SUPPORT for the ‘No Wey Incinerator’ action group was made all the more visible this week with prominent roadside banners placed on local farmland.

The action group was set up earlier year in response to a public consultation by Veolia on plans to build a new Advanced Energy Recovery Facility on the site of its existing materials sorting facility off the A31.

This new facility would produce electricity by incinerating commercial and industrial waste. But fears have been expressed it could become a blight on the landscape and ecology of the area.

Matthew Miles of Hawbridge Farm, who provided one of the banner sites this week, said: “As fourth-generation farmers, we have deep concerns about the threat this poses to a large part of our business, hiring out one of our fields for weddings.

“Farming is already a very difficult way of life and the incinerator proposal puts another barrier in the way of any future diversification.

“With the River Wey so close by, we are also incredibly worried about the impact to the vast array of local wildlife, not only in the river but in the surrounding conservation areas we so proudly maintain.”

The No Wey Incinerator campaign has gained supporters across a wide area, from Four Marks to Farnham – and has launched a fundraising campaign through JustGiving at https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/no-wey-incinerator 

Ben Stanberry, spokesman for the action group, said: “To effectively oppose Veolia, a £24 billion annual revenue multinational, we have to pay for expert advice.

“We are consulting specialists in planning, landscape and ecology, who will ascertain the most effective grounds for objections to Veolia’s planning application.

“We recognise this is a tough time to be asking for donations, but we cannot win this fight alone. Thankfully people have responded most generously and in the last week alone, the JustGiving fund has been boosted by more than £5,000.”

For more information, visit the website www.noweyincinerator.com