A WASTE incinerator could be back on the agenda for Worcestershire after the county council leader pledged his support for the controversial idea.

Conservative councillor George Lord told a meeting of the full council that while there are currently no definite plans to install a waste incinerator in the region, he personally believed it to be the best long-term solution for the county's waste disposal problems.

His surprise announcement was condemned by opposition councillors who warned "all hell would break loose" if the council attempted to install an incinerator against the wishes of nearby residents, as happened in Kidderminster six years ago.

Speaking about the council's waste disposal difficulties, Coun Lord told the meeting: "I personally am in favour of incineration. I think there's a place for it and I would be happy to see an incinerator somewhere in Herefordshire and Worcestershire that would get rid of a lot of the waste that we have to take to landfill. That's my position."

The county's plan to build a giant £40m waste incinerator in Kidderminster back in 2002 caused massive outcry, leading to the formation of local protest groups and a lengthy public campaign to prevent it being built.

The scheme was eventually thrown out by the council's planning committee following unproven fears over public health.

Labour Councillor Nigel Knowles, who represents Wyre Forest, told the meeting he was "very surprised" by Coun Lord's statement of support for an incinerator.

"If you're not careful you will have a councillor volunteering to have a waste incinerator in their area," he warned the leader. "You had better encourage your members to think very carefully about where such an incinerator would be situated. Some of us here have long memories of the bitter experience of an incinerator being plonked in a place completely hostile to it.

"All hell will break loose when a hostile application is put in for an incinerator in the county. If you're going to tinker with this, you'd better be sure you can guarantee your political future."

But Coun Lord responded: "There are no plans (currently in place) - let's get that clear. But the waste contract signed by your administration several years ago included in it an incinerator for Worcestershire. I'm not going to be lectured about suitable sites here.

"We will be ultra-cautious, and we will be looking at all the various options. We will have to consult and consider continuously."