Concerned residents in Trewern and Buttington say plans for a 150,000 tonnes incinerator would create a "huge blot on the rural landscape" - and have formed an opposition group to help defeat the proposals.

Developers Broad Energy are preparing a planning application for the Energy Recovery Facility on land at Buttington Quarry, near Welshpool, which would be fuelled by non-recyclable waste, generating heat and electricity on the site.

But organisers of the Buttington Incinerator Impact Group (BiIG) say they have health and environmental concerns over the scheme, which was put forward by Broad Energy last year in a series of consultation events.

"We are concerned that our local primary school in Trewern would be directly affected by emissions. Local weather conditions frequently trap cold air and fog in the valley as a result of 'temperature inversion' and this would cause emissions to be driven down into the valley of the A458, " said a spokesperson for BiIG.

“The proposed incinerator and its emissions stack of around 85 metres height would be seen not only from Trewern, Pool Quay and the Rhallt but would also be clearly visible from Powis Castle and the northern end of Welshpool itself. In addition, we anticipate the need for pylons to export power generated to the national grid plus a red light on the chimney visible for miles around to alert aircraft at night.

“This is not about providing cheap electricity to local residents – that is most unlikely in practice. More to the point, the proposed incinerator is about creating a huge blot on our rural landscape.

“There is also the question of disposal of the residual ash and other toxic residues involving additional lorry traffic.

“Whilst we appreciate that we need to diversify sources of energy, burning other people’s rubbish in our rural villages cannot be seen as a sensible option.

"We believe very simply that this is the wrong thing in the wrong place."

The firm says electricity would be exported to the national grid to help provide greater security over supplies, whilst heat can be supplied to local businesses or new developments.

Broad Energy have been contacted for a response.