Regarding Waste recycling is a burning issue' (Times Group, January 24).

Firstly, I make no apologies for referring to LondonWaste's plant as an energy-from-waste plant rather than an incinerator. Rubbish is burned and the heat generated is used to produce electricity.

Our plant produces enough electricity to supply 24,000 houses, enough to meet the electricity needs of the whole borough of Barnet. On the other hand, incineration implies burning for burning's sake, which is clearly not the case.

An energy-from-waste plant is not a substitute for recycling, but is a substitute for landfill. As a society, we must reduce the amount of rubbish we produce in the first place and then recycle as much as possible. But what happens to the remaining waste?

By using waste as a fuel, less electricity needs to be produced at a conventional power station, thus reducing its emissions and saving fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil.

As for risk to human health, both the Government and the Environment Agency are adamant that modern incinerators pose no appreciable risk to human health.

Barnet Council deserves praise for its recycling initiatives. We just need to remember that, regrettably, recycling cannot solve all our problems.

David Sargent

Managing Director, LondonWaste