Local authority opposes Raw Biogas plant near historic country house

Raw Biogas, a UK anaerobic digestion (AD) plant developer, has submitted a planning application for an £8 million biogas plant in Northamptonshire.

But the project, to be located at Wormslade Farm and projected to process 46,000 tonnes of manure and crops annually to power 2,500 homes, is facing local resistance, BBC reports.

Clipston Parish Council – smallest local authority unit in Britain – is objecting to the facility together with three other parish councils, stating that it is too close to the protected Kelmarsh Hall, a historic country house built in 1732.

Yet the Northamptonshire County Council, which manages the greater local area, is expected to approve the scheme, as there have been no objections from the UK Environment Agency.

Stuart Homewood, director at Raw Biogas, said the plant on the five acre site aims to provide a more environmentally friendly way of producing the energy needs of the country.

"We will be using farm waste and crops such as grassland, maize, and rye. We have been listening to the community and our traffic management plan avoids any additional agricultural vehicles through nearby villages," said Homewood.

Bioenergy Insight was unable to reach Clipston Parish Council for comment.