Plans for a rubbish power station in Cheshire have been approved by the government this week. Obviously not a power station that is rubbish but one that will be fuelled by waste.

Ineos Chlor will construct the ‘energy from waste’ combined heat and power station with a 100MW capacity at Runcorn after being given the green light by energy minister Malcolm Wicks.

The heat and electricity produced from waste that will come from Manchester, Merseyside, Halton, Cheshire and Warrington will be used at Ineos’ major chemicals manufacturing complex in Runcorn – one of the largest energy users in the UK.

Wicks said:

“It’s important that we move forward in tackling the UK’s waste problem. The proposed plant will make use of local waste for the production of energy rather than contributing to the UK’s landfill.”

But Wicks acknowledged the controversy locally around the plant and worries about the impact on public health and said this will be addressed through planning conditions at the construction stage.

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