A CROWDFUNDING campaign has been started by Abermule villagers as they look to take the legal route in their fight against plans for a bulk recycling facility.

Powys County Council’s (PCC) cabinet voted unanimously in favour of the £4 million project at a meeting on Tuesday, May 21.

This is despite being advised by the full council following a close vote on May 3 to reject building it on the outskirts of the village.

Abermule Communities Together ACT have set up the site and are looking to raise £5,000 to start their legal challenge.

And, in just a few days since the campaign went live,  they are already over a quarter of the way to their target, having received £1,260 (at the time of writing) in donations.

ACT vice-chairman, Stephen Meadowcroft, said: “We need professional legal advice and an initial £5,000 or possibly a bit more to continue the fight.

“The cabinet decision shows that they care nothing for our village and intend to build their cathedral to waste no matter what we put in front of them.”

Mr Meadowcroft said that ACT believed they had legal grounds to make a case against the recycling facility.

“We have set an initial low targets of £5,000 to cover work and advice from experts and start this new phase.”

The furore started in August 2018, when the plans for Abermule were passed by just one vote by the planning committee.

This started the campaign against the facility as many in the village had no idea what was being proposed for the business park.

PCC has stressed all along that the facility is to help the authority deal with hitting the Welsh Government recycling targets of 70 per cent by 2024/25.

PCC says that the proposed site  is “ideally located between the two main population centres of North Powys, which are Welshpool and Newtown.”

The council also says that consultation that took place with villagers was more than the legal requirement.

Information about QACT's Crowdfunding account can be found at:

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/act-legal-fighting-fund?fbclid=IwAR2y6htSiFF6RLDf7tr7O-9Ecja9jV84kmDL09_MO3NuzyYURf_UmQTIit4