Blacktown City Mayor Tony Bleasdale OAM has cautiously welcomed the NSW Government’s move to bring in regulations aimed at preventing the construction of large-scale energy from waste incinerators in the Sydney basin.
However, Mayor Bleasdale warned that: “One battle has been won, but that does not mean the war is over.
“Legal advice to council suggests the regulations do represent a win for the residents of Western Sydney and in particular those who live in suburbs surrounding Eastern Creek where there are plans to build two of these incinerators,” Mayor Bleasdale said.
In September, then Deputy Premier John Barilaro and NSW Energy and Environment Minister Matt Kean announced the government’s Infrastructure Plan that clearly stated where Energy from Waste incinerators could and could not be built, ruling them out in high density residential areas.
Until late July, though, the NSW Government had not brought in the necessary regulations to back up the policy, increasing speculation that planned incinerators for Eastern Creek could in fact still be approved and built.
“For months, residents’ groups, councillors and our local Parliamentarians have been calling on the State Government to bring in the regulations needed to back up the policy, but now our advice is that the government still needs to do more,” Mayor Bleasdale said.
“Council has legal advice that the new government regulation does not necessarily end the current Land and Environment Court appeal by the proponents of one of the planned incinerators at Eastern Creek, TNG.
“This is because TNG believes the court can still grant development consent, even though the regulation has been made.
“Council is continuing to fight the TNG proposal through the court process. With or without the regulation, TNG’s proposal should not be approved, on environmental, social and public interest grounds. It is the wrong development in the wrong location.
“Our legal advice states that the next step for the government should be to change the planning laws to prohibit development like the TNG proposal which the government suggested it would do in September 2021. That should put an end to the current court appeal and allow all parties to move on.
“But I would just like to say a huge thank you to all the hundreds and often thousands of residents, the community organisations, local representatives and local media who have all given so much of their energy and time in this long campaign to protect the health of our families and our environment.
“Blacktown City Council has joined with community groups and residents time and time again over the past eight or more years, and spent millions of dollars, in opposing these plants being constructed in our city, and we won’t rest until the war is won,” Mayor Bleasdale said.
