The outgoing Infrastructure Minister, Deputy Eddie Noel, signed a ministerial decision applying for additional funding for the £70-million project.
The request for the extra money came after UK independent planning inspector Roy Foster visited the Island to assess the proposals for the new treatment works. Mr Foster’s visit followed the Infrastructure Department’s appeal against a previous decision not to allow planning permission for the project after Bellozanne residents raised concerns about the scheme.
In his report, Mr Foster said that the initial plans would have breached a number of sections of the Island Plan – which governs building in Jersey – and also stated that the sewage plant should not have a significant adverse effect on air quality.
Environment Minister Steve Luce ruled in February that the development could go ahead on the condition that details of the anti-odour covers are submitted to his department and approved for use.
The cost of the covers is estimated to be about £4.5 million.
In one of his last acts as minister before retiring from politics, Deputy Noel signed the ministerial decision requesting that £3 million be transferred from central contingencies to the liquid waste capital head of expenditure.
Work on the new plant is expected to be concluded in 2022 and the Infrastructure Department has previously said that adding the anti-odour covers should only add about a month to the project’s construction time.
The plant at Bellozanne was built in 1959 and has been described by the States as ‘struggling to meet modern standards’.
