Despite a moratorium on new waste incinerators introduced in 2022, Scotland’s incineration capacity has increased by 17 per cent, prompting environmental organisations to challenge the Government on sticking to this.

Environmental groups in Scotland have today (19 June) formally requested the country’s environmental watchdog, Environmental Standards Scotland, to investigate the grounds for why the Scottish Government has not used its powers to halt expansion of incineration capacity.

The Scottish Government introduced a moratorium on new waste incinerators in 2022 in response to the findings of an independent review, which warned of a risk of long-term overcapacity by 2026 or 2027 if all planned incineration capacity was built.

However, loopholes in the moratorium have allowed developers to continue pursuing plans for new incinerators, and Scotland’s largest existing incinerator, operated by Viridor in Dunbar, was permitted by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to increase its input capacity by 20 per cent in July 2023. As a result, Scotland’s incineration capacity has increased by 215,000 tonnes, or 17 per cent, since the moratorium was introduced.

Environmental organisations argue that incineration is expensive, emits harmful pollution, contributes to climate change, and hinders effective reuse and recycling efforts.

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