£3.4m. sees off Suez
Friday 25th June 2010, 1:00PM BST.
Anti-incinerator protesters outside the Royal Court building before States' members discussed the proposed Suez incinerator.
PUBLIC SERVICES minister Bernard Flouquet said yesterday that Suez Environnement was paid £3.4m. for the States’ U-turn on its energy to waste plant.
Under a letter of intent, the department originally estimated that it would cost the States up to £3.2m., or 4% of the contract price, if the company was forced to pull out of building the £93.5m. incinerator. Deputy Flouquet said the increase was due to the exchange rate and interest rate fluctuations and that no further legal action would be taken on the issue.
The contractual obligation now means the States has spent nearly £12m. on two failed waste strategies.
The assembly threw out the Suez incinerator earlier this year and in 2004 Deputy Scott Ogier led a requete that dismissed the Lurgi energy-from-waste-plant.
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SIX ZERO WASTE strategy.
I wonder if any lessons have been learned from this or are they intending to pay consultants to advise them on what lessons they should have learned?
Build a bonfire, build a bonfire
Put 12 million on the top
put the waste strategy in the middle
and burn the bloomin lot
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Refering to it as an energy to waste plant seems an accurate statement although it ought to be the other way around.
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Apparently Mr Trott says taxes may have to rise…….. Hopeless.
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I cannot believe a commercial company would have thrown away £12M in this manner. By my reckoning that is £200 for every Guernsey man, woman and child. Have the States learned anything at all from this sheer waste?
Businesses expect to incur costs as a result of tendering, why are our States such a soft touch? May I suggest that in future they stipulate that all costs of tendering are down to prospective vendors or agree a fixed ceiling to charges? Or is that too sensible?
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Beanjar, thats because PSD tried to force the issue by signing a letter of intent before any states debate.
The remainder of deputies felt this deserved a round of applause in the chamber.
People still wonder why this island is going to hell in a handcart.
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Beanjar – after 2 scuppered attempts and £12million spent, I would at least hope that the States have learned that the majority of citizens don’t want an incinerator!
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And the majority of the people have absolutely no idea of the fundamentals of the issues involved. They have been bamboozled into jumping on the anti “incinerator” bandwagon just as so many were persuaded to reject the MMR vaccine on the flimsy evidence produced by one now discredited loudmouth.
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Ted please educate us.
I hate being so uninformed.
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Ted, I have always tried to stay out of the technical side of the incinerator debate as I have absolutely no idea about what’s involved. My concern from day one was the 2 year “warranty” period that was negotiated for a multi-million pound facility – a worse deal than you get on most forecourts.
Time will tell whether the correct decision was made however there’s little doubt in my mind that the majority of the population did not want an incinerator. The States realised that earlier this year and threw it out – it’s just a pity it took £12million and two failed attempts to come to that conclusion.
Of course some will say that it was purely a case of populist politicians jumping to the loudest tune. Personally I think the States made the best decision as, given the current economic uncertainty and the possibility of much cheaper alternatives, I think they acted in the best interests of Guernsey. I only hope that the waste issue doesn’t disappear off the radar now, as Mont Cuet is filling up and we still need a long term solution.
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I love Ted’s comment
Its similar to a politicians way of telling us all that he thinks we are idiots without saying it.
Yes yes, flouquet knew best all along didnt he ted. I doubt you know anymore about the issues involved than bernie, yet you happily sit there and berate everyone for finally vocalising an opinion.
Also I assume this is the same Ted that made a huge U-turn towards the incinerator alternatives after being pro-burner for so long??
This makes his crackpot posting more laughable.
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I see the GP have printed more misleading propoganda spouted by Rodney Brouard.
Have the GP got a commercial interest in his project?
He rubbishes other technologies but still refuses to say how he will generate the steam required for the process.
He fails to say how he will ensure a consistant product with a variable waste stream.
If as many of these systems are being sold, as he claims, what effect would this have on the value of the product and how would this effect the running costs, considering the unknown fuel source?
Would his claimed gate price be sustainable?
Don’t be fooled by propoganda, wait for the tendering process, where these questions will have to be answered.
For once I agree with the PSD. Don’t jump into bed with Rodney as a knee jerk reaction. Make him go through the same process as everybody else.
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PSD has instructed yet another BPEO report to be prepared (to identify the Best Practicable Environmental Option for waste disposal – see Wikipedia for the BPEO definition). This task will require the use of external consultants (again) because PSD lacks the expertise & experience. Once the BPEO is settled on by PSD, the next step will be to identify the Best Available Techniques (BAT) for the solution. Guess what?? All of this was done TWICE before and it came up with Energy from Waste as the BPEO clear winner each time! It’s an objective test, so don’t for a minute think that history won’t repeat itself – unless PSD expressly excludes EfW as an option before they start!
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Just out of interest, wasted youth…
Firstly why the implied dig about external consultants? Would you rather the States employ such experienced people on full time jobs/pension/etc to prepare these strategies every so often, then sit at their desk collecting dust?
Second, bearing in mind that the States do tend to use some of the most experienced in their field consultants in the UK if not the world, and these consulants have twice come up with EfW, might that not say something…
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Billythe fish,
Read the consultants reports (available on the States website).
That will answer your questions.
Even if you know nothing about waste disposal, by chapter 2 you will have reached the incinerator conclusion. The’re designed that way.
If you do know any thing about waste disposal you will suss it out half way through chapter 1.
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Billy,
It all depends on the consultants you use. If you use Ramboll, you will in all likelihood get an incinerator. If you use Eunomia you will likely get waste reduction strategies and kerbside recycling. You pays your money….
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It’s all well and good discussing the past, the facts are simple.
1) The States have WASTED 12 million quid.
2) The tip is filling up fast and we also now know that PSD’s “lifetime” of the landfill figures are based on a mountain being created.
3) The Vale parishioners and probably most people have had enough of rubbish floating about the common.
4) To date the States still have no clear executable plan of how the islands rubbish will be dealt with in the foreseable future, though for some “foreseable future” probably only means to the end of the week.
All they have is a notion that increased recycling will help, which I’m sure it will to a degree but I doubt will be the sole disposal answer, perhaps a combination of the technologies would be a way forward, recycling, some other processing plant and a smaller incinerator of some sort. Either way somthing has to be done Guernsey cannot waste more money and another 10 years discussing it.
BTW Steve, I’m sure Rodney Brouard would love to go through the same process as everyone else because to date “everyone else” ie Lurgi and Suez have been kicked into touch at the last hour and been paid a healthy sum for their trouble, I imagine Rodney will be onto the Suez
contracts people as soon as possible!
Interesting comment from guernseygirl, ask the right question of the right people eh!
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