A PUBLIC consultation exercise over plans for a giant incinerator in Kidderminster has been slammed as "shambolic".

In a new attack on Worcestershire County Council and its controversial scheme for the £40million household waste burner on Stourport Road, angry protesters have claimed crucial technical documents had been witheld from public scrutiny.

And they have called for a second time in three weeks for a halt to the planning process leading up to a special county council planning meeting on March 2 to hear the application by Mercia Waste Services.

Although the council reacted quickly this week to announce the six documents would from yesterday be added to the planning application details on view at council offices and libraries, Stop Kidderminster Incinerator campaigners have expressed outrage at the delay.

SKI committee member Claire Cassidy said: "It is totally unacceptable that these vital documents should only be on view at this stage just before Christmas and several weeks into the consultation period.

"The application requires a range of technical information to support it. It is becoming typical of the shambolic handling of this process that this information hasn't been available. The validity of the whole planning process is verging on the farcical and SKI is calling for it to be suspended immediately."

SKI campaigners claimed it was only "by accident" they learned on November 30 the environmental impact study was accompanied by six technical statements.

They were described as "supplementary reports" although they were on sale for £20 each at roadshows by Severn Waste Services.

SKI spokesman Bob Harris said he was told only last week the documents on pollution, noise and a range of other issues written by various consultants were part of the planning application documentation after all.

A county council planning spokesman said: "The documents did not originally form part of the formal submission. The applicants have been advised they should now form a part of the submission and the documentation will be available in libraries from Wednesday This will be advertised."

SKI is urging everyone with a view on the scheme to write to Worcestershire County Council.