The Environment Agency has approved about 10% more annual waste burning at Beddington incinerator, prompting health concerns from residents and Sutton Council.
Residents in south London are raising health concerns after the Environment Agency approved a permit change allowing the Beddington incinerator to burn about 10% more waste each year.
The decision raises the site’s annual processing limit by about 35,000 tonnes to 382,286 tonnes. The agency said it was satisfied the permit variation met environmental requirements and would provide strong protection for human health and the environment.
For some people living near the plant, the approval has sharpened long-running worries about air quality, dust and odour. Jim, a Sutton resident who has lived about 15 minutes from the incinerator for nearly 20 years, told the BBC his life had worsened since the facility began operating.
“When the wind has dropped, you can smell a kind of toxic chemical smell, and it's like a taste that you can almost feel on the back of your throat,” he said. He added that he was “furious” about the increase and worried about “10% more rubbish” being burned nearby.
Sutton Council said it did not welcome the decision and called on the government and the Environment Agency to answer what it described as the community’s “very real concerns”. The council noted that a school is about 700m from the incinerator’s chimneys.
Christopher Woolmer, chair of the council’s environment committee, said the authority had formally objected last year, arguing the site did not have the capacity to handle the proposed volume and raising concerns about previous permit breaches. He said the council was “deeply disappointed” and wanted the highest standards maintained.
Viridor, which operates the incinerator, said the Environment Agency had independently reviewed the application after the site showed it could process additional waste while continuing to operate within strict environmental permit requirements.
The plant exceeded emissions limits 916 times between 2022 and 2024. Viridor said those breaches were caused by a third-party contractor, were very small in scale, did not pose a risk to human health and that safeguards had been put in place to prevent a repeat.
The updated permit also allows the site to temporarily store and move some hazardous and clinical waste, though those materials will not be burned there.
Matt Higginson, an environment manager at the Environment Agency, said permits place “stringent conditions” on waste sites and that emissions from the plant are monitored around the clock. The agency said it can suspend or revoke permits, issue enforcement notices or pursue prosecution in serious cases.
Sutton Council said it is considering what further action it can take to ensure the necessary safeguards are in place.
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