Burning old wood

I am aware that it has been suggested that the incinerator will only burn wood, however in my opinion this is a pointless argument as the incinerator will surely not be burning new wood that is untreated, but instead will be burning old wood that may have been painted/treated using a cocktail of chemicals that will be released to atmosphere during the incineration process.

I therefore object to the construction of the incinerator in the Andover area as without the use of multiple filtering techniques including the use of carbon filtering then the cocktail of chemicals will surely damage the air quality of Andover and its surrounding villages.

Should the council allow the construction of the incinerator then I would ask that the following be implemented and paid for by the proposed owner/operator of the plant:- Ahead of construction – Air quality metering on an hourly basis for a period of no less than one month at key points around Andover and the surrounding villages.

I would suggest that this should be undertaken at set points of the compass including the intermediate points and also at set distances of 1 mile, 2.5miles, 5 miles, 7.5 miles and 10 miles from the centre of the chimney.

Once the plant is in operation – Air quality metering on an hourly basis for the duration of the plants operation at key points around Andover and the surrounding villages.

The key points should be the same as those used for the air quality metering prior to construction.

All air quality metering should be undertaken by a suitably qualified and independent laboratory to national standards who would then report the findings to the local council and also to the Andover Advertiser for weekly printing within the paper.

Any dip in air quality from those measured prior to operation of the plant should mean the immediate closure of the incinerator.

I would expect this to be written into the planning conditions and strictly adhered to.

Steve Candy, address supplied.