Date set for new consultation to determine site of West Suffolk waste hub

A date has been set for a new consultation to suggest alternative sites for a waste hub in West Suffolk following a public backlash to council bosses’ preferred option.

Residents can have their say on the location of the West Suffolk Operational Hub from January 8 to February 19.

It follows fierce opposition to St Edmundsbury Borough, Forest Heath District and Suffolk County Councils’ preferred site at Hollow Road Farm, on the outskirts of Bury St Edmunds.

Petitions containing 844 signatures were presented to St Edmundsbury in June with concerns raised about the site’s countryside location, proximity to houses, the potential for increased traffic and a ‘negative environmental impact’.

Hollow Road Farm was chosen out of 19 possible sites and the consultation will look at how these were assessed.

It will examine the need for a single site for the hub’s various services including a waste service depot, waste transfer station and household waste recycling centre. Residents will also be able to suggest alternative sites and give reasons why one of the rejected sites should be reconsidered.

A joint statement from the councils said: “It became evident from the comments and questions we received that some people in West Suffolk believed there may be other options to consider.

“The partner councils had carefully considered the way we should manage waste in the future, researched a number of options and identified a potential site but we accept that we did not share enough of this information with residents.

“We will now put that right by making the research publicly available so people can read it for themselves and let us know if they think there is a more suitable option.”

From January 8 information will be available online at www.westsuffolk.gov.uk where a public consultation plan has already been published.

Information can also be found at West Suffolk House, in Western Way, Bury; Bury Library, in Sergeants Walk; The Apex, in Bury; District Council Offices, in College Heath Road, Mildenhall; Newmarket Library, in The Guineas and Haverhill House, in Lower Downs Slade.

Drop in events will be held on January 15, 2.30pm to 6pm at the Unitarian Meeting House, in Churchgate Street, Bury; January 16, 10am to 1pm at The Apex and January 19, 4-8pm at St John’s Centre, in St John’s Street, Bury.

There will be a public meeting on Friday, January 29 at 7pm at the Athenaeum, on Angel Hill, Bury.