Anti-landfill protest gets the Commons touch

A coachful of supporters lead by members of Bexhill Against Landfill and Incinceration (BALI) met Bexhill MP Greg Barker in London on Friday, wearing t-shirts and waving placards all with the same message - no to landfill in Bexhill.

Greg called the demonstration "a clear sign that BALI is going from strength to strength," adding the range of ages and addresses present "underlines their push from being a focused campaigning organisation to being a broadly based membership organisation from all areas of the town.

"I would encourage everyone to join up because wherever you live you have an interest in fighting this plan."

Nick Hollington, chairman of BALI, gave interviews to Meridian TV and Arrow FM, setting out the case against East Sussex County Council's (ESCC) preference of Ashdown Brickworks, Turkey Road, for a landfill site designed to take waste from East Sussex and Brighton and Hove until 2026.

"This is the traditional place to make your views clearly heard," said Nick. "We know this is going to be a long haul now so we have to keep public interest.

"It's also a way of uniting our supporters. The atmosphere on the coach was great."

After demonstrating, the group, who thanked Greg Barker for his support, toured the Houses of Commons and Lords.

An ESCC spokesman said leaflets were being sent to people living near Ashdown Brickworks which include an update about what happens next in the consultation process.

Copies have also been sent to the 3,000 people who took part in the online consultation, as well as those who signed eight petitions handed to ESCC over their preferred strategy for waste, published last autumn.

"We are currently investigating the points that people have raised during the recent consultation on the Waste and Minerals Core Strategy, the successor to our current Waste Local Plan," the spokesman said.

"In late summer, we will be publishing initial responses to the consultation. This will be followed in autumn by further technical assessments and discussions with communities and individuals as needed."

The leaflet is available online at eastsussex.gov.uk/mineralsandwaste.

For more details of what BALI is up to, as well as news of their soon-to-be-launched membership scheme, check next week's Observer.

'¢ To contact BALI, call 07814 895874, or 01424 843046. You can also visit www.nolandfillatbexhill.org.uk or email [email protected] or post letters to PO Box 194, Bexhill, TN40 9BD.