Edwin Poots called £300m incinerator a 'waste monster'

Environment Minister Edwin Poots is said to have referred to a proposed £300m incinerator to deal with much of NI's household rubbish as a "waste monster", according to its opponents.

Mr Poots had a teleconference earlier with those opposed to the facility at a disused quarry in Newtownabbey.

He is reputed to have made the remark in the course of Wednesday's meeting.

When asked about the claim, Mr Poots said he was "currently not convinced" of the project but was "convincible".

The minister said he would "take full consideration of the matter" in the context of the ongoing planning application and Northern Ireland's waste management needs.

The facility is meant to take 300,000 tonnes a year of black bin waste from six councils in the east of Northern Ireland.

It is currently awaiting a decision on planning permission.

Recyclable material would be removed in an adjoining building before the residual waste was burned.

Supporters have said it will help Northern Ireland meet targets on landfill diversion, increase recycling and prevent the export of waste.

But those opposed to the so-called Arc21 plan have mounted a vigorous campaign against it saying it would disincentivise recycling.

Now they have said the environment minister has told them he is unconvinced about the logic for the project.

They said he told them that Northern Ireland could get to a 70% recycling rate and the development could get in the way.

Currently about half of Northern Ireland's rubbish is recycled.

Mr Poots expressed reservations about the waste incineration plan on taking up his ministerial position.

That was despite the fact that his departmental officials had previously backed the idea.

Planning permission for the incinerator was rejected by a former environment minister, but following a planning appeal it was approved by a senior civil servant while Stormont was suspended and ministers were not in post.

That was overturned by the courts which said officials did not have the power to take such decisions, but the application did restart its journey through the planning process.

Following changes to planning structures, the decision on whether to approve it would be for Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon.

But as the project is cross-cutting and controversial, it could also require executive input.

Ms Mallon is now preparing legislation which would give her sole responsibility for such decision-making - something the rest of the executive has agreed to.

In a statement to BBC News NI regarding his comments on the incinerator, Mr Poots said: "I will take full consideration of the matter in the context of the ongoing planning process for the Hightown facility and of the strategic and long-term needs for waste management and the circular economy in Northern Ireland.

"While I am currently not convinced, I am convincible."

In a statement, arc21 said the case for the project has already been accepted by the Planning Appeals Commission and is currently being reviewed by the planning service.

"The £240m facilities will provide a major economic boost in their own right and could also accelerate the growth of Northern Ireland's circular economy and clean energy sectors - areas that the NI Executive has recently identified as key to economic recovery."