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Travellers slam plan for new waste centre

Stephen Foster
31/ 7/2007

TRAVELLERS living next to a council-backed multi-million pound waste resource centre scheme plan to take their objections to the secretary of state for the environment.

The council had received letters of objection to the plan for the site off Chichester Street from We're Talking Homes - Northern Network of Travelling People and the Derbyshire Gypsy Liaison Group.

At a meeting of the council's regulatory committee residents of the Roch Valley Caravan Park voiced their feelings.

Janet Smith, of the Northern Network of Travelling People, said there had been a lack of consultation with the 27 travelling families on site and their concerns over noise, odour and levels of traffic from the waste centre had not been addressed.

"Residents' fears have not been addressed by the answers given," she said. "The proposed site is only 10 metres away from the nearest caravans."

The travellers said that the opening hours of the proposed facility, which would deal with thousands of tons of waste a year, would disrupt their lives, as would the increased amount of traffic.

They also argued that the proposed development would stop their caravan site from expanding.

Simon Grasby, project manager for the waste centre, insisted that the travellers had been given plenty of notice and fears over noise, smell and traffic had been addressed in meetings with the travellers and at exhibitions.

The committee was told that the secretary of state would decide whether to call the decision in or to let their decision stand.

Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority has warned that a six-month delay to the plans could result in an estimated fine of £70M, which would have to be found by the authority and council tax payers.

Rochdale Township planning sub-committee had already given the thumbs-up for the facility which would process waste collected from across the whole of Greater Manchester. Up to 234 tons of waste glass, plastics, steel and aluminium would be sorted and processed at the site every day.


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Most recent 2 of 5 user comments

   Travellers have a right to a safe place to live. The are Acts of Parliament putting responsibilities on Councils to provide such places. That said, all citizens, including travellers hf any type, should pay Council and Income tax, Have Road Tax and Insurance for all their vehicles and abide by the laws of this land (such as flytipping, theft etc)

We should all be equal in the eyes of the law and our community.
Witteth Lad, Whitworth
7/08/2007 at 17:29
   I agree, it truely is a sad day when non tax paying travelers expect to have a say on how taxpayers money is spent, and the sadest thing of all is that they will be listened to.
paul, Rochdale
5/08/2007 at 10:05
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