The Basque Government authorises the Bergara paper waste pyrolysis plant
- The Bergara City Council has informed this Tuesday that the Basque Government’s resolution does not answer the council’s arguments in order not to give its consent and will appeal to the Vice-President’s resolution on Environmental Sustainability.
The City Council of Bergara already made the allegations on 22 November and now states that "the current General Plan does not provide for the use of infrastructure for waste management, so it is not approved on plot H of the Larramendi polygon". On the other hand, "the use of waste management is not compatible, as it is admitted as complementary use, but not as main use".
The City Council considers that the urban compatibility report issued against the provisions of the Bergara urban planning system is not taken into account either. The Government ' s letter reads as follows: “The Environmental Impact Declaration has been made and the Integrated Environmental Authorization has been granted to Valogreene paper BC, SL for the production of Calcareous Material in the plant of Parcel H of the Polygon Larramendi of Bergara”.
According to the City Council on its website, "on 8 November 2021, the concept of integrated environmental authorization for non-hazardous waste management was published in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country".
"Pyrolysis is like incineration"
The Basque Government is now looking for a new treatment point for paper waste that was taken to the Zaldibar landfill before its closure. This would be the case for this Bergara plant. Last July the City Council granted the license to the project, but at the beginning of November it revoked the authorization because it considered that the intentions initially presented by the company did not conform to what was stated.
This plant would treat paper waste through pyrolysis, which has sparked debate. The main actors involved in the area of the environment and waste treatment, such as Greenpeace or Zero Residue in Europe, consider that pyrolysis would be a treatment such as incineration. Until recently, municipal authorization was key to opening the doors to such action, but thanks to the Tapia Act approved by the Basque Parliament last December, the Environmental Administration Act, the Government has the possibility to impose the projects it wants, despite the opposition of the City Hall.
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