CAMPAIGNERS are welcoming news that a planned waste incinerator in South Lanarkshire will no longer be pursued following outcry from the local community.
This announcement followed a campaign led by the Dovesdale Action Group (DAG) which worked with local MSPs to demand that waste management company Viridor not build the project on the former site of Overwood Farm.
The campaign won the support of Sir David Attenborough after he replied to a letter from John Young of DAG, which helped spur a national review on incineration with support from Christina McKelvie MSP for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse and Mairi McAllan MSP for Clydesdale, who was a candidate at the time.
McKelvie and McAllan, along with Angela Crawley, MP for Lanark and Hamilton East, also met with Viridor to voice local opposition to the proposals and worked in tandem with DAG to support their work.
The national review of incineration is still ongoing and focuses on the context of the Scottish Government's efforts to decarbonise the Scottish economy.
It is hoped that a move away from incineration would help meet the target set by the Government to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. Consideration of these goals was a strong area of contention among campaigners with the Viridor application.
Welcoming the news, McKelvie said: “I am delighted to have played a part alongside Mairi McAllan MSP for Clydesdale and Angela Crawley MP for Lanark and Hamilton East in supporting the Dovesdale Action Group and the people of Stonehouse to ensure they will not have an incinerator forced upon them that they neither want nor need.
“John Young and the Dovesdale Action Group should be feeling incredibly proud of themselves having run another successful campaign for the people living in Stonehouse and the surrounding areas, having halted plans for not just one but now two incinerators!
“We now await the results from the Scottish Government Review on Incineration across the country. It is vital we continue to move towards a Scotland that does our bit to limit global emissions, especially moving forward from the commitments made at COP26 hosted in Glasgow.”
READ MORE: Here's why we oppose plans for a polluting incinerator in South Lanarkshire
McAllan said: “This is the result of an outstanding community effort led by the Dovesdale Action Group and in particular John Young, who should all feel very proud of their hard work and campaigning.
“I am glad to have supported their work, alongside Christina McKelvie MSP and Angela Crawley MP, by making the case to Viridor and to the Scottish Government on behalf of our constituents. The community made their voices heard loud and clear – and I am so pleased that we have reached a successful outcome.
“As we await the results of the Scottish Government’s review into incineration, we will get on with the job of working with communities towards a net-zero future for Scotland.”
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