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14
Mar
Rats forced treatment plant at Allerton Park incinerator ‘offline’ for four days
Damage caused by rats left a treatment plan at the Allerton Park incinerator “offline” for four days, it can be revealed.
The waste treatment plant at the Allerton Park Waste Recovery Park, which is based off the A1(M), was forced to shut down after damage to cables and electrics.
The plant cost £1.2 billion to build and aims to divert 320,000 tonnes of waste a year away from landfill.
According to a council report assessing the performance of the third quarter of 2024/25, part of the plant was damaged by rodents.
The Stray Ferret sent a list of questions to North Yorkshire Council via a freedom of information request about the incident.
According to the authority’s response, rats damaged cables inside the control cabinet at the plant.
The incident happened between August 24, 2024, and August 28, 2024.
It meant that the mechanical treatment plant, which sorts different types of waste such as recycling, general waste and organic waste, was forced to be taken "offline" for four days while repairs were carried out.
The council added:
The Mechanical Treatment plant was not operating whilst the cables were being repaired, but Allerton Waste Recovery Park continued to accept waste into the facility and the Energy from Waste plant was unaffected.
However, the authority said that no waste was redirected to landfill as a direct result of the incident.
Additional rodent control measures have also been implemented at the plant following the shutdown.
A North Yorkshire Council spokesperson said:
The plant is compliant with its environmental permit and uses a contractor to co-ordinate pest management on-site. They visit at least twice a month to check for activity, refill bait stations and adjust measure if needed. If pest activity increases in any area, extra steps are taking to control it.
The Stray Ferret also asked the council what the cost of the remedial works were, but the authority said this information “is not held”.
It comes as the plant near Knaresborough continues to miss its recycling targets.
The Stray Ferret reported in October 2024 that Allerton Park recycled 1.78% of waste against a contractual requirement of 5%.
The target, which is set by North Yorkshire Council and City of York Council, has never been met.
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