Haverhill Town Council objects to Acorn Bioenergy Ltd’s revised proposals for Spring Grove farm anaerobic digestion facility in Withersfield

A council has objected to revised plans for an anaerobic digestion facility it described as ‘a monstrosity’.

At a meeting of Haverhill Town Council’s planning committee on Monday night, a motion of objection to Acorn Bioenergy Ltd’s proposals for the 14 hectares of land at Spring Grove Farm, in Withersfield, was passed unanimously.

The first consultation period finished in October 2023. Since then Acorn has had to provide more details in support of the plans addressing issues such as flood risks, the impact on the watercourse, wildlife and air quality. The consultation will run until March 3.

Addressing the committee, Cllr Mary Martin said: “Acorn think this will be a benefit to this town, when in actual fact it will have the direct opposite effect. It’s just the wrong place, it’s totally unacceptable. To have this on a main entrance to our town, and a residential development, is absolutely awful and it shows total disrespect to our town.”

Cllr Martin expressed fears about the Spring Grove site’s location on a flood plain which she said is frequently underwater, and the potential for spillages into the Stour Brook. She highlighted how the site was never designated for industrial development in the local plan.

The facility would generate biogas from crops and farming waste, including slurry and poultry litter. This would be transported in on HGVs and upgraded on site into biomethane, before being taken to a central facility to be put into the national grid and to produce fertiliser.

Town councillors highlighted how Acorn had pledged to take waste from farms within a 10-mile radius of the site, but believed in reality they will have to search further afield.

Cllr David Smith, Mayor of Haverhill, expressed fears of how the site could later be used for processing food waste, and said it would be wrong to suggest it would be of a benefit to the environment with the proposed vehicle movements to and from the site.

He said: “It’s absolutely the wrong place for this monstrosity. Basically, they’re not planning to change anything at all. It’s insulting to our residents – I think we should object to this in the strongest possible terms.”

Cllr Smith also raised concerns over the possible light pollution and odour implications the facility could present.

In a section on its website for Spring Grove, Acorn said it has ‘never considered processing and will not ever consider processing household food waste’. It said it has a formal agreement with the landowners to not do this.

At the meeting, Cllr Quinn Cox mentioned the hundreds of objections lodged. He said: “There’s not a single positive for this town from this. We’re not going to gain anything. I agree with Cllr Smith and I want to object in the strongest way possible. It’s an insult to the people of Haverhill.”

Cllr Cox, alongside Cllr Joe Mason, highlighted the potential impact on the economy from the facility, which has pledged to boost local employment. Cllr Cox said he had heard from businesses which would move away from the Haverhill EpiCentre if the facility was approved, while Cllr Mason highlighted the potential odour impact on the pub The Flying Shuttle.

Cllr Mason said: “The residual impact of this anaerobic digester, in this place, I think will be devastating for the local economy and local businesses.”

Acorn has said there will be numerous benefits to the green energy plant, such as producing enough biomethane to heat 7,000 homes and fuel 270 HGVs, while it said the updates to the scheme were aimed at minimising the impact to residents in the area.

The campaign group Muck Off Acorn, which was represented at the council meeting by Mark Bowman, has dismissed this as greenwashing.

Indy Wijenayaka, Withersfield ward councillor and the group’s spokesperson, said: “It’s fundamentally disruptive for the whole community. Things like the EpiCentre, the pubs nearby and all those sorts of things are going to be impacted.

“We’ve waited 14 months for Acorn to respond to the questions from Suffolk County Council (SCC) and they haven’t actually responded to any of the communities concerns.

“They’ve fundamentally ignored the community, we’ve waited 14 months for something and they (Acorn) haven’t listened to us. I hope SCC will see sense.”

An Acorn spokesperson said: “The planning application remains with SCC for determination and Acorn Bioenergy are continuing to work with stakeholders and our consultant team in relation to the consultation comments issued by the statutory consultees.

“Whilst we understand that there may be local interest in our application, we would encourage any questions relating to the determination of the application to be addressed directly to SCC.”