Campaigners claim Poolbeg incinerator plan is in doubt
Dublin People 09 Mar 2012
CAMPAIGNERS who are against the proposed Poolbeg
incinerator have expressed scepticism that construction of the controversial
facility will go ahead.
It follows Dublin City Council’s recent extension of
the contract for the construction of the incinerator to the end of August.
The council said it had negotiated the extension with
US firm Covanta to allow for a number of regulatory issues to be finalised and
to allow the company extra time to secure funding for the project.
However, planning permission for the development runs
out on November 5 and Covanta will have to start building the incinerator
before then.
This is the third time the council has extended the
contract for the facility, which it estimates will cost in the region of
?¬350
million to build.
In a statement the city council said:
“The Dublin
local authorities believe that there is now a definitive path to recommencement
of construction of this much needed infrastructure and also to the recoupment
of all costs expended on the project.
?
It emerged late last year that Dublin’s four local
authorities have so far spent
?¬80 million between them on the incinerator
project.
The council spent some
?¬25.7 million on
“client
services representatives
?, most of which was paid to public relations firms.
Joe McCarthy, a Sandymount resident, has been a vocal
campaigner against the incinerator.
Mr McCarthy, who is also an engineer and scientist,
spearheaded a previous campaign that successfully scuppered plans for an
incinerator in Rathcoole.
He described the council’s claim that it could recoup
the money it has already spent on the project as
“aspirational nonsense
?.
“This is a ball of smoke,
? he said.
“There is no
provision (in the contract with Covanta] that I am aware of that the costs
expended by Dublin City Council could be recouped in any way.
“The bulk of the money they are spending is on buying
land back. Then they spent
?¬26 million on consultancy fees. Trying to suggest
that things are alive and well in this contract is aspirational nonsense.
?
Deputy Kevin Humphreys (Lab) has called on the council
to abandon the project.
“It is time we cut our losses on the incinerator and
go back to the drawing board,
? he said.
“It is by no means the worst mistake
made in the boom but it is wrong to continue to throw good money after bad.
?
Dublin City Council said it had no further comment to
make on the matter.
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