News & Updates
Ashton Park team offers response to West’s waste strategy
13th March 2009
The team behind the proposals to create Ashton Park has offered its response to the West of England Partnership’s ‘Preferred Options’ consultation document on the emerging waste strategy.
Responses to the document, which looks at how to deal with the strategic waste planning issues facing the area, have to be submitted this week and LandTrust Developments have put forward their own ideas which put the emphasis on sustainability and efficiency.
“Sustainability and efficient use of resources are two of the pillars on which this development will be built,” said managing director Jonathan Chastney. “With this in mind we are proposing that our scheme includes an energy centre, which will provide heat and power to the homes, businesses and other facilities included within the community.
“The favoured option that is emerging is for this to be an energy from waste plant which meets the need for energy whilst also dealing with waste close to its source. We shall be stressing this in our submission to the West of England and offering our support for the use of advanced technology when tackling the West’s waste challenge.”
LandTrust is looking at the possibility of including a small-scale facility that would convert non-recyclable waste into renewable energy using a state-of-the-art green technology called gasification. This would ensure that the new community of Ashton Park had its own renewable electricity and heat supply and could dispose of its own waste in an environmentally-friendly way.
During an extensive fact-finding process, involving consultation with a number of energy specialists, many other generating options were considered, including wind and solar power. However, the inherently low emissions of a gasification plant, and the major environmental benefits, make it the favoured choice to produce the levels of heat and power required for the 10,000 homes, employment areas, schools and other facilities which are proposed.
Jonathan said: “We believe this could offer us a sustainable solution for heating and powering this community that reflects the ethos behind the development. There is already a landfill site within our development boundaries but that will go to be replaced by a facility which takes waste and turns it into energy. That fundamental change in waste management reflects Ashton Park’s vision for a 21st Century community.”
The proposals for Ashton Park are still taking shape and Jonathan said: “We are interested to hear what people think of our ideas and would invite them to offer their thoughts on the energy options for the scheme and how we can tackle the sustainability issue.”
People can raise questions or make comments on the project hotline (0117 3763259 by email (ashtonpark@bakerassocs.com) or via the website (www.ashton-park.co.uk), where the LandTrust Developments’ response to the West of England’s consultation document will also be available.
