More delays affecting a decision on the future of the Compton Bassett landfill site has brought an apology from a Wiltshire councillor.

Coun Andrew Davis, who chairs Wiltshire’s strategic planning committee, said the application by Hills Waste Solutions could not be discussed by a planning committee yesterday because officers need more information to make a recommendation.

The application was first to be discussed on September 25 but was temporarily withdrawn. A council spokesman at the time said they needed to check the measures Hills had put forward to ensure the level of air quality in Calne would not drop below the permitted standard.

Coun Davis said: “I was advised the information needed wasn’t forthcoming. I’m sorry the application hasn’t come forward in the time-scale the residents would like, but if the information for the report is not available it would be wrong to guess what the answer should be.”

Hills Waste has applied to extend and permanently retain the materials recovery facility at Compton Bassett, where household waste is sorted and recyclable materials are collected.

It also hopes to build a new waste transfer station, from which lorries will take sorted materials elsewhere.

Planning permission for the recovery site expires in 2016 and Wiltshire Council has received 214 letters of objection against the plans.

Campaigner Anne Henshaw said: “We have all had an email saying it will not be heard before November at the earliest. What are those discussions that are so important they can contribute to not bringing this to the committee? What are these negotiations which the public are not aware of?”

Mike Webster, group director for Hills Waste Solutions, said: "Following the withdrawal of the application from the last Strategic Planning meeting by Wiltshire Council, we have consulted with the planning officers to address the issues cited as grounds for refusal as we felt that they were clearly surmountable.

“We are satisfied that our planning application is sound and have proposed conditions to address the concerns raised by the planning officer.

"We are willing to give planning officers the additional time requested to ensure that our application is given due and fair consideration.
 

“The company remains 100 per cent committed to this project and to delivering a plan to substantially reduce the amount of waste Wiltshire residents and businesses send to landfill – a strategy which is supported by Wiltshire Council itself.”
 

A Wiltshire Council spokesperson said: “The application is a complex application that raises several key planning matters. As well as the clarification on air quality, we are dealing with a legal representation by one of the objecting parties.”