Eastern Creek Energy from Waste Facility: Cleanaway reveal plans for 900 jobs
It is the multimillion-dollar energy from waste facility in western Sydney, expected to generate thousands of jobs and power 79,000 homes. SEE THE LATEST PLANS HERE.
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Blueprints for a $700 million energy from waste facility planned for a landmark site in Western Sydney have been released to the public.
Developer, Cleanaway announce the waste centre will generate more than 900 direct construction jobs and power 79,000 homes and businesses.
Cleanaway and Macquarie Capital’s Eastern Creek-based Western Sydney Energy and Resource Recovery Centre was placed on exhibition by NSW Planning on Tuesday.
It revealed plans for a state-of-the-art facility designed to “thermally treat up to 500,000 tonnes” of solid commercial, residential and industrial waste in an effort to generate up to 58 megawatts of power each year.
The facility is also expected to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by around 390,000 tonnes per year.
Cleanaway project director James Pearce said the Western Sydney energy from waste facility will use “safe and well proven energy-from-waste technology to manage waste that cannot be recycled” and generate as many as 1200 indirect construction jobs over the next three years.
“Community safety is paramount,” he said of the plans. “We have designed the centre to meet the highest standards in the world for energy-from-waste.”
Mr Pearce likened the facility to the Dublin Energy from Waste Facility in Ireland, which generates enough power to provide electricity to 80,000 homes, as well as the Filbornaverket centre in Sweden.
The facility — which has seen an Air and Health Citizens Panel set up to discuss health and environmental concerns in surrounding suburbs — will provide an education centre to continue the conversation around the facility to “drive a shift in community thinking and actions around waste management”.
Mr Pearce said the facility would meet the European Industrial Emissions Directive and Best Available Techniques Reference document, which are the currents highest standards for energy-from-waste.
The blueprints for the facility revealed plans for Cleanaway to “provide a source of baseload energy, part of which is categorised as renewable, contributing to NSW Government objectives for energy security and renewable energy”.
The No Incinerator for Western Sydney campaign group have long called for the NSW Government to object to plans for waste to energy facilities at Eastern Creek, raising concerns around the “extremely toxic and dangerous fly ash” that is created through the burning of waste.
Community groups questioned the impact these facilities would have on air pollution, arguing Waste to Energy technology was “the dirtiest type of energy production in the world”.
No Incinerator spokeswoman Jane Bremmer said Cleanaway had "never built or operated an incinerator".
"Many of the incinerators they reference in the EIS are failures and are not supported in their communities," Ms Bremmer said.
"This is the most expensive and polluting ways to create energy and the guidelines being used, The EU Best Available Techniques document, is the basic industrial regulation and framework of incineration in Europe."
Despite concerns raised by objectors to the Western Sydney Waste from Energy Facility, Mr Pearce said air quality assessments indicate the proposal would not result in any significant impact upon the surrounding environment or sensitive receptors.
“Open and regular dialogue is an important part of our approach,” Mr Pearce said. “We want to make sure everyone can get to know this proposal and there are already a range of resources available.”
A total of 166 vehicles will be accessing the site every day, while around 30 full time employees will be needed onsite in normal operating times.