Protestors fighting stuttering plans for a major waste plant on the Barnet and Enfield border are calling for a rethink from the project’s directors.

Senior managers of the North London Waste Authority will meet on Monday in the wake of what opponents say are serious setbacks to its plans for three major new waste sites in the capital.

The authority was waiting for planning permission to be granted for the North London Waste Plan, compiled by seven London boroughs including Barnet, Enfield and Haringey, before it went ahead with its proposals.

The local authorities spent five years compiling the 15-year joint waste strategy, which includes planning permission for a huge waste treatment plant in Pinkham Way, New Southgate.

However, in June, a public inquiry into the feasibility of the plan was halted after just 90 minutes when it emerged the authority had failed in its duty to co-operate with other affected councils in the south east of England.

An attempt to redesignate the Pinkham Way site to industrial land in order to bring it into line with the London Plan criteria for the siting of waste plants also failed.

Opponents to the NLWA’s plans for the three new waste sites argue these decision have severely dented its feasibility, but the authority says it will press on with its plans.

Next week’s meeting represents the first opportunity for interested parties to gauge the reaction of the NLWA to what many see as fatal setbacks to their current plans.

Bidesh Sarkar, chairman of the Pinkham Way Alliance, fighting the proposals, believes the meeting will provide an opportunity to redesign the strategy.

He said: “What we’re really after is recognition that the process they anticipated has really ground to a halt. It is a real moment for reflection.

“We want them to engage in some real consultation with the community and waste providers to come up with a new, sensible, sustainable strategy for north London and beyond.

“They may have an approach in their minds and a mentality that is adversarial but they should put that to one side and work with us and others.”

It is not yet known how much, if any, of the meeting will be made public but Mr Sarkar expects the directors to hold any major discussions behind closed doors.

He said: “It is unlikely we will be allowed in for any issues of substance. A lot of people within the community have spent a lot of time getting to grips with the processes and the issues so whatever decision or approach they take, they will be scrutinised very closely.

“The track they are on is the wrong one and it is very dangerous. We want them to step back and rethink it.”