Date set for appeal hearing to resume into controversial waste incinerator plan for Sowerby Bridge

Adjourning the hearing last November, Planning Inspector John Woolcock gave people extra time until February 10 to make further representations, saying he wanted to be satisfied that everyone had a full and fair opportunity to present their case.

The Inspector will determine whether or not the permit should be granted, senior Calderdale Council Cabinet members have previously told councillors.

But following the hearing and newer submissions last year, Mr Woolcock had the option of either making his determination on Calder Valley Skip Hire’s appeal, or reconvene the hearing – and he has chosen to do the latter.

This will again be at the Caygill Rooms at The Piece Hall, Blackledge, Halifax, starting at 10am on Wednesday, May 31.

Members of the public may attend the hearing and, at the discretion of the Planning Inspector, express their views.

Calder Valley Skip hire, which wants to operate a small waste incineration plant at its Belmont site on the edge of Sowerby Bridge, appealed the council’s non-determination of its application for a permit.

A complicated history has seen Calderdale Council refuse planning permission for the incinerator, that decision being overturned on appeal to the Planning Inspectorate, and then objectors winning the right to a judicial review of a subsequent decision by the council’s Cabinet to grant an environmental permit, after which the permit was quashed.

Following this, the status of the permit application was deemed to be “undetermined”, hence the company’s appeal.

In November, objectors had argued that as the council was not opposing the granting of a permit at the appeal, the public were effectively the opposition to it but the issue was a complex one, successfully winning extra time to make their case.

Following the February 10 closing date for submissions the council and the appellant were given until March 10 to submit any responses to these.

The incinerator has been opposed by residents, campaign groups, Halifax Labour MP Holly Lynch, Conservative Calder Valley MP Craig Whittaker and councillors cross-party, with most recently a more than 1,000 signature petition over the permit.