On Thursday 23rd June campaigners from the Stop the Edmonton Incinerator Now (StEIN) coalition will be protesting outside the annual general meeting of the North London Waste Authority (NLWA) in opposition to its decision to build a new waste incinerator in Edmonton. The latest anti-incinerator demonstration follows the news that, following intervention by Chingford MP Sir Iain Duncan Smith, communities secretary Michael Gove has ordered a review of whether the £1.2billion project represents "best value".
The StEIN demonstration starts at 12.30 and will be outside Camden Council's Crowndale Centre at 218 Eversholt Street NW1 1BD (near Mornington Crescent Station).
The questions raised about the business case for the new incinerator and about the governance and finances of the waste authority have been reported extensively on Palmers Green Community, along with the vitally important question of whether or not building a new incinerator is at all compatible with the requirement to take tough actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The news that Michael Gove has ordered officials to scrutinise the project was reported last week on the Enfield Dispatch website.
The communities secretary has also been written to by StEIN. Their letter, sent on 6th June, raises detailed questions about many aspects relating both to the incinerator contract and to the way that the NLWA operates, specifically in terms of its governance arrangements, the communications it releases to the public and the adequacy of the audit of its finances.
With regard to NLWA governance, StEIN refer to its "lack of transparency and accountability, its dysfunctional culture, and its failure of scrutiny and accountability". They say the waste authority spends more on public relations - and in particular, "greenwashing" - than on action, accusing it of seriously misrepresenting the new incinerator's "green" credentials and the viability of alternatives to incineration.
The letter from StEIN to Michael Gove can be read on their website.
