The next step, according to local MP Lisa Nandy, is to get the current pile of waste removed.  Once this has been acheived the residents of the local area can rest at ease.

The skip hire boss was jailed on multiple counts of illegal dumping including breach of the environmental protection act.

The plant, which is positioned next to a council owned Nature Reserve, was closed last year amidst claims the skip company didn’t have the landowners permission to use the land.  The company has now been allowed to resume their business on the site, whilst awaiting a final decision on the matter later this year at a planning enquiry. 

The skip firm are planning to sue the council on 3 counts including loss of earnings.

The contractor blames potential job loses on builders improving their waste management capabilities, meaning that much of the waste they receive in their skips can’t be recycled – making the light recycling arm of the business increasingly more expensive to run.

Thompsons, hope that a buyer can be found for this area of the business to prevent any potential job losses.

The plant, backed by Southern Waste Management and Basingstoke Skip Hire, will house a £2.7 million station to burn wood chips which will create electricity for the national grid and create hot water, which will be offered to neighbouring companies.

The site will be built on the grounds of an old recycling plant and will prevent wood for recycling from having to be transported to Slough, as is currently the case.

Alongside the fly tipping charges, the skip hire boss also faces charges from the Environment Agency in South Wales for running waste management facilities without environmental permits and treating controlled waste without a license.

So if you have any TV’s, toasters, CD players or hairdryers that you’re finished with but can be reused, the campaign have teamed up with the British Heart Foundation to accept your used electricals for resale in their charity shops. 

Find out more about Recycling and Waste Management Event’s in your area this week via their event finder

Boris Johnson has made it clear in the past that improving recycling in the capital is a major priority for his administration, most noticeably, he scrapped The Londoner and chose to use the money to plant trees.

Commenting on Jones’ appointment, Johnson added: “Peter has an impressive background in the world of waste allowing him to gain outstanding understanding and technical expertise. I am confident that we have assembled a crack team to tackle this pressing issue.”