A PUBLIC inquiry is needed into Castle Cement's bid to permanently burn cemfuel at its Clitheroe works.

Pendle MP Gordon Prentice, whose constituency is affected by its proximity to the works, believes the inquiry is needed because of the delay in dealing with a 'plume grounding' problem.

Castle Cement says it cannot meet the December deadline for dealing with it but Mr Prentice says the case should be put under full public scrutiny.

He said: "The company has appealed to the Secretary of State for the Environment saying they cannot meet the deadline.

"They also want to relax the limit on sulphur emissions and the condition that the electro static precipitators should be operational at all times.

"The company also wants more flexibility in the composition of Cemfuel.

"These issues should be examined in public, in the full glare of publicity and not dealt with quietly in the Environment Secretary's penthouse office near his Marsham Street headquarters."

Mr Prentice and his Burnley Labour colleague Peter Pike have put down a Commons motion calling for a public inquiry.

It objects to the way that Castle Cement has appealed to Environment Secretary John Gummer to avoid the deadlines.

It further says that the problem of plume grounding means that smoke from the kilns regularly envelops school playgrounds and homes in Clitheroe with foul smelling fumes.

And it calls for Mr Gummer to hold a public inquiry before making any decision on what should happen to Castle Cement's burning of Cemfuel.

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