Power plant bid for Swanscombe could affect plans for huge Paramount Park...
Plans to build a power plant with a 213 foot
chimney in Swanscombe are being opposed by Dartford council over fears
it will impact on Paramount Park.
Teal Energy has submitted plans for the plant,
in Manor Way, that will produce renewable energy from non-recyclable
commercial waste.
Dartford council has objected over the
"incompatibility" of the idea, which would be built close to the planned
Paramount Park scheme.
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| How the site could look |
The 24/7 operation will be housed in two large steel-framed buildings.
The fuel will be received and stored in one building on the northern site, which will be 2,250m2 and 36 feet high.
This will be connected by conveyor to an energy
plant housed in the building on the southern site, which will be 65
feet high and be 4,247m2 with a 213 foot chimney.
Once operational, it could produce enough electricity for 45,000 homes as well as powering Paramount Park.
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| What Paramount Park could look like on the Swanscombe Peninsula |
Proposals predict an average of 108 HGV
deliveries to the site during a 12-hour period, which runs from 7am
until 7pm - with routes including Stanhope Road and Swanscombe High
Street.
Teal Energy says in it plans: "Our proposal
differs from established energy from waste plans which traditionally
have been mass incineration of non-recycled waste.
"We use clean, advanced conversion technology
to generate renewable energy by converting residual recyclates, the
material left after a recycling process, into an energy rich gas and
using this to generate electricity. It is considered to be a virtually
carbon neutral and clean technology."
Swanscombe and Greenhithe Town Council has also
objected to the application because they are concerned about the
environmental impact of the site and the impact of the gasses emitted.
They also object to the application as it will "prejudice the proposals" for theme park on the Swanscombe Peninsula.
Planning officer Sonia Bunn said: "Concern has
been raised that the proposal will be detrimental to the proposals for
the theme park on Swanscombe Peninsula, but as a planning application
has not been submitted for this development yet this cannot specifically
be taken into account.
"However, the council's Core Strategy seeks the
development of Swanscombe Peninsula to bring about benefits in the area
and the current proposal is considered to be prejudicial to this."
The matter will be discussed by Dartford
council at a meeting on Thursday night with the ultimate decision being
made by Kent County Council at a later date.
The Paramount scheme will see the third-largest theme park in the
world, built on the Swanscombe peninsula with Paramount Pictures
supporting it.
If planning permission is approved, it is claimed there will be
17,000 jobs on the site with a further 10,000 jobs created to meet the
demands of the park.
Fears were announced during consultation for a new lower Thames crossing which could go straight through the park site.
It was revealed during the public consultation that option B for a crossing was putting investors off.
Dartford council leader Jeremy Kite said: "We are meeting experienced
and highly credible investors from the UK and overseas to talk about
the great opportunities here and almost the first question they now ask
is why the government is even thinking about a crossing at the
Swanscombe peninsula."
