An energy from waste plant due to be built on an existing landfill site in the London Borough of Sutton has been delayed after councillors were unable to decide whether to grant planning permission.
Councillors on Sutton’s development control committee voted equally with three against and three for the facility, with two councillors abstaining. This meant it was left to the chair of the committee to use his casting vote, but he opted not to use it.
As a result, the application will need to be held at a later date.
Viridor is the contract holder for the South London Waste Partnership residual waste treatment contract, and wants to build the facility on its existing Beddington landfill site, which lies on the border of Sutton and Croydon.
The remainder of the landfill site will be turned into a park.
Once built, the facility will handle 275,000 tonnes of waste per year generating 26MW of electricity.
As the site borders with the London Borough of Croydon, councillors there had already given their backing to the facility, while planning officers at the London Borough of Sutton had recommended that the facility be granted planning permission.
