I was interested to read the article, Councillors debate how to get rid of waste (Oxford Mail, March 25). I was, however, disappointed to see a major inaccuracy.
You state that "Oxfordshire County Council, which is responsible for disposing the county's waste, has no alternatives on the table apart from incineration'.
This statement is incorrect.
The council is considering a list of options which include advanced thermal treatment (ATT) and mechanical biological treatment (MBT) as well as energy from waste.
All these options put waste to productive use. Whatever option we choose will have to be environmentally safe.
There is no question of building incinerators that do not produce electricity or building to unsafe standards of earlier years.
In 2009, any part of the country that does not meet its Government target for preventing waste going to landfill will be heavily fined.
We could be paying fines of £150 a tonne. This could cost us as much as £4.3m in fines in 2009 and even more in subsequent years.
As it takes time to procure and build any of the available technologies, we need to start thinking and planning now.
Oxfordshire currently produces the lowest tonnage per head of waste of any county in the country. The county is in the top 25 per cent for recycling.
We will continue to give maximum priority to reducing and recycling waste, and are working with district colleagues in the Oxfordshire Waste Partnership on an integrated strategy to achieve this.
However, reducing and recycling alone will not solve the problem. Other countries with higher recycling rates in Europe have found they also need further treatment technologies for what is left over. We need to recognise that reality now, otherwise everyone in Oxfordshire will face major costs in three years' time through Government fines.
Roger Belson (Councillor) Cabinet member for sustainable development Oxfordshire County Council
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