SAXON PIT: RECENT PRESS ARTICLE AND PHOTOGRAPHS –
WHAT DO THEY SHOW?
Thank you to everyone who attended the Public Health meeting at Manor Leisure Centre on Wednesday 4 February. The turnout over the five-hour drop-in session was exceptional, with the venue at capacity for much of the day. We welcome the proposals to improve monitoring and to involve residents more directly in looking at cumulative impacts across the area.
Many of you will also have seen the recent CambsNews planning breach story.
Saxongate has written formally to the Environment Agency regarding IBA being stored outside the permitted Waste Reception Area.
The article raises an obvious question: how can expansion be considered if basic containment conditions are not being consistently followed?
Environment Agency urged to investigate incinerator ash storage breaches at Saxon Brickworks in Whittlesey – News for Peterborough and Cambridgeshire
The photographs published with the article are worth a close look.
They appear to show:
- Green-grey water in the wedge pits
• Large volumes of standing surface water
• IBA stored outside the bunded containment area
• Site infrastructure that may be under strain
Some residents have also asked whether the appearance of certain solar panels suggests dust deposition.
The Environment Agency describes the site’s water system as a “closed-loop” arrangement, meaning water that has contacted incinerator bottom ash is stored and reused for dust suppression.
That naturally leads to a number of reasonable questions:
- Is the recycled water routinely chemically tested?
• How is any build-up over time monitored in a system where water evaporates but residues remain?
• What happens during prolonged wet weather if pits appear near capacity?
• Is the current system robust enough to support increased throughput?
We have submitted updated objections to various active planning and permit applications. In our view, it would be unwise to consider any site expansion before the adequacy of the greywater system and IBA storage area has been clearly explained.
THE REGULATORY POSITION
Planning decisions, environmental permits and public health functions are often treated as separate processes, yet they relate to the same operations and the same community. When concerns arise, residents are frequently told that an issue falls within another authority’s remit.
The Environment Agency’s decision on the water pumping permit has been described as imminent. The planning application to increase capacity remains live.
This is precisely why continued public scrutiny matters.
The recent article in the Cambs Times also highlights this point.
Saxongate campaigners urge Whittlesey residents to join them | Cambs Times
Please encourage people to join our mailing list (saxongate2022@gmail.com), stay informed and continue to make their views known politely and clearly.
With your support, we will continue pressing for transparency, proper monitoring and joined-up oversight.
Saxongate Residents Group.
Facebook = https://www.facebook.com/SaxonGatePE7
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