A state government plan that could see a huge waste incinerator built at Lithgow has been slammed by the Greens.
The government announced last week that no Sydney sites will be used to build the proposed energy-from-waste incinerators. Instead, four regional areas have been earmarked, including West Lithgow.
Blue Mountains Greens Cr Brent Hoare said having a "toxic" incinerator on the doorstep of the World Heritage-listed national park was a "ludicrous proposal".
"These incinerators are dangerous. They are a huge producer of dioxins, and also produce toxic ash that still needs to be disposed of somewhere. This facility will emit heavy metals, dioxins, lead, mercury, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter all linked to health problems including asthma, heart disease and COVID-19 complications."
Ward 1 candidate, Sarah Redshaw, said the plan would mean large trucks full of waste travelling through the Mountains.
"This is all part of the government's plan to lift the ban on B-doubles on the Great Western Highway, meaning trucks larger than 19 metres, designed for freeways and remote driving, will thunder through busy shopping centres, past schools, and add to congestion and pollution.
"We need to see less trucks on our roads, and freight being moved onto rail. Having to transport waste from Sydney to Lithgow through our community will clog our already limited transport corridors".
The four regions named by the government as appropriate for an incinerator are West Lithgow, Parkes, Richmond Valley and Southern Goulburn-Mulwaree.
State Greens MP, Cate Faehrmann, said while Sydneysiders could breathe a sigh of relief that the facilities would not be built within the basin, a small number of regional communities would now have to bear the brunt of the growing waste problem in NSW.
"We need to be moving towards a zero-waste economy and investing more heavily in truly sustainable waste innovation instead of creating incinerators that put our health at risk," she said.
"The government should introduce a ban on waste to energy incinerators across NSW so that no community is exposed to toxic pollution. This is exactly what the bill I introduced in 2020 would have achieved which both the government and opposition voted against".
The chief executive of the Nature Conservation Council, Chris Gambian said Sydney should not export its environmental problems to the regions.
"We believe that incineration is environmentally harmful and unsustainable. But if the government is going to proceed this way, these facilities must conform to world's best practice.
"That means whatever facilities are built in the regions must operate to the highest environmental standards to ensure harmful chemicals and by-products are eliminated as much as possible during incineration."