Second site revealed for incinerator
County Hall has bought two neighbouring plots at the Interlink Business Park at Bardon, in North West Leicestershire.
The land would be offered to private companies, who would bid to divert up to half the county's waste away from landfill by 2015.
Council bosses have already identified a potential site at Whetstone tip for an incinerator.
Businesses who bid for the waste disposal contract could also choose to develop the council's existing Whetstone tip or even come up with their own location.
County Hall believes the best option to reduce the amount of household rubbish it buries would be to burn it, but said no final decision on the sort of technology that would be used has been made.
Campaigners fear incineration will release pollutants into the air.
The council's waste experts have said the only other viable option would be to have a ball mill, which sorts household waste, similar to the one in Beaumont Leys, Leicester.
The council will hear next week whether the Government will give half of the £130 million costs.
If successful, waste companies will be invited to make a bid for the contract, with the winner, which will pay the other £65 million, announced in May 2010.
Councillor Nicholas Rushton, cabinet spokesman for waste, said: "We cannot afford to do nothing – if we continue to put thousands of tonnes of waste into landfill sites, we will run out of space.
"We want to find the best process to treat waste and reduce the amount that is landfilled but have made no decision on technology."
At the moment, 230,000 tonnes of Leicestershire's household waste is dumped at landfill sites each year.
Each tonne of waste incurs landfill tax from the Government and this bill could increase by £1.4 million per year if landfilling continues at the current rate. Any new facility would need to cope with up to 180,000 tonnes of waste per year.
For three months, council bosses refused to discuss the site's location, and told councillors they would be disciplined if they spoke out. They said the information was commercially sensitive.
Now the paperwork has been completed, the council said it was able to release details to the public.
Councillor for the Bardon area, Paul Hyde, said he had been "gagged" and unable to defend himself because of the situation.
He said: "The past three months have been exceedingly frustrating for me. I do not like being gagged.
"Back in June, at the secret cabinet meeting, I objected strongly against even the suggestion of Bardon.
"I shall be leading a major campaign against any possibility of an incineration site here."
The Liberal Democrat Leader at County Hall, Councillor Simon Galton, said he feared the council is making the wrong decision in pursuing incineration.
Leicester Friends of the Earth spokesperson Malcolm Hunter said an incinerator could stifle recycling rates and pump gases into the air.
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