0:00:00 > 0:00:00888
0:00:01 > 0:00:04Good evening and welcome to Taro Naw.
0:00:04 > 0:00:08# We don't want incineration... #
0:00:08 > 0:00:10Downing Street, a fortnight ago.
0:00:10 > 0:00:13Protesters present a petition opposing plans...
0:00:14 > 0:00:17..to build a waste incinerator near Merthyr Tydfil.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21It's awful to think they want to put the thing in our area.
0:00:21 > 0:00:26The money going into this won't be spent in the town.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29US company Covanta Energy are the developers.
0:00:29 > 0:00:33Tonight, Taro Naw travels to the US...
0:00:33 > 0:00:37..and hears the company has been fined...
0:00:37 > 0:00:39..for breaking environmental rules.
0:00:39 > 0:00:43How can people trust you when you say, "There isn't a problem...
0:00:44 > 0:00:47"..this is clean, this is fine," when you violate rules?
0:00:47 > 0:00:51First of all, failure is not acceptable to us.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00When you put the bins out to be collected...
0:01:00 > 0:01:03..do you ever wonder what happens to the rubbish?
0:01:04 > 0:01:07One way to get rid of it is to incinerate it...
0:01:07 > 0:01:09..but not everyone welcomes that.
0:01:09 > 0:01:13In Merthyr Tydfil right now, there is a battle...
0:01:13 > 0:01:16..to try and stop the building of an incinerator.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20Owain Clarke has travelled to the Valleys and the US to investigate.
0:01:25 > 0:01:31Welcome to Merthyr Tydfil, an area with a rich industrial heritage.
0:01:31 > 0:01:36In the 29th century, this was the world's iron capital.
0:01:36 > 0:01:41And after iron, came coal, as the industry grew and then shrank.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46But while the industrial excitement of the past has long gone...
0:01:46 > 0:01:51..plans to create a new industry here has caused plenty of commotion.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55There's an application for a waste incinerator to be built...
0:01:55 > 0:01:59..which will create electricity at a site four miles from here...
0:01:59 > 0:02:01..in the centre of town.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03If the application is passed...
0:02:03 > 0:02:07..it will be among the biggest in Britain.
0:02:07 > 0:02:12But there's been a prickly response from some locals to the plans.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16The aim is to develop this 30-acre site in Brig y Cwm....
0:02:16 > 0:02:19..halfway between Merthyr and Rhymney.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23Alan Williams is among those fiercely opposed to the scheme.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27The site, the building, is bigger than the Millennium Stadium.
0:02:27 > 0:02:33The chimney is over 100m. It's 130 or 115m high.
0:02:33 > 0:02:39It will be seen virtually across south Wales. It's far too big.
0:02:39 > 0:02:44If they need this, they should put them across Wales...
0:02:44 > 0:02:49..so the rubbish can be dealt with in their area.
0:02:49 > 0:02:55But it's not just the size of the development that bothers him.
0:02:56 > 0:03:02If you look around here, you can't see many houses...
0:03:02 > 0:03:06..but thousands of people live within a mile and a half.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15The question of how to deal with rubbish is timely.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19Traditionally, the contents of the bin went to landfill sites...
0:03:20 > 0:03:24..but they are filling up and councils can be fined...
0:03:24 > 0:03:28..if they send too much waste to landfill.
0:03:28 > 0:03:33But the Welsh Government's waste policy recommends incineration...
0:03:33 > 0:03:36..to create electricity if waste cannot be recycled.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40This is being considered at Brig y Cwm.
0:03:40 > 0:03:46The aim would be to incinerate around 750,000 tonnes every year.
0:03:46 > 0:03:51The waste would otherwise have been buried at landfill sites.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54The incineration would of course produce electricity...
0:03:54 > 0:03:59..enough to supply the needs of Merthyr Tydfil and Caerphilly...
0:03:59 > 0:04:01..according to the company.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07But while the electricity could supply other areas...
0:04:08 > 0:04:13..the opposition spreads further afield, to Blaenau Gwent.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16Meryl Darkins has lived in Tredegar for twenty years.
0:04:16 > 0:04:21She suffers from a lung condition and takes ten tablets each morning.
0:04:21 > 0:04:26She's worried about what could be emitted by the chimneys.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30Traditionally and historically, the area has been industrial.
0:04:31 > 0:04:36Now we've got unemployment, but at least we have clean air to breathe.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38But once this happens...
0:04:39 > 0:04:43..there will be more pollution in the air every day.
0:04:44 > 0:04:49The levels at energy waste sites are monitored carefully.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53Dioxins are one of the chemical groups that are emitted.
0:04:54 > 0:04:59If the levels are high enough, they can cause diseases such as cancer.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02But low levels are emitted from incinerators...
0:05:02 > 0:05:05..like the one being considered for the valley.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08According to the Health Protection Agency...
0:05:08 > 0:05:12..modern incinerators don't have a measurable impact on health.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15But that doesn't calm the fears of Meryl Darkins.
0:05:16 > 0:05:21Every time I have a cold, I take ages to recover.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23I never recover fully.
0:05:23 > 0:05:28Whenever there are dioxins or something like that...
0:05:28 > 0:05:31..they have the same effect on my lungs.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34I will be more ill than I was before.
0:05:34 > 0:05:39If you want to see what is being proposed...
0:05:39 > 0:05:41..you have to travel some way.
0:05:41 > 0:05:47More than 3,000 miles to be exact, to New Jersey in the USA.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51Covanta is based in the industrial cauldron of this state.
0:05:52 > 0:05:57The company wants to build the incinerator on the open cast site.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01Across America, Covanta operates more than 40 incinerators.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04That includes this one in Rahway.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13Inside the building, they deal with tons of rubbish.
0:06:13 > 0:06:18In this large hall, Paul Gilman explains the preparation process.
0:06:18 > 0:06:23He says they do their best to separate what can be recycled.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30Next, the incineration process.
0:06:30 > 0:06:36Covanta says the temperature and air is carefully regulated.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40First of all you check the air and create enough turbulence...
0:06:40 > 0:06:44..that it's a good burn, a thorough burn.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48A minimum amount of smoke and that sort of thing.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51Then you have your air pollution control equipment...
0:06:51 > 0:06:54..to take care of what does come out.
0:06:56 > 0:06:57This is the control room.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01This is where they regulate the electricity being produced...
0:07:01 > 0:07:03..and the chemicals being released.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06The company says the technology is one of the cleanest ways...
0:07:07 > 0:07:11..of producing electricity, cleaner than coal and oil production.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16The company insists there is no longer any cause for concern...
0:07:16 > 0:07:18..over dioxin emissions.
0:07:20 > 0:07:26The amounts going out are much less than they have been in the past.
0:07:26 > 0:07:31Dioxin emissions would be about what ten families might create...
0:07:31 > 0:07:34..if they burned their trash in the backyard.
0:07:34 > 0:07:38What about those who are familiar with the incinerators?
0:07:38 > 0:07:43Phillip Davies worked up the road of this incinerator for decades.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46He believes the people of New Jersey generally welcome them...
0:07:46 > 0:07:48..because of waste problems.
0:07:48 > 0:07:54These large tips looked like the coal tips we had in South Wales.
0:07:54 > 0:08:00This is a way of getting rid of waste by incinerating it.
0:08:00 > 0:08:07As a scientist, Phillip doesn't worry much about what is released.
0:08:07 > 0:08:13If I had to live close to the incinerator...
0:08:13 > 0:08:18..of course I would think twice about the place.
0:08:18 > 0:08:24But generally, as far as the toxic residues are concerned...
0:08:24 > 0:08:26..it wouldn't be a problem for me.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29But they are a problem for others.
0:08:29 > 0:08:33Professor Paul Connett is a worldwide expert on waste.
0:08:33 > 0:08:37He campaigns against incineration sites which create energy.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40He says the USA are a step ahead of Britain.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44No new development has been passed here for almost 15 years.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48He says this is a good thing considering the dangers...
0:08:48 > 0:08:52..he argues are connected to the microscopic nano-particles...
0:08:52 > 0:08:54..which are released without restrictions.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56Give me a break!
0:08:56 > 0:09:00Where's the science here? Where's the responsibility here?
0:09:00 > 0:09:03Where's the solution to nano-particles?
0:09:03 > 0:09:07It's almost as if, if you don't look, you don't find...
0:09:07 > 0:09:10..and without regulation, nothing could be happening.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14But what we know, and I'm sure it's true in Merthyr...
0:09:14 > 0:09:18..the more solid particles that you have in the air...
0:09:18 > 0:09:22..the higher the respiratory problems, the death rate...
0:09:22 > 0:09:24..the higher the sickness rate.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28That's with particles which are much larger than nano-particles.
0:09:28 > 0:09:34If that's the existing situation, introducing nano-particles...
0:09:34 > 0:09:37..is going to make the health situation worse.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40Professor Connett also argues...
0:09:40 > 0:09:45..that the economic argument for incinerators is over-exaggerated.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49You'll find that this town of Merthyr Tydfil...
0:09:49 > 0:09:52..will be importing waste from miles around.
0:09:52 > 0:09:55You'll be perceived as the dump city in Wales.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58That's the last thing you want.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01In the face of the recession...
0:10:01 > 0:10:04..many in Merthyr are thinking of the economy.
0:10:05 > 0:10:10Geraint Meaker runs a building business with is father.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15The politicians don't care what happens in Merthyr.
0:10:15 > 0:10:20They should come up to see the current state of the town.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24There's no money here, being spent in the town.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27Why should they make it even worse?
0:10:28 > 0:10:32Unemployment in Merthyr is among the highest in Wales.
0:10:32 > 0:10:36Covanta claim the incinerator could be a valuable investment.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40They've estimated that building work would create around 600 jobs...
0:10:40 > 0:10:44..and around 80 people would work at the incinerator.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47Some have their doubts.
0:10:47 > 0:10:51The people who'll receive the money won't live here.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54The people who'll work there will come from England.
0:10:55 > 0:10:59They say that jobs will be created, but who'll get them?
0:11:00 > 0:11:02According to Geraint's father, Phil Meaker...
0:11:03 > 0:11:06..the standard of work is also important.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09The people of Merthyr deserve something better.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13We've lost jobs in the coal mines.
0:11:13 > 0:11:17Factories such as Hoover have closed down. There's nothing now.
0:11:17 > 0:11:22They need to attract money into the town, so young people can get jobs.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27Taro 9's investigation will continue after the break.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29We'll visit a town...
0:11:29 > 0:11:33..where a part of Covanta's site was temporarily closed...
0:11:33 > 0:11:38..following the release of double the amount of permitted dioxins.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00The city of Newark in New Jersey.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03Covanta Energy's headquarters is in this state.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05The company wants to develop...
0:12:05 > 0:12:09..one of Britain's biggest waste disposal plants near Merthyr Tydfil.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15Here, you get a good view of the incinerator.
0:12:15 > 0:12:20That's the New Jersey Turnpike going behind it.
0:12:20 > 0:12:21If you ever drive...
0:12:22 > 0:12:24Ana Baptista was raised locally in Ironbound.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29This is the location of Covanta's biggest incinerator in the state.
0:12:29 > 0:12:33As part of her work for the Ironbound Community Corporation...
0:12:33 > 0:12:36..she campaigns against the site.
0:12:36 > 0:12:40She holds weekly tours around the local industrial areas.
0:12:40 > 0:12:44She says the area is an easy target for dirty developments.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49Because our community doesn't have the same wealth and resources...
0:12:49 > 0:12:51..as many other communities...
0:12:51 > 0:12:56..we are less able to fight off the undesirable uses...
0:12:56 > 0:13:01..and attract the kinds of development we'd like to see.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05We're vulnerable, in political and economic terms...
0:13:05 > 0:13:06..to undesirable uses...
0:13:07 > 0:13:10..that other communities can protect themselves against.
0:13:10 > 0:13:12The group was so concerned...
0:13:12 > 0:13:15..about the substances being released from the incinerator...
0:13:16 > 0:13:18..they prosecuted Covanta in 2007.
0:13:18 > 0:13:23After two years of failed discussions, the case went to court.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26The group claimed Covanta broke environmental regulations...
0:13:27 > 0:13:31..between 2002 and 2008, under the Clean Air Act.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34William Schulte was their legal representative.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37There would be at least a few hundred...
0:13:37 > 0:13:40..of the six-minute intervals...
0:13:40 > 0:13:43..where they would be emitting a substance...
0:13:43 > 0:13:46..in excess of what they're allowed to emit.
0:13:46 > 0:13:50How serious they were, it sorts of runs the gamut.
0:13:50 > 0:13:56Some exceed by only 2% or 3%, others you're running up to 15%.
0:13:56 > 0:13:58Those are the more serious violations.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01The two sides came to agreement last year...
0:14:02 > 0:14:04..without Covanta accepting any responsibility.
0:14:04 > 0:14:09They did agree to install new equipment to control gas...
0:14:09 > 0:14:15..and to pay over 800,000 for a new park in Ironbound.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20Covanta claims the rules were broken when anther company ran the site...
0:14:20 > 0:14:24..and things have changed since they took over in 2005.
0:14:25 > 0:14:29We'd already set about improving the performance of that facility...
0:14:29 > 0:14:33..and happily, the performance has been improving over time.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37I think even the Ironbound Corporation would say...
0:14:37 > 0:14:41..it's a different operation today compared to five or six years ago.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48If the people of Newark feel they're being targeted by dirty industries...
0:14:49 > 0:14:52..and that sentiment is echoed in Merthyr.
0:14:52 > 0:14:55One of Europe's largest opencast coal mines...
0:14:56 > 0:15:00..and landfill site, Trecatti, are a stone's throw away from the town.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04Builder Phil Meaker and his son, Geraint...
0:15:04 > 0:15:08..believe the town is an easy target for Covanta.
0:15:08 > 0:15:13This doesn't happen in areas such as Oxford or Hampstead Heath.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16They think they can do this...
0:15:16 > 0:15:20..due to the high unemployment figures in the Valleys.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23It's like a carrot on a stick.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27They think we'll accept anything, if there are a few jobs.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31Covanta Energy's UK Managing Director disagrees.
0:15:31 > 0:15:36He argues the Merthyr site was chosen above tens of other sites...
0:15:36 > 0:15:40..as it has a railway nearby, amongst other reasons.
0:15:40 > 0:15:45We have to have ready access to power export.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49We don't like to be immediately adjacent to houses.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53We're about 1.5 kilometres away from the nearest dwelling...
0:15:53 > 0:15:56..and, principally, the rail links.
0:16:03 > 0:16:07Back in the US, Covanta's problems stretch beyond New Jersey.
0:16:07 > 0:16:12I'm heading to Connecticut and after a two-hour journey along the coast...
0:16:12 > 0:16:14..I arrive at Wallingford.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18In July 2010, an emissions test showed...
0:16:18 > 0:16:24..that the level of dioxins released from a nearby incinerator...
0:16:24 > 0:16:28..was over 250% higher than the permitted level.
0:16:28 > 0:16:33Covanta decided to close part of the site for a year to investigate.
0:16:34 > 0:16:38I met one concerned local resident.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43If there was no harm being posed to the general population...
0:16:43 > 0:16:48..why was one third of the plant shut for a year?
0:16:48 > 0:16:52If it wasn't harmful, why didn't the plant just continue running?
0:16:52 > 0:16:57One of Bob Gross's weekly duties is maintain the Jewish cemetery...
0:16:57 > 0:17:01..a stone's throw from the site.
0:17:01 > 0:17:06He's concerned about the effect on people's health.
0:17:06 > 0:17:11If you're emitting chemicals such as dioxins, cadmium, lead, mercury...
0:17:11 > 0:17:13..into the atmosphere...
0:17:13 > 0:17:17..and people are ingesting these chemicals in small amounts...
0:17:17 > 0:17:23..you have to assume that somebody is getting ill from this.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27Last year's incident is no exception.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30Three years earlier in 2007...
0:17:30 > 0:17:35..there was another case related to chemicals released into the air...
0:17:35 > 0:17:37..above this town.
0:17:37 > 0:17:42The dioxin levels were too high in that case too.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46As a result, the Office of the Attorney General...
0:17:46 > 0:17:50..and the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection...
0:17:50 > 0:17:53..brought a court order against the site.
0:17:53 > 0:17:57The magnitude of the violation, the dioxins that were emitted...
0:17:57 > 0:18:01..were two and a half times that of the 2007 incident.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04Also the frequency came into play.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07Two violations within three years caused us more concern.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12Connecticut's Department of Environmental Protection says...
0:18:12 > 0:18:16..that even though public health wasn't threatened...
0:18:16 > 0:18:19..the case was considered serious.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23The two sides reached agreement in July...
0:18:23 > 0:18:27..and the company had to pay a 400,000 fine...
0:18:28 > 0:18:31..and increase the frequency of emission testing on the site.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34Covanta blamed old technology.
0:18:35 > 0:18:41How can people trust what you say when you violate rules?
0:18:41 > 0:18:46First of all, failure is not acceptable to us.
0:18:46 > 0:18:51We are our own biggest critics, as far as we're concerned.
0:18:51 > 0:18:56We set about making sure that we corrected the problem.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00We in fact were the ones in both cases...
0:19:00 > 0:19:03..that discovered the problem, reported the problem...
0:19:03 > 0:19:06..and set about fixing the problem.
0:19:06 > 0:19:10The first people we called after we called the regulatory agency...
0:19:10 > 0:19:14..was the local town officials and the newspapers...
0:19:14 > 0:19:17..to let them know what had happened.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20Many things became apparent as I travelled America.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25According to official records, Covanta's paid thousands in fines.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29The company insists the majority of problems have been inherited...
0:19:29 > 0:19:33..and don't derive from the incinerators they've built.
0:19:34 > 0:19:39According to the company, they abide by the rules 99.9% of the time.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43Whilst referring to Covanta's site in Rahway...
0:19:43 > 0:19:45..where rules have also been broken...
0:19:46 > 0:19:49..Paul Gilman raises questions about the US system...
0:19:49 > 0:19:54..of monitoring emissions over very short periods of time.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58If this facility had been located in the EU...
0:19:58 > 0:20:01..those violations would not have even constituted violations.
0:20:01 > 0:20:06So the way plants are regulated in the EU is different.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09I'm not saying it's worse.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13I'd argue it's very scientifically sound, but it is different.
0:20:13 > 0:20:18Are you blaming the regulatory regime in the US for being too picky?
0:20:18 > 0:20:21I wouldn't say it's more strict, it's different.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24They're more focused on very short-term violations...
0:20:24 > 0:20:26..whereas the EU is interested...
0:20:27 > 0:20:30..in the longer-term health of the facility.
0:20:30 > 0:20:36Covanta agreed to provide details and plans of the site on their website.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40The Environment Agency will also keep a close eye.
0:20:40 > 0:20:45We would really expect to be within our compliance limits...
0:20:45 > 0:20:47..100% of the time.
0:20:47 > 0:20:52It's always possible over the life of a facility...
0:20:52 > 0:20:56..that you could exceed for 30 minutes at some point.
0:20:56 > 0:21:01Over a year, when we look at our emission over a year...
0:21:01 > 0:21:05..we operate well below the levels of exeedance we're allowed.
0:21:06 > 0:21:08According to Professor Paul Connett...
0:21:08 > 0:21:13..a change in mindset is needed when it comes to treating waste.
0:21:14 > 0:21:19We should not be spending a fortune destroying finite materials.
0:21:19 > 0:21:21We should stop making materials...
0:21:22 > 0:21:25..packaging and products, that have to be destroyed.
0:21:25 > 0:21:30A fortnight ago, a petition signed by 13,000 people...
0:21:30 > 0:21:35..was presented in Downing Street by those who oppose Brig y Cwm.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39The decision of whether or not to approve the site...
0:21:40 > 0:21:44..is currently in the hands of the Infrastructure Planning Commission.
0:21:44 > 0:21:50Westminster MPs, however, could make the final decision.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53The people of Merthyr and surrounding areas...
0:21:53 > 0:21:57..are determined that it doesn't come.
0:21:57 > 0:22:01We hope that the Prime Minister and Chris Huhne...
0:22:01 > 0:22:06..listen to the people of Merthyr and Rhymney.
0:22:06 > 0:22:11A final decision on Brig y Cwm is expected next year.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14It's a £400 million investment in Merthyr...
0:22:14 > 0:22:19..which will be one of the largest inward investments in Wales...
0:22:19 > 0:22:22..for several years and it'll create jobs.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25It's environmentally beneficial, as far as we're concerned.
0:22:25 > 0:22:29It's the best way of dealing with our residual waste.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32It's a great plus for Merthyr.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36We're trying to help Merthyr reinvest in its future.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39What's that? Moo.
0:22:39 > 0:22:41Moo.
0:22:42 > 0:22:46Others aren't as hopeful about the area's future.
0:22:47 > 0:22:48Geraint Meaker is concerned...
0:22:48 > 0:22:52..about how the emissions will affect his children.
0:22:52 > 0:22:54It makes me question...
0:22:54 > 0:22:59..whether I want to stay in Merthyr for the rest of my life.
0:23:00 > 0:23:06My business is here, but do I want my children to be raised here?
0:23:11 > 0:23:14Many youngsters are already leaving the area.
0:23:14 > 0:23:19It'll be like a ghost town because no-one will be living here.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29That's it for tonight.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32We're back at the same time next week.
0:23:33 > 0:23:34Thanks for watching, goodnight.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58S4C Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:23:58 > 0:23:59.