Orihuela Council rules out the construction of the regional waste treatment plant in Torremendo
Although it took a few days before we finally got a response, the Orihuela City Council has said “NO” to the siting of the planned waste treatment plant for the region of Vega Baja in the vicinity of the village of Torremendo.
The mayor, Pepe Vegara, stated bluntly that “we are aware of the need for this treatment plant, but it will not be in Torremendo where it is constructed.
He also confirmed that Urban Planning are looking at a number of different locations in the municipality for a possible site which they could subsequently offer to the Waste Management Consortium and that it will be land that is located away from all population centres, with good road links and close to the CV-95.
The areas being considered will be for the positioning of a valorisation plant without waste disposal, that is to say, without landfill. It will generate 70 jobs and will mean a saving for the municipality of Orihuela close to two million euros.
The site in Torremendo was first considered Sixteen years ago. It is located in the valley formed by the Sierras de Pujálvarez and El Cristo, an important part of the Sierra Escalona Protected Landscape and as such it met with very strong opposition, both from residents and from the environmental group Friends of Sierra Escalona (ASE). Demonstrations held in Orihuela City attracted several thousand people and the plan was eventually shelved.
Considering the importance of establishing such a facility in the Vega Baja, which would save local municipalities many millions of euros, it is astonishing that in the 16 intervening years an alternative site has not been identified.
Currently, Orihuela, which is the municipality that generates the most solid urban waste from the region, 45,000 tons a year, will double its transport and disposal expenditure, increasing from three to over six million euros in 2024, with Torrevieja not far behind.
There will be no landfill facility at the site, so the waste would continue to be taken to other landfills, as is currently the case, but significantly reducing the amount because of its prior treatment.
