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Riverside Resource Recovery Facility

Cory's Strategy

Cory's strategy has long been to develop an alternative to the Mucking landfill site to manage London's waste. The aim has always been to have a seamless transition from landfill to waste treatment. A previous planning application in the earl 1990s to develop and EfW plant on the site was turned down on technical issues relating to road access and the size of the plant. In 1999, Riverside Resource Recovery Ltd (RRRL, now a subsidiary of Cory) submitted completely new proposals to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to develop a river-served 585,000 tonnes per year EfW plant, under the Electricity Act 1989, as the proposed plant has an electricity generating capacity in excess of 50MW.

The ensuing process was protracted, with oppostion mounted by the London Borough of Bexley, the former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone and numerous objector groups. With this level of objection, the DTI was bound to call a public inquiry under the Rules of the Electricity Act. There then ensued one of the longest public enquiry processes for a waste management facility in the country. A 13-week inquiry took place in 2003 followed by a further 3-week inquiry in 2005. Finally in June 2006, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry gave permission for the plant to be built. However, the Mayor of London mounted a judicial review challenge to prevent the consent being issued and it was not until February 2007 that the second of two applications was rejected and the final hurdle to the development was cleared.