Opposition councillors have questioned whether North Yorkshire’s waste incinerator is genuinely improving or simply performing “less badly” than before.
Figures show that the amount of waste diverted from landfill at Allerton Waste Recovery Park, near Knaresborough, fell from 94.86 per cent in 2023/24 to 83.15 per cent in 2025/26.
Over the same period, the amount of waste sent directly to landfill when the facility was unavailable more than trebled, rising from 14,190 tonnes to 46,576 tonnes.
The figures are contained in a report to North Yorkshire Council’s transport, economy, environment and enterprise overview and scrutiny committee, which meets on October 21.
Council officers say significant investment in repairs has resulted in substantial improvements in the plant’s performance.
However, Green councillor David Noland is challenging whether the improvements represent genuine progress or simply a recovery from particularly poor performance.
He said: “Whilst the report is framed as though things are improving, it’s actually unclear what’s improved.
“Is Allerton actually performing well, or just less badly than before?
“Residents deserve to know what’s actually happening to their waste and whether they’re getting value for money.”
The report reveals that the facility has also failed to meet its contractual recycling target of five per cent in every year since it began operating in March 2018.
In 2025/26, just 1.76 per cent of contract waste was recycled, compared with 1.78 per cent two years earlier.
Council officers say recycling performance has been affected by difficulties finding markets for materials recovered from mixed household waste.
The report also details continuing operational problems at the energy-from-waste plant.
Its availability fell from 86.87 per cent in 2023/24 to 74.17 per cent in 2025/26, following a series of technical problems and extended maintenance shutdowns.
There were also 37 reported breaches of environmental permit requirements in 2025/26, down from 48 the previous year but higher than the 26 recorded in 2023/24.
However, the council says major repairs, including the replacement of superheaters on both incinerator lines, have resulted in significant improvements.
Between April and August this year, plant availability reached 92 per cent, while landfill diversion rose to 92.4 per cent.
Officers say the facility has exceeded its contractual landfill diversion target of 70 per cent every year since opening.
The report also states that Allerton Park has processed more than two million tonnes of household waste and exported more than 1.3 million megawatt hours of electricity to the national grid since operations began.
But Cllr Noland is seeking further information about the actual quantity of electricity being generated, rather than simply the proportion of time the plant is operational.
He is also demanding answers about who pays additional landfill tax and disposal costs when the incinerator is unavailable, and whether those costs fall on taxpayers.
Further questions concern the accuracy of educational materials provided to visiting schoolchildren and apparent inconsistencies between the Allerton Park report and the council’s quarterly performance figures.
Fellow Green councillor Arnold Warneken supported the calls for greater scrutiny.
He said: “It’s great that we have Cllr Noland asking intelligent questions about the environmental performance of Allerton Park, and whether this is genuinely good or just better than before.
“Before we celebrate improvements and taxpayer value, we need to establish what has actually improved, how performance compares with what was promised, and whether the public is getting the full picture.”
The council report concludes that investment by the contractor has delivered substantial improvements in plant availability, landfill diversion and environmental compliance.
It says early performance figures for 2026/27 suggest the improvements are being sustained.
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