Campaigners fighting to scupper plans for an incinerator at Newhaven have been dealt a severe blow.

They had hoped land earmarked for the controversial waste burner at the town's port would be sold off to a French consortium which had voiced its opposition to the proposal.

But the £15 million deal did not include the crucial North Quay site, which remains in the hands of Sea Containers.

Alarm bells are now ringing all over Newhaven and the anti-incinerator lobby is demanding that Sea Containers signs an accord stating categorically that no burner will be built on the Quay in the future.

But the fact remains that incinerators will soon be a vital tool in rubbish disposal and an industrial harbour would be an ideal location, subject to stringent health and environment safeguards.

With landfill sites rapidly running out of space, there are precious few alternatives.

We all create waste and it has to go somewhere.