The 21 day Resolution period, within which either House could have halted the progress of the SPO, expired on 27 May 2012. No motion for annulment was agreed during this timeframe. Accordingly, those petitions lodged against the SPO that were accepted at a hearing on 8 March 2012 will now be referred to a Joint Committee of both Houses for consideration.
The Joint Committee will consist of three Members of the House of Commons and three Members of the House of Lords. A further announcement, with details of the Committee’s membership, is expected to be made by Parliament later this month.
The petitions that were previously accepted consisted of two each from the local authorities affected by the project, Bedford Borough Council and Central Bedfordshire Council. A further petition was also made by three waste companies who petitioned jointly.
The Rookery South DCO application seeks to enable the developer, Covanta Energy, to construct an Energy from Waste Facility and a post treatment Materials Recovery Facility in a former brick clay extraction pit in Bedfordshire. The application is, however, subject to Special Parliamentary Procedure (SPP). This stage of the procedure enables parties directly and specially affected by the SPO to petition against it.