Letter: Not the answer

There are plans for 16 municipal waste incinerators across Scotland, which will burn upwards of two million tonnes of rubbish each year.

Nearly all of this could be recycled if there was the political will. However, we have a lazy and complacent government that is spending sweetie money on recycling - for example, just 5 million on plastics recycling. By contrast, a single incinerator costs up to 250 million.

There are also plans for five colossal biomass burners, to be fuelled mainly with imported virgin timber. Biomass produces one and a half times its weight in CO2 during combustion. It will take at least 50 years for new trees to absorb this. Burning wood on such a scale will push up prices of raw materials for Scottish paper and board makers, threatening jobs.

For these reasons, and many more, I ask your readers to sign a petition to the Scottish Parliament, calling for a ban on waste incineration and large-scale biomass burning.

MICHAEL GALLAGHER

Green Alternatives to Incineration in Scotland

Coupar Angus, Perthshire