledged and not send waste to Wisbech, then there is hope."
Work is due to start tomorrow on the site off Algores Way, and Mr Carey said the initial work will be to provide facilities for the workers, with work beginning in earnest on the first stages of the £450million project the following week.
This work will include piling, so specialist equipment will be moving on to the site at the end of next week.
Earlier this month, MVV announced it will be donating up to £200,000 a year to community groups and organisations in the Wisbech area once the incinerator is operational.
A full breakdown of what businesses, householders, and organisations located close to the site can expect during the work was being sent out earlier this month.
The project company, now renamed MVV Environment Medworth Ltd, has implemented a multi-contract approach with the main contractor being Kanadevia Inova AG (KVI) of Switzerland.
Paul said the Swiss company has built many similar plants in the UK, but there will also be local subcontractors employed on the site.
The incinerator, which will generate up to 50 megawatts of energy, is expected to create jobs for local people both during the construction stage and once it is operational.
Share