Waste Management Ireland, which proposes to develop a £16 million landfill in a disused opencast mine in Silvermines, Co Tipperary, has lodged an objection against the EPA's proposed decision not to grant a waste licence for its facility.
In its submission, WMI has addressed the eight areas raised by the EPA, and lodged additional information in relation to the project.
WMI's development manager, Mr Mark Gilligan, said the company was requesting an oral hearing on the EPA proposed decision. "I am sure we will get a hearing. We deal with the eight areas raised by the EPA and take a totally different view," said Mr Gilligan.
North Tipperary County Council has also lodged an objection to the proposed EPA decision. Despite the objection, the council supports the EPA decision to refuse a waste licence to WMI but received legal advice that unless it lodged an objection it may not be a full party to the objection at any possible future oral hearing.
"The grounds for the objection are that the EPA's reasons for refusal could be much stronger and that there are other compelling reasons for refusal," a council spokesperson said.
A second third-party objection was received by the EPA yesterday. However, the EPA said they could not identify the objector until the inspector validates the submissions. The An Bord Pleanala oral hearing, which relates to a decision by North Tipperary County Council to refuse planning permission for the landfill development continues to be "deferred indefinitely" following a request by WMI.
The £16 million landfill, if developed, is expected to receive waste from several counties and was projected to have a 450,000 tonne capacity over its 25-year lifespan.