Campaign: Latest State of Play

BALI is still fighting on all fronts against any further landfill in Bexhill. The ESCC Waste Local Plan (WLP), which identifies the Ashdown Brickworks as the only site in the county for future landfill, is on hold. It was passed in council last December, but BALI then asked the Secretary of State to "call it in" on the grounds that it failed to meet national environmental policies. This was rejected, but BALI is now supporting a legal challenge to the plan in the high Court on the grounds that it ignored many of the Inspector's recommendations as well as 8500 objections by members of the public.

Even if the is finally adopted, it will soon be replaced under a new planning system by a "Waste Development Framework" on which work starts this summer. BALI will seek to influence its formation which will reduce all landfill to a minimum by encouraging less packaging and greater recycling and composting.

VEOLIA (formerly Onyx), the County waste contractor, still maintain they have no interest in the Ashdown site. However, Nick Hollington, BALI chairman, says, "We must be prepared for the worst. This would be a planning application at county to develop the site for landfill, which would then involve a full environmental assessment. BALI would fight such an application all the way, and will shortly commence a major scale fundraising campaign to create a "war chest" to afford the best legal and professional advice."

The fundraising campaign is now in full swing in the form of the BALI 100 Appeal - see how you can take part in the BALI 100 Appeal.