A planning application has been made to Knowsley Borough Council by ENERGOS; part of the North West based renewable energy company ENER-G plc.

20 long term skilled jobs would be created at the centre, which would be ENERGOS’ international training centre and an advanced environmental technology showcase site.

The proposed scheme would use an advanced thermal treatment technique called gasification, which is a proven, best practice green technology. It is a finely controlled two stage process that converts non recyclable waste into a gas by using the heat of partial combustion. The gas is then fully combusted to generate heat, which is used to produce steam and electricity.

Residents and businesses have been widely consulted on the proposal, with open days held in Knowsley before the planning submission was made, and a community liaison group set up. Feedback from this consultation was incorporated into the planning application, including re-routing the traffic flow to and from the site to further reduce the impact on residential areas. In addition, a further health impact study was commissioned, which revealed that the plant would not cause any health risk to local residents.

Nick Dawber, managing director for ENERGOS, said: “We are proposing a community sized solution for local waste that would otherwise fill up landfill sites and emit damaging greenhouse gases. We offer a proven and world class, low-emission gasification technology that can help the UK build a much needed sustainable waste infrastructure.

“The scheme would create a similar renewable power output to 18 large wind turbines. No more than 40 lorries would visit the site each day and they would have direct access from the East Lancs Road or M57. In addition, the facility would be barely visible from residential communities.

 “The plant would reduce the number of vehicles leaving the Merseyside area to take waste to landfills. On that basis it would reduce current transport CO₂ emissions by at least 1,200 tonnes per year. It would receive leftover, non recyclable commercial and possibly leftover, non recyclable household waste. It would not receive any hazardous waste.”

The plant would take two years to build and Knowsley would be the second advanced thermal conversion plant built in the UK, with ENERGOS set to open the first this November on the Isle of Wight, a project which is backed by the government’s New Technology Demonstrator Programme. This project was judged an outstanding achievement by the Renewable Energy Association who presented ENERGOS with a prestigious British Renewable Energy Award at a ceremony in June.

ENERGOS states that the dry flue gas cleaning system means that the stack plume wouldn’t be visible under normal atmospheric conditions, and the advanced gasification process would ensure ultra low emissions - significantly lower than the stringent safe limits required by the EU Emissions Standard. In addition, waste delivered to the site would be continuously regulated by the Environment Agency under an Environmental Permit.

A detailed environmental impact assessment of the proposed project has been undertaken. This examined factors such as air quality, traffic, noise, visual impact and ecology and found that the facility would have no significant negative effects on the environment.

ENERGOS will be constructing a similar plant in Irvine, Scotland, where planning permission was recently granted without any objections from the local community.

The company has a ten year track record, with six ENERGOS plants operating in Norway and Germany, where they complement recycling initiatives. These existing plants continue to operate safely within their communities - providing a local solution to local waste and returning the recovered energy back into local industries while creating and securing local jobs and displacing fossil fuels.