Issue - meetings

That the contents of the update report be noted.

The Leader introduced a report updating Cabinet on the latest position with the odours associated with Walleys Quarry, stating that this was a landmark meeting as last week, the Environment Agency (EA)  issued Walleys Quarry Ltd with a Closure Notice.

The Leader paid tribute to the community for their hard work over the last few years in fighting this.  It was early days; there was an appeals process which, it was believed, the operator would be undertaking.  Council officers were thanked for their diligence and commitment in this issue and it would still be ongoing until the very end.  Both former and current Council Members and MP’s were also thanked for their standing together to fight the problem.

At the last meeting a rise in complaints had been reported and the monitoring equipment was showing spikes.  November had been one of the worst months with 842 complaints at the time of publication of the report.  The Leader stated that it was still important for residents to continue reporting odours to the Council and EA.

The Council’s Chief Executive advised Cabinet that the actions of the Council would now take account of the EA’s issuing of a Closure Notice which prohibited Walleys Quarry from receiving waste and requiring works on the site over the next few months to bring about the closure of the landfill site.

The Closure Notice, attached to the report at appendix 3, set out the processes.  The Council was aware that Walleys Quarry had issued a release stating that they would challenge the Notice.

The Council would continue to take the necessary actions to seek to address matters within its powers.

The Leader stressed that the Council could not provide ongoing commentary on legal actions but would update when it was appropriate to do so.    

Cabinet Members agreed that this was a pleasing outcome.  Councillor Fear stated that this was not the end but hopefully the beginning of the end of the process and the pressure needed to be kept up.  Councillor Sweeney thanked the Leader for the work that he had done and for keeping the issue at the top of the agenda.  Councillor Hutchison echoed previous comments and stated that September had brought 105 complaints to the Council, October brought in 269 complaints and November was currently 1057 complaints.  Councillor Heesom stated that it was important going forward to manage the closure and any other required actions.  Councillor Skelding hoped that, as residents had at times been losing heart, this news would be very welcome.

The Leader stated that the Council needed to ensure that the Closure Notice was permanent and that the site was capped and restored properly and would fight any appeal put forward.

Resolved:    That the contents of the update report be noted.

Watch the debate here