Eco & Environment, Political | Posted on June 13th, 2025 | return to news
Canford waste incinerator proposal rejected by council
BCP Council has refused to grant planning permission to a waste incinerator in Canford Magna.
Plans for a controversial waste incinerator to be built in Canford Magna have ground to a halt after Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council’s Planning Committee refused to grant permission for the project.
At a committee meeting on Thursday 12 June, councillors debated the issue for several hours, before eventually voting 6–3 to refuse the application.
A company called MVV Environment Ltd submitted the application to build the incinerator on the Canford Resource Park. The facility would burn up to 260,000 tonnes of non-hazardous waste each year, to generate electricity.
Councillors voted against the project for several reasons, including concerns about the size of the facility (which consisted of a 50m tall building and a 110m tall chimney stack), concerns about air quality from the emissions, and the impact on traffic in the area.
A member of the committee, Cllr Peter Sidaway, said: “The final reason, was that whilst weighing up all of the technical data we had and passionate presentations both for and against, I could not ignore the weight of feeling from local residents. That alone is not a valid planning reason for me to refuse it, but it certainly was an influence on my decision.”
Councillors who were in favour of the project said it would create local employment. One councillor said the 110m tower would help with navigation.
Following the news of the decision, the MP for the area, Vikki Slade, said: “It is of great relief to many local residents that the proposed Canford Incinerator has today been refused. I have long held concerns that the capacity and size of the planned site far exceeded the demand required and would result in waste being shipped into our locality from Devon and Hampshire. I raised this concern directly with the Prime Minster back in March.
“I have also been vocal in sharing my concerns regarding the lack of carbon capture technology and full filtration from day one, as well as issues with the lack of provision for sorting to remove potential recyclable or toxic materials.
“No one disagrees that we need to find ways to deal with waste locally, yet as our waste is reduced we need to be proportionate in our measures to process and deal with it.
It is wonderful that today local people have been heard.”
A local campaigner against the incinerator, Frank Ahern, said on social media: “Thanks to the efforts of many individuals, the working together of a number of groups and the forensic questioning of the flawed case officer’s report by planning committee councillors, the only sensible decision was reached.”
In a statement, MVV said: “We will need to wait for the publication of the official reasons for refusal, and to see if the Secretary of State intends to intervene, before deciding whether to appeal.”
Earlier in the week, the Environment Agency granted a permit to the project.
Please share post:
LATEST NEWS:
CHARITY OF THE YEAR 2025

Subscribe to the online magazine news letter