Campaigners hail ‘victory’ as Greens take over the North London Waste Authority’s board which oversees the controversial Edmonton incinerator, reports Sebastian Mann, Local Democracy Reporter
Campaigners against a new incinerator in North London have hailed the appointment of a new Green oversight committee a ‘victory’.
Hackney councillor Jacob Cable, who represents Stoke Newington for the Green Party, was appointed the chair of the North London Waste Authority (NLWA) last week.
Enfield Green councillor Madeline Church and Conservative Barnet councillor Peter Zinkin assumed the roles of vice-chair. The authority was previously controlled by Labour, headed by Waltham Forest councillor Clyde Loakes.
The NLWA manages waste and recycling services for an estimated two million residents across the boroughs of Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Islington and Waltham Forest.
It is currently overseeing the construction of a new incinerator in Edmonton, which has been plagued by delays for years.
Due to construction delays and other woes, it will likely not be finished until after 2030 – three years later than when it was supposed to come into use.
A spokesperson for the Stop the Edmonton Incinerator campaign group called the appointments a “major victory for all of us who have campaigned tirelessly to stop the new Edmonton incinerator for close to a decade”.
“The new Green-led board of the NLWA has already shown it intends to scrutinise the rebuild and its spiralling costs.
“This gives us confidence that this marks the beginning of the end of the plans for the new outsized, toxic incinerator for a greener, fairer, less polluting way to manage North London’s waste.”
The NLWA has previously argued that the Edmonton EcoPark incinerator is the “best long-term environmental solution for the waste generated by millions of people”.
Former NLWA chief Clyde Loakes – a Labour councillor in Waltham Forest – said: “Not everything can be recycled, and councils will still need a solution to deal with waste.”
Cllr Cable said he would lead the NLWA “in an open and participatory way and ensure that we work to reduce waste in all its forms”.
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