CONTROVERSIAL plans for a recycling plant near Winchester are set to be given the green light.

An inert waste recycling facility could be built on farmland by the Three Maids Hill roundabout, between the A34 and A272 near Winchester.

The proposals were put forward by Portsmouth-based TMR South Coast Ltd and sparked more than 200 objections.

According to the plan, the facility would see inert waste generated from construction, demolition and excavation works by the applicants' customers recovered and recycled for re-use in construction and engineering works.

The applicant said the plans would deliver “sustainable development with benefits across the environmental, economic and social dimensions”.

But residents and local parish councils raised concerns over the scheme and its impact on the area, the environment and traffic.

Concerns have also been raised as another application for a similar facility has been lodged for a site in Down Farm Lane, near Headbourne Worthy.

Kings Worthy Parish Council, South Wonston Parish Council, Littleton and Harestock Parish Council and Winchester City Council are among the local authorities to have objected to the plans.

Among the concerns raised there are fears that the facility would set a precedent and lead to an industrialisation of the area.

If approved, the plant would deal with 75,000 tonnes of waste a year and run from 7am to 6pm Monday to Friday and from 7am to 1pm on Saturdays - on occasions it would also operate during the night.

It is anticipated that the operation would generate approximately 50 – 76 HGV movements per day, according to official documents.

The applicant said the site is “well-suited to serve the markets for inert waste and recycled products”.

In an official report it added: “The layout of the proposed facility has been carefully considered and was based on collaborative approach with technical specialists. This combined approach has ensured that the site would operate safely and efficiently and without harming local amenity or the environment and adheres to the principles of good design.”

Hampshire County Council councillors were expected to made a final decision on the scheme last month but it was pushed back.

The council's Regulatory Committee will discuss the proposals tomorrow (Jan 20) and the officers’s recommendation is for the plans to be approved.

Planning bosses said the plans will not cause “an unacceptable adverse visual or landscape impact” and will not cause “adverse public health and safety impacts".