FAQs

Project plans and milestones will be communicated when confirmed.

Secondary aggregates will be used for construction and these might be include Incinerator Bottom Ash Aggregate (IBAA), which can be used under certain conditions but not in structural concrete.

An information board will provide contact details for enquiries and complaints.

Landfill sites produce methane, which is 25 times worse than CO₂ as a greenhouse gas and exporting waste requires it to be shredded, baled and transported far greater distances than treating it locally.  Shredding, baling and transport all generate more CO₂, which can be avoided with a local solution.

The Medworth EfW CHP Facility waste will come from the region. Waste companies will want to deal with waste as close to its source as possible, to control transport costs. We will not be importing waste from overseas.

We will process non-hazardous household and business waste from the region that would otherwise go to landfill or be exported. Only waste that meets strict environmental standards will be accepted. The main types of waste we’ll handle include mixed municipal waste, refuse-derived fuel, and waste from mechanical treatment processes. All waste accepted will be fully documented and managed according to environmental regulations.

From outside the turbine will be very quiet because it will be housed inside an insulated building. This is quantified in the Environmental Impact Assessment.

All responsible waste sites have pest and vermin control measures in place and this will be the case for the Medworth EfW CHP facility. Good housekeeping in terms of litter and odour control will ensure that additional pests and vermin will not be attracted to the site.

Dioxins, which can form when certain materials are burned. For this reason, a minimum burn temperature of 850°C is set for waste incineration; our facilities burn at around 1000°C. This breaks down harmful compounds. The process also uses time, temperature, and turbulence to ensure dioxins don’t reform. Additionally, filter bags capture tiny particles, and activated carbon is used to absorb any remaining harmful particles before they are released into the air.

Learn more.

Off-site odour will be managed through a number of operational measures, including good housekeeping. Waste deliveries will take place inside an enclosed tipping hall to contain any smells. Any air from the tipping hall will be drawn into the combustion chamber and burned. Fresh air will also be drawn into the hall to prevent odours from escaping.

An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has been done for both the construction and operation of the facility. This identifies potential environmental impacts and, where necessary, suggest ways to reduce them.

Only trees that impede construction or operation have been removed and the remaining trees will form part of the final landscaping and screening.

This is a matter for local and County Council. It is worth noting that MVV do not target municipal recyclable waste, and as such our facilities have no direct impact on municipal recycling rates in the county. EfW competes with landfill, not recycling.

Through the section 106 and 111 agreements, two funds have been established. The 106 funding is for Cambridgeshire County Council to improve accessibility for non-motorised users (e.g. bridleways and footpaths). The 111 funding is managed via an external agency (Cambridgeshire Community Fund) and local groups and organisations can apply for this.

There will be 42 members of staff in total.

We employ full-time Community Liaison Managers to deliver waste resources and engineering education through site visits, workshops and out-reach. We work closely with local councils to ensure consistency with the local waste management approach.

MVV have arranged a specific event, in conjunction with the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor, for local companies to discuss opportunities arising from the project.

Benefits include: 1) Local foot and cycle path improvements, including connectivity between green spaces, 2) Education and training opportunities, including work experience, placements, internships and apprenticeships, 3) Providing a sustainable alternative to landfill/export of residual waste (current situation), 4) Jobs for local people (direct and indirect) both during construction and operation and 5) A community fund (to be managed by Cambridgeshire Community Foundation) which is geographically restricted to Wisbech, specifically a 5km radius from the chimneys

Heat will be available from the start of operations but we are not able to comment on commercial arrangements or discussions, which are ongoing.

We will be happy to major on that topic and share key points from the approved Employment and Skills Strategy as well as MVV’s experience at the other facilities.

The electricity generated will be sent to Walsoken substation via underground cable (not pylons).

GPS tracking is now commonplace and MVV’s Community Liaison Manager will be the point of contact for concerns over vehicle movements.

Yes. There will be a wheel wash station for all vehicles leaving the construction site with contact details for the developer and our Community Liaison Manager available.

Traffic assessments were undertaken as part of the DCO application; national and local highways departments were statutory consultees to that process and have commented. Dilapidation surveys form part of the preliminary works for our project.

Before we start the access improvements at New Bridge Lane we will install the acoustic fence along a section of New Bridge Lane. Some access along Algores Way will be necessary to establish the temporary construction compound and to access the main site. This will account for no more than one third of traffic.

An operational traffic and transport plan will be developed to minimise peak hour deliveries and ensure that delivery routes do not conflict (where reasonably practicable) with work and school traffic. Vehicles delivering waste will follow their usual protocols for dealing with congestion.

The current condition of the roads and responsibility for repairs is a matter for Cambridgeshire County Council, as the local highways authority.

No, the facility won’t affect the re-instatement of the railway. We would welcome it as it would benefit the whole community and help support our broader infrastructure needs.

Vehicle numbers and routes will form part of the Construction Traffic Management Plan, which will be published on our website once approved by the Cambridgeshire County Council.

Direct access from the A47 was explored in the early stages of the planning process but was deemed unsuitable by National Highways who did not want an additional roundabout on the A47.

The facility gate hours will be 7am to 8pm and no lorries will come through Wisbech.

The lorries will either wait or turn around and go back to their depot. The contracts we set up will not allow any lorries to travel by other routes. Operators nowadays have intensive tracking of their drivers including where they go, when they stop and how fast they are travelling.

MVV would prefer to negotiate with landowners but do have compulsory purchase powers over some land, granted under the Development Consent Order, if required. Formal notices can be issued to enter/occupy land under temporary possession powers while we continue to negotiate.

We use continuous emissions monitoring systems at all of our facilities, with two sets of equipment installed; one in service and one on standby to ensure full 24/7 real-time recording. Particulate forms part of the dust figure and this, along with other compounds, is reported weekly on our website for all operational facilities.

Yes, operators are required to report these to the Environment Agency. In addition, data from all our facilities is published in our website.

The headlines from the Plymouth Herald were often alarmist and did not reflect the full context. Many of the reported issues were either exaggerated, misinterpreted, or related to normal commissioning processes. Below are responses to specific claims made in those reports.

No. This claim was based on misleading graphics from Plume Plotter, which altered colours to suggest dangerous pollution levels. The actual measured levels were below national air quality standards. We installed ambient air quality monitoring for oxides of nitrogen and particulate matter, and quarterly reports were made publicly available.

Steam is intentionally blown through the pipes before it is sent to the turbine to remove dirt and dust from construction. This prevents turbine blade damage and is a standard procedure.

Yes. This was due to operator error, triggering an emergency shutdown. Safety systems took over, which involved releasing steam into the atmosphere. The operator responsible no longer works for the company.

Yes, in the early days. Airflow issues and small leaks between cladding and concrete sections allowed odours to escape. These were fixed by installing louvres, reducing vent apertures, and sealing the outer building.

Yes, and air for combustion will be sucked from outside into and through the tipping hall and waste bunker.

Incinerator Bottom Ash (IBA) will be transported by road (not barge or sea) to an existing ash processor.

No, we changed our process about five years ago. The filters are 16m long and made from Gortex. There are around three thousand of them per line and they work like hoover bags in reverse, as they collect particles on the outside.