The neighbouring Genesis Xero waste facility that will be connected to the proposed facility. Credit:The Next Generation (NSW) Pty Ltd "There is no room for error when dealing with a huge hazardous waste incinerator that could dump thousands of tonnes of pollution across western Sydney. We are told it is using state-of-the art, proven technology which is perfectly safe, so why isn't there evidence for this in their environmental impact statement?" The facility will be NSW's first and Australia's largest 'green' electricity generation facility, with a capacity to process up to 1.35 million tonnes of residual waste fuel per annum. The waste fuel it will process will be sourced from the neighbouring Genesis Xero waste facility as well as other third parties. Waste would be mixed before being loaded into a hopper using overhead cranes. The hopper would feed the residual waste fuel onto a continually moving grate furnace where it would be combusted. This continuous movement would promote mixing of the waste with the combustion air.

An artist's impression of the facility. Credit:The Next Generation (NSW) Pty Ltd The resulting hot gases would pass through a heat recovery boiler to raise steam, which would then pass to a shared steam turbine driven generator. Dr Julian Fyfe, associate lecturer in engineering and construction management at Western Sydney University, assisted the NSW Environment Protection Agency in creating guidelines around such waste facilities. An illustration of the proposed facility at Eastern Creek. Credit:The Next Generation (NSW) Pty Ltd He said Australia's attitude towards them is quite different to the rest of the world.

"In Australia incinerators have a really bad name. The EPA has only in the last few years engaged with need to regulate these facilities. But the technology is well established in Europe," he said. "Fundamentally [Europe] has a much more dense population. They don't have land to just fill with rubbish...so they had to develop this technology a long time ago." But Minchinbury resident Peter Camilleri said it is a technology he is not interested in, at least based on the plans for the Eastern Creek facility. "It's just a rubbish incinerator, however they want to dress it up. I've got young children. I've got health concerns with all that pollution getting pumped into the air." He is concerned about the unspecified levels of air pollution that will result from the facility, which would run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"Minchinbury is 80 metres above sea level. You add 100 metres to that and you're at the same height as the lower [Blue] mountains," he said. "It's not just an Minchinbury issue, it's an issue for everywhere. They plan to burn 20,000 tonnes of rubbish per week." Based on concerns about the information provided in the Human Health Risk Assessment, the Western Sydney Local Health District said it does not support the approval of the proposal in its current form, as it was "unable to fully determine the proposed facilities actual or potential impact on human health." Similarly, the EPA has outlined significant concerns with the proposal's assessments on human health risk, the ozone impact, waste management., air quality, greenhouse gases and other technological aspects.

"The EPA recognises that energy recovery from the thermal processing of waste is part of a modern waste management network," said Steve Beaman, director of the EPA waste and resource recovery branch. "The benefit is you're not sending that material to landfill. Landfill gas methane is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. The proponent has had a good first go at their proposal but they need to go away and do more work." The period for public submissions has ended and the Department of Planning and Infrastructure has acknowledged the concerns raised in the public and government agency submissions. "The Department and the EPA have jointly commissioned independent experts in human health assessment and alternative energy engineering to provide advice on the proposal and its potential impacts," a department spokesperson said. "The independent Planning Assessment Commission will be the decision maker for the proposal."

The Next Generation (NSW) Pty Ltd were unable to comment while the submission response period is ongoing.