HILLS say they are confident they will win on appeal after Wiltshire Council refused to allow their Lower Compton recycling facility to be made permanent.

Councillors yesterday voted eight to one, with two abstentions, against Hills Waste Solutions’ plans, both to keep and to expand their materials recycling business near Calne.

Wiltshire will have to put its kerbside recycling somewhere else from January 1, 2017, though the Lower Compton site will continue to accept household waste for landfill.

Kate Morley, vice chairman of Calne without parish council, said: “We are delighted they’ve taken this sensible decision. It has been four years in the making.”

Lower Compton resident Richard Lamb, of Edinburgh Road, said: “They are not good neighbours. The Lower Compton site causes nuisance and noise, is disruptive and exudes repulsive odours. They conduct their business in an arrogant, verging on bullying, manner without regard to the local inhabitants. Their vehicles spread litter, cause pollution, vibration and dust. The vehicles use excessive speed and are often driven in an aggressive and perfunctory manner.”

Despite 136 letters of objection - and none in support - and the opposition of Calne Town Council and Cherhill, Compton Bassett and Calne Without parish councils, the application was recommended by Wiltshire Council officers for approval.

Case officer Lucy Harding told members recycling may have to be landfilled if an alternative site were not available.

Wiltshire Councillor for Marlborough East Stewart Dobson, the only member to vote in support of Hills, said: “We must have this facility somewhere and wherever it is you’re going to have local residents complaining. I think we have to accept that recycling is here to stay and is essential for the good of the planet.”

Wiltshire Councillor for Calne North Glenis Ansell responded: “We don’t see why we should continue to suffer when there are other sites available."

She added: “A waste transfer site can be located anywhere. No consideration has been given to moving this operation to J17.”

She refuted there would be an “imperceptible increase” in air pollution from an additional 66 HGV movements a day.

She said one small HGV travelling at 1mph equated to 50-80 cars, and that more people died because of air pollution than in road accidents.

The plans would have increased the recyclable tonnage per year to 44,000, which in the original plans in 1996 was 10,000 tonnes.

Alan Hill, Wiltshire Councillor for Calne South and Cherhill, said: “This is not required to enable us to deal with Wiltshire’s waste.

"The people of Wiltshire aren’t producing more waste; in fact the total amount has been slightly reducing over the years, despite more houses being built. This application is designed to enlarge a strategic waste business for the benefit of Hills.”

After the result he added: "I’m really pleased, I think it is justified. To meet the needs of Wiltshire after 2016, all you will need is one ordinary agricultural sized shed like you find on any farm.”

But Hills CEO Mike Hill told the committee: “The waste materials dealt with in this application all come from Wiltshire.”

He told how the Wiltshire family owned company was started 115 years ago by his great grandfather and said they employ 29 people and expansion would create another 16 jobs locally.

He said: “There should be a presumption in favour of a development that is sustainable. Recycling and diverting waste away from landfill and to energy recovery is sustainable."

A spokeswoman for Hills Group said: “Hills is extremely disappointed by the outcome of today’s meeting and is of the opinion that councillors have behaved unreasonably in voting against officer recommendation to approve the Lower Compton planning application.

“The issues which have been brought to the fore in coming to this decision do not reflect the planning position or the technical reports which have been scrutinised by Wiltshire Council and by external consultants working on the Council’s behalf. The reports and conclusions in them were found to be robust and no significant impacts were identified. Hills consider the proposals to be wholly in line with Wiltshire Council’s policies.

"Hills is confident that this decision will be overturned on appeal to the Planning Inspectorate and will be looking to recover full costs of the appeal from the Council."