Bayside Council is turning up the heat in its opposition to plans for a $250 commercial incinerator to be built in the eastern side of the local government area.
SUEZ and Opal plan to build the high temperature waste-to-energy incinerator to power the Opal Matraville Paper Mill.
It would have a 60m high stack that would burn an estimated 200,000 tonnes a year of non-putrescible material including plastics, textiles and furniture, operating 24 hours a day.
Bayside Council said the fallout from the incinerator could be felt as far away as Kogarah or Kurnell.
Similar to its campaign against the proposed cruise ship terminal in Botany Bay, the Bayside Council has launched a campaign to raise the public awareness about the proposed incinerator.
The council has branded one of its garbage trucks with a "Say No to Incinerators" banner on it.
And it has placed messages on billboards up on General Holmes Drive voicing its opposition to the proposed incinerator.
"This proposed incinerator will have a huge impact on our community even though it is not in our area," Bayside mayor Christina Curry said..
"Council unanimously resolved to fight to protect its community and its environment at a Council Meeting last year.
"Show your objection by signing the petition from No More Incinerators Eastern Suburbs;
EARLIER:
Bayside Council is urging residents to sign a petition on Change.Org opposing plans for a $250 million commercial incinerator in the eastern side of the local government area.
The proposed incinerator would be built in Matraville but has the potential to affect more that half a million people living within a 10km radius of the site including Kogarah and Kurnell, the council said.
SUEZ and Opal plan to build the high temperature waste-to-energy incinerator to power the Opal Matraville Paper Mill.
"The proposed plant would incinerate up to 200,000 tonnes of non-recyclable rubbish such as plastic, disposable nappies, polystyrene foam, bubble wrap, syringes, medical waste and garden waste each year," the petition states.
The proposal is classified as State Significant and will be determined by the State Government.
Bayside Council is urging people to get involved with the local grassroots campaigns by signing the petition and supporting the No More Incinerators community group.
"Along with the Randwick City Council, we believe that placing an incinerator near a densely populated city is fundamentally incompatible with the health and well-being of nearby residents," according to Bayside Council's statement supporting the petition.
Opal and SUEZ have said that the proposed incinerator would reduce waste to landfill, minimise net CO emissions, create local jobs and increase local economic development.
"The plant would use advanced and proven safe technology, similar to what's been used for decades in many European cities. It would meet the highest local and international standards for air quality," the company said.
Bayside Council said the paper mill currently uses natural gas to power the plant, which is typically regarded as a cleaner fuel source than burning coal or waste.
Almost 18,900 people have signed a petition on Change.org objecting to the incinerator proposal. The petition organisers hope to gathering 25,000 signatures.
