WORK has started on Viridor’s controversial £177 million energy-from-waste facility on the outskirts of Dunbar.

Detailed planning permission for the site at Oxwellmains was agreed last November, with at least 350 jobs expected to be created during the construction process.

Previously, East Lothian Council had opposed the plan for the incinerator but it was approved by the Scottish Government in 2010.

There was further controversy in 2012, when it was given permission to accept waste from across Scotland, not just nearby local authorities.

Work is expected to be complete by the end of 2017, with 55 full-time jobs to be created and boosting the East Lothian economy by £10 million each year.

Colin Paterson, Viridor’s Scottish regional managing director, said: “Scotland is realising the value of waste as a resource, rather than something we simply throw away.

“Viridor is at the forefront of helping Scotland achieve its ambitions to be a zero waste nation.” A contract to build the facility was announced in January, with a joint venture comprising Interserve and Babcock & Wilcox Vølund A/S awarded an EPC (Engineer Procure Construct) contract by Viridor for the energy recovery facility.

Already, the contractors’ village has been established on the site and the first phase of work will see a three-month programme of piling to lay the foundations for the development.

The facility will be capable of diverting up to 300,000 tonnes of waste a year from landfill.

That can then be turned into a source of energy, capable of generating up to 30MW of electricity and 10MW of heat locally.

Ward councillor Michael Veitch admitted it was a scheme he was not supportive of in the past due to concerns about the growing industrialisation of the area at “an alarming rate”.

But he described the jobs boost as “hugely welcome” and had confidence that it would benefit the local community.

A start on the site was also welcomed by Richard Lochhead, the Scottish Government’s rural affairs, food and environment minister.

He said: “This is a significant investment, which will reduce the amount of waste going to landfill while generating energy to the grid.

“This sits alongside our internationally ambitious targets as part of a suite of measures to make Scotland a greener, cleaner place to live.”