A FULL assessment on the impact a new waste plant for north London will have on traffic - a major concern for people living nearby - is to be carried out.

The North London Waste Authority (NLWA), serving boroughs including Barnet, Enfield and Haringey, plans to open a new centre at a derelict site in Pinkham Way, Friern Barnet, formerly used for sewage treatment.

Residents are concerned the new plant, which could open as early as 2016, will cause traffic congestion as well as odour emissions and noise as it disposes of one million tonnes of waste each year.

The NLWA will submit a joint planning application with Barnet Council to Haringey Council later this year and bosses have maintained the plans will not include an incinerator.

The proposed development is being mooted as a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way of getting rid of waste.

David Beadle, managing director at the NLWA, said: “An important point to stress is that the proposed plans for Pinkham Way do not include incineration. That was one of the main concerns that residents had when they came to the exhibitions, so we want to reassure local people that we are not planning to build an incinerator at Pinkham Way.

“We are looking at much more sustainable and environmentally-friendly forms of waste disposal. That includes increasing recycling rates from around 30 per cent to 50 per cent by 2020.”

The authority has made assurances that a full transport impact assessment will be completed and submitted as part of the planning application alongside an environmental impact assessment that meets Environment Agency approval.

All residents’ concerns and feedback from the exhibitions will be considered prior to finalising the planning application, which is due to be submitted to Haringey Council, which owns the site, in late spring 2011.