Biogas power plant tipped for refusal

Adam GrettonPlans for Norfolk's first biogas power plant are facing a setback after being tipped for refusal on pollution and odour concerns.Proposals were submitted last year for an anaerobic digestion unit on the edge of Attleborough, which would produce enough electricity for 1,500 homes.Adam Gretton

Plans for Norfolk's first biogas power plant are facing a setback after being tipped for refusal on pollution and odour concerns.

Proposals were submitted last year for an anaerobic digestion unit on the edge of Attleborough, which would produce enough electricity for 1,500 homes.

But the power plant scheme at Crows Hall Farm, which would be fuelled by manure and silage, is being recommended for refusal on Monday .

Officers at Breckland Council say that the proposals by SS Agriservices would pose an 'unacceptable risk' of pollution as a result of the smell from the facility.

The station at the poultry farm, off Stony Lane, Attleborough, would use manure and waste crops from farms and breweries to create methane gas and drive a generator to produce electricity.

In a report to councillors, Nick Moys, principal planning officer, said the nature of the development could generate odours and impact on local residents. He added that the scheme did not provide sufficient safeguards to protect the environment.

The application, which would see the creation of a new access road off the B1077 Attleborough Road, has received 30 letters of objection from residents. However, Attleborough Town Council, the Environment Agency, and Norfolk County Council's highways department have not objected.