BUSINESSES and residents have less than two weeks to comment on plans for a large waste treatment plant next to Poole's Tower Park leisure complex.

The proposals, which form part of Dorset County Council's draft waste plan, include details of a 40-metre high chimney stack.

Statistics in the consultation report also suggest the plant could lead to around 100 lorry movements every day - an increase of 70 compared to current traffic.

A version of the plan, first published last year, included Mannings Heath as a suggested location for a variety of waste management uses - including the treatment of food waste.

The large 5.6 hectare site, encompassing two areas of land either side of Ling Road, would also include a waste treatment building a minimum eight metres high.

Part of the proposed site already has an existing waste transfer station, operated by SITA, that deals with mainly commercial and industrial waste recycling.

This existing waste facility generates around 30 HGV movements per day. According to the consultation document, if the larger site gets the green light it would handle between 200,000 - 300,000 tonnes of waste a year - equating to around 100 HGV movements per day, or ten every hour. Around 4,000 tonnes of this would be food waste.

The following facilities are being considered, under the consultation, for the Mannings Heath site:

  • Recovery of energy by thermal treatment
  • Processing of waste to produce fuel
  • Recycling
  • Security shredding
  • Processing of waste to enable transportation for recycling/recovery elsewhere
  • Waste transfer

Around 163 properties lie within 250m of the proposed site, with a further 156,750 homes within a five mile radius.

The conclusion of an odour management plan, attached to the Mannings Heath draft consultation document, read: "In summary, this odour management plan identifies that the source of odour and bi-aerosol will be contained sufficiently so that they will not enter the potential pathway in a way that could cause a nuisance to the local community.

"Notwithstanding the above, a monitoring and complaints procedure is proposed to ensure the odour management plan works as intended."

Under the draft plans, bulky waste transfer or treatment facilities are also proposed for the Woolsbridge Industrial Estate near Three Legged Cross and - as previously reporterd - at Ferndown.

The overall Dorset County waste plan will be adopted in December 2017.

To comment, visit dorsetforyou.com/consultation or call the minerals and waste planning policy team on 01305 228585. The consultation ends on July 21.