Case Studies

Waste disposal facilities
Bedfordshire County Council
Within Bedfordshire

All waste disposal authorities are facing the dilemma of how to deal with the waste that remains once maximum amounts have been extracted for recycling and/or composting. EU and Government legislation requires a shift away from landfill towards energy recovery - burning rubbish to generate electricity.


However, this option is frequently highly contentious and efforts to gain consents for such facilities have often foundered in the face of vociferous opposition from small but passionate campaign groups. Bedfordshire was in the early stages of planning a facility, with the location and technology still to be specified. Previous consultation exercises had secured feedback from less than 1% of the population.


Pendragon's communications programme targeted every household in the County with information together with a feedback mechanism and an incentive to respond. A touring exhibition also visited market towns within the County to interact with residents on a face-to-face basis. The overwhelming conclusion was that the vast majority of residents supported the County's strategy, with a significant number prepared to speak out publicly on the issue. The County was therefore able to demonstrate clearly that any future opposition would be speaking only for a minority.

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