Sunbury residents are continuing their fight against the proposed Waste-to-Energy (WtE) facility in Sunbury.
Members of the No Waste Incinerator Sunbury group hosted a stall at recent Sunbury show, where they collected 750 signatures on petitions opposing the project.
The proposed facility will be operated by HiQ at its Sunbury Eco-Hub on Sunbury Road.
As reported by Star Weekly, in August HiQ was granted a licence by Recycling Victoria to process up to 750,000 tonnes of waste per annum.
Western Metropolitan MP David Ettershank attended the show to support the No Waste Incinerator Sunbury group and said Victoria had issued more licenses for incinerators than another other state.
“The people of Sunbury are tired of being dumped on – 1.5 million cubic meters of soil was excavated from the West Gate Tunnel and plonked on Sunbury, now there are plans to send three-quarters of a million tonnes of Melbourne’s rubbish to be burnt in the town,” he said.
“Many of these incinerators will be built in suburban areas like Sunbury, whereas New South Wales has banned incinerators in metropolitan Sydney and only allows them in four outlying regional areas.”
No Waste Incinerator Sunbury spokesperson said a WtE facility was the last thing Sunbury needed.
“We’ve taken the soil, and now we’re being dumped on again, expected to burn the waste of many different councils,” he said.
“It’s going to be dragged all the way here, then torched.”
Mr Ettershank said Denmark, which has 26 WtE incinerators, is aiming to close a third in the next five years to meet its emissions targets, and questioned why Victoria is rushing to open more.
“The European Union has also ruled that incinerating waste is not environmentally sustainable, making it harder for European banks to invest in monster incinerators,” he said.
“But, Victoria is determined to embrace a dirty technology that Europe is leaving behind. The people of Sunbury say an incinerator is not welcome in their town.”
HiQ said it has been in contact with members of the No Waste Incinerator Sunbury group, as well as multiple residents of Sunbury to chat about their concerns.
HiQ also confirmed it plans to submit its environmental and planning applications to the Environmental Protection Authority Victoria and the planning minister by the end of 2025.
“From there, we expect public exhibition of these materials, including the release of all independent assessments, will take place in the first half of 2026,” the HiQ spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said HiQ will respond to the feedback and questions, and update its application as required.
“Application outcomes from EPA Victoria and the minister for planning are then expected mid to late 2026,” the spokesperson said.
“If the facility is approved, detailed facility design and construction would take place between late 2026 and 2029, with commission and operations expected in 2030.”
Locals can sign the petition at a number of locations across Sunbury, which can be found on the group’s Facebook page.
