YIEWSLEY and West Drayton residents have won their year-long fight against a recycling plant.

The old coal depot off Tavistock Road, West Drayton, had been earmarked as a potential spot for a nine-acre waste facility, part of the West London Waste Plan (WLWP).

The land next to the Great Western line was one of five possible areas in the borough.

Garden City Estate Residents’ Association (GCERA) started a campaign against the site’s inclusion on the list in October.

A petition with more than 2,400 signatures backed up a GCERA report stating why the old coal depot should be removed from the WLWP and hundreds of objection letters have flooded in to Hillingdon Council.

But at a cabinet meeting on Thursday last week, the yard – along with Silverdale Road in Hayes – was taken off the WLWP.

Council leader Ray Puddifoot told the meeting: “One of the reasons I entered local politics was to stop inappropriate and unecessary developments of this nature.

“I am delighted to see that the people of Yiewsley still have the same passion for the locality they live in.”

Janet Sweeting, of the GCERA, had led the campaign alongside her husband, Les.

She said: “This is a huge victory for residents and businesses in the area and a lot of people have worked extremely hard and invested time and money in fighting this.

“We are really pleased with the decision and we were surprised to hear one of the councillors calling the proposals ‘bonkers’ and come to our way of thinking.

“We are grateful for the support from all the ward councillors, as well as John McDonnell MP and John Randall MP. There was a real groundswell in support. The Gazette has been great throughout as well.”

Recycling company Powerday operates a plant on the land and Mrs Sweeting is wary of its interest in moving on to the site for good.

The company held a public consultation on its plans for a £40million plant in September 2010.

“They have got their toe in the water and the issues are the same.

“We will be keeping our eye on it,” Mrs Sweeting said.

A revised WLWP will go to a second public consultation in the new year.

The plan lays the groundwork for waste management over the next 15 years in six west London boroughs – Brent, Ealing, Harrow, Hounslow, Richmond and Hillingdon – and will inform future planning applications.