Back to list Medworth Energy from Waste Combined Heat and Power Facility

Representation by Steven Smith

Date submitted
13 October 2022
Submitted by
Members of the public/businesses
  1. The town of Wisbech has been denied proper opportunity to prosper and develop touristically in a manner that one would expect from "The Capital of the Fens” with such a rich history, historical connections, and a wealth of beautiful 18th century architecture due to its very poor road and rail connectivity. This development will further compound these factors that have hampered the development of Wisbech. My objection is not founded in Nimbyism but is one of bewilderment as to how it could be envisaged or even considered that so many lorry movements will be accommodated into and out of a small rural market town with such well recognized and well-documented inadequate infrastructure and connectivity with the rest of East Anglia at all points of the compass. 2. The roads into and out of Wisbech are very poor single carriageway roads, the A47 taking all the traffic from the A1 and Peterborough from the South and West is single carriageway only between Wisbech and Thorney Toll to the East of Peterborough. 3. All roads around, into and out of the edges of the town are already congested with huge number of large, slow moving commercial vehicles accessing primary food producer and food processor hubs additionally, huge numbers of very slow-moving farm traffic throughout the farming year which is further compounded by huge number of holiday traffic especially during peak holiday times. 4. The A47 to the north of Wisbech brings huge numbers of farm and food distribution traffic from more Northerly (Norfolk) and Easterly (Norwich and West Norfolk). All this southerly traffic converges to single carriageway at the Wisbech Elm Hall roundabout. This roundabout is continually congested with traffic piling in from the North and the South A47 and from the Eastern aspects of the town and the West from the Downham Market direction. The tailbacks to the South frequently bring the entire section of the A47 road between the Elm Hall roundabout to the East of the town and the roundabout at the Southern access to the town; this is a particular problem through the summer months and major holiday periods. 5. There is a very high concentration of large food processors and storage and distribution businesses within the town all creating huge numbers of vehicle movements in and out of the town daily, furthermore, the creation of ill placed “out-of-town retail and leisure sites all create daily issues with congestion around the Churchill Road and South Brink areas of the town. Frequently at present it can take 20 minutes to travel by car from Old Lynn Road to the Tesco site at the Southern edge of the town. 6. The town of Wisbech is regularly log jammed centrally at the Nene River crossing due to lorry traffic accessing the Southern and Eastern aspects of the town from the A17 bringing traffic from Lincolnshire and the North and Nottinghamshire Newark and Grantham via A1. To the South of the Guyhirn roundabout the A141 is another single carriageway road that continues to Huntingdon, the A1 South, A14 East and West and M11 carrying a further influx of heavy commercial and holiday traffic from Cambridgeshire and beyond into and around Wisbech. Apart from clear access issues and the concomitant logistical effects of these addition Heavy Goods Vehicle movements on top of those already cited above there is the impact that all this has on the quality of life of residents and local businesses and the ease of their own vehicular movements within, around, in and out of the town of Wisbech. The proposed site and therefore the potentially toxic plume from the disposal process and diesel contaminants and noise from so many additional HGV movements is not only close to the Centre of this historic Fenland town, densely populated residential areas but is also in extreme proximity to several schools, nursery providers and food processors. Sites such as this should be first and foremostly sited: a. as close to the source of its raw materials as practically possible. b. In low density residential areas and certainly well distanced from schools, hospitals and primary food production and food processing facilities. c. In a location well serviced with regards to road infrastructure and ideally transported primarily by rail. d. Not within the immediate environs of a market town and residential areas. It would appear Wisbech is a victim of the low cost of its non -agricultural land and its small voice within the County and Country coupled with the attitude of its own County towards it. It has been damaged so much by the lack of investment in accessibility with no rail link despite a population of 30,000 and despite a huge deficit in accommodation in the more affluent areas of the County such as Cambridge and a clear lack of investment in the highways in Fenland and West Norfolk. I urge decision makers to avoid placing yet another nail in the coffin of an already battered and weary Wisbech.