The Padeswood kiln which was forced to close down because it was releasing too many dangerous dioxin chemicals into the atmosphere may be operating again by the end of the week.
Castle Cement, at Padeswood, near Buckley, was served an enforcement notice last week by the Environment Agency. The notice forced the company to close the kiln until it could prove it could operate within the set limits for dioxin emissions.
Works general manager Danny Coulston, who said the company voluntarily closed the kiln, yesterday revealed the company re-tested kiln three. He said: "Results are likely to be by the end of this week or early next week. Operations on kiln three have been suspended until results are verified."
But Mr Coulston again attacked the planning delays which the company had faced in trying to get the new kiln at Padeswood operational. He said: "Castle Cement has been unable to replace the older and less efficient kiln three as quickly as it would have wished because of severe delays caused by the planning inquiry for kiln four.
"This new kiln will cut back drastically on emissions while making a substantial contribution to meeting Wales" strategies for environment and waste. "Castle Cement is disappointed and frustrated, as its intent has always been to close kiln three once the state-of-theart kiln four had been commissioned.
"We wanted to upgrade our kiln years ago, but because of delays in planning permission, kiln four is not scheduled for completion for another few months. We are working diligently to achieve a sustainable solution, one which will satisfy all parties."
