PLANS for a toxic waste incinerator, which were recently resurrected after ten years, have again been ditched.

Protest groups have welcomed news that Cory Environmental has withdrawn its plans for the £35m incinerator at Seal Sands, near Billingham, Teesside.

Cory's massive plant was granted planning permission in 1992, but the company later announced it had shelved the plans.

Then, last December, it left opponents dismayed when it applied to Stockton Borough Council to renew its permission.

Environmental campaigners are celebrating once again, however, with the news that Cory has withdrawn its application due to a lack of interest from potential customers.

Burning 30,000 tonnes of waste each year of its 25-year life, it would have been one of only four incinerators in the UK able to deal with toxic waste - and the first in the region.

John Brunton, of Teesside environmental group Impact, said the whole of Middlesbrough and Stockton could now breathe a sigh of relief.

He said: "This is excellent news and it comes as a great relief. Burning toxic waste a mile or two from the heart of Middlesbrough would have been very irresponsible."

The former Cleveland County Council rejected the original application in 1990 on the grounds that it was a danger to public health, but this was overturned by a public inquiry two years later, despite 60,000 residents signing a petition against it.

It renewed its permission in 1997 - in line with planning rules that mean an applicant loses its permission if it does not reapply after five years - but said plans would not go ahead while the Government discouraged burning waste.

Cory spokesman Achilleas Georgiou said: "We needed a long-term commitment from waste producers to underpin the long-term viability.

"In other words, we haven't got enough long-term customers."