The Edmonton EcoPark, capable of burning 700,000 tonnes of refuse every year, was given the go-ahead in 2017.
Replacing an incinerator built in 1969, it was designed to serve the boroughs of Barnet, Camden, Hackney, Haringey, Islington and Waltham Forest covered by the North London Waste Authority.
In late December, the Government proposed a raft of stricter standards for new incinerators. Under the new rules, they would only be approved if they could ensure less rubbish ends up in a landfill or were replacing a less efficient plant.
Ministers hope more efficient recycling will eventually lead to decreased demand for incinerators, as there will be less rubbish to burn.
But according to NLWA chair Cllr Clyde Loakes, the Edmonton EcoPark will meet the tighter standards and “act as an exemplar for future facilities”.
The NLWA says the EcoPark will convert toxic nitrogen oxide gas into water and harmless diatomic nitrogen gas, and use technology to capture particles from the air it emits.
Campaign group Stop Edmonton Incinerator Now campaign (StEIN) wrote to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband in December, formally asking him to pull the plug on the £1.5bn North London Heat and Power project.
Though much is made by the authority of its ‘world-class’ capabilities, the (StEIN) group argued it would “undermine” recycling efforts by creating a demand for waste, and the particles it would release into the air would constitute a public health risk.
Campaigners have repeatedly raised concerns over the effectiveness of capturing fine particles, as well as the area’s “dismal” recycling rate of 30%, which falls far beneath the 2020 target of 50%. They claim this shows the NLWA does not prioritise recycling and is unaware of the links between incineration and low recycling levels.
In a written response to Mr Milliband, Cllr Loakes said scrapping the project three years into construction would be the “worst possible outcome” for more than two million people.
He said not completing the project would be “detrimental” to north Londoners and would deny them “a safe, clean and low-carbon solution for managing their waste”.
Government analysis revealed that London’s capacity for waste will be around 1.4 million tonnes below the amount being produced.
Cllr Loakes, who is also deputy leader of Waltham Forest Council, said “much more must be done” to curb rubbish. He argued “unnecessary and unrecyclable” plastics needed to be “designed out” or replaced with recyclable alternatives.
Once completed, the EcoPark will be capable of burning 700,000 tonnes of rubbish each year. It was initially slated to be up and running this year, but delays have seen the date pushed back to 2027.
A spokesperson for the NLWA said in December that construction was progressing well and steelworks had commenced.
The incinerator will be overseen by LondonEnergyLtd, which is wholly owned by the NLWA.
The authority, launched in 1986, manages waste collection and transport across the seven London boroughs. It is controlled by a team of 14 Labour councillors, two from each borough.