CONTROVERSIAL plans for an anaerobic digester in North Yorkshire have been thrown out by a planning committee.

Richmondshire District Council’s planning committee discussed the plans for the anaerobic digester (AD) at Arbour Hill, near Patrick Brompton, between Bedale and Leyburn, and there was a unanimous decision from members to refuse permission.

The application, from Arbour Hill Biogas Ltd, included two AD tanks, silage and manure clamps, an eight metre high flare stack, and digester storage lagoon.

The AD and associated plant would have processed organic waste by using micro organisms to break down organic matter into gases including carbon dioxide and methane.

The methane component of the gas stream can be burned to drive engines to generate power in the form of electricity and produce heat, or can be processed to be used as a natural gas or biogas for fuel. The resulting digestate is also useful as a natural fertiliser and soil conditioner.

Developers behind the £5 million renewable-energy plant on a greenfield site countered claims it would be a blot on the landscape.

The joint Websters Farms and JFS & Associates scheme would have seen the creation of an anaerobic digestion facility generating less than one megawatt of energy from manure to sell to the National Grid.

But a planning committee refused the application on the grounds that it would be out of scale in the unspoilt rural landscape, had no benefits to the local community, and would potentially damage nearby tourism businesses.