Council to ask DEFRA for permission to seek legal action in landfill odour dispute

Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council is set to ask permission from the Secretary of State for the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to take legal action against a landfill operator over odours emanating from the site.

After receiving advice from a KC, the council said it has to ask for DEFRA's permission to take legal action because it oversees the Environment Agency, which is responsible for regulating the site.

Simon McEneny, Interim Chief Executive of Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, said the permission requirement is set out in the terms of an abatement notice.

"Therefore we will be writing to the Hon Steve Barclay MP in the next few days to request he grants that permission as quickly as possible so that we can continue preparing the case against the site operators for creating or allowing statutory odour nuisance," McEnemy said.

The council has previously described the odours caused by hydrogen sulphide emissions as a "significant public health emergency."

Under the abatement notice, Walleys Quarry Limited (WQL) must control the smell nuisance caused by landfill operations.

However, earlier this month, the council reported that officers monitoring the odour concluded that the site operator had failed to properly control emissions from the landfill.

Simon Tagg, Leader of Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, said: "There has been a formal process of evidence gathering for council officers to follow and that has taken time, with seeking detailed KC's advice and building a case that officers believe presents clear evidence that the operator has failed to properly control emissions."

He added: "Because Walleys Quarry is regulated by the Environment Agency, the next step is to request the necessary permission from the Secretary of State, because it is wrong that residents continue to suffer the gas odours in their own homes, wrong that they feel unable to let their children play in their gardens and I want them to know that the council is doing all it can within its limited powers to hold them to account."

A spokesperson for Walleys Quarry has urged the council to reconsider any proposed legal action.

The spokesperson said: "We instead ask them to discuss their concerns with us as part of our ongoing collaborative efforts to see the best outcomes for the community. We refute these allegations and should the council proceed, we will of course consider our response under the advice of our legal team.

"WQL has made demonstrable, substantial and sustained progress in our capping programme as well as with efforts to minimise emissions from the site as we continue to use Best Practicable Means with the eventual objective of ceasing landfill operations and completing restoration onsite."

Adam Carey