Brampton Parish Council

Buckden Landfill site - update report by the Environment Agency

A report by the Environment Agency into the Odours arising from the Landfill Site and other local areas.

1. The actions we, the Environment Agency, are taking. As the primary regulator for the landfill we are, and have been, undertaking the following:
   •  Recording all reports of malodour passed to us using our incident hotline. These reports are notified to the operator to investigate and supply details of their findings to us for assessment. This is in addition to conducting our own assessments and investigations as per below.
   •  Regular assessments of odour within Brampton village to confirm the extent, severity, and source of the odours.
   •  Regular inspections of the landfill to assess the sources and underlying causes ofthe odour and to monitor actions being taken by the operator to address the issue.
   •  Regular liaison with the site operator to require, and drive, improvements on site to aid in the reduction of off-site malodour.
   •  Liaising with Environmental Health to share information on complaints and the odours detected during our assessments.
   •  Liaising with Public Health England to get their advice over concerns related to potential health risk from the malodours (see below for further information).
   •  Conducting a criminal investigation into the underlying cause of the odour with a view to taking appropriate enforcement action. The outcome of this will be dependent on our findings.
   •  Regular communications with local residents, Parish Council representatives, localMP, and other interested parties to keep them appraised of the situation.
2. We are aware that people are concerned about potential health impacts from these malodours so we sought advice from Public Health England and they have provided the following information:
   "The human nose is very sensitive to odours, and many substances that are perceived as odorous are usually present at levels below which there is a direct toxicological effect. Odours can cause nuisance amongst the population possibly leading to stress and anxiety. Some people may experience symptoms such as nausea, headaches or dizziness, as a reaction to odours even when the substances that cause those smells are themselves not harmful to health."What should I do if I smell an odour I think is coming from the sewers or the sewage treatment plant?
   Please call Environmental Health on 01480 775799 or 01480 388302 to report the odour. Alternatively you can e-mail them at envhealth@huntingdonshire.gov.ukPlease call our Freephone 24 hour incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60, we log and investigate all these calls even though we may not be able to send an officer out to the site every time.
3. The full report is attached as a pdf file.
4. What should I do if I smell an odour I think is coming from the landfill?
5. Whenever people are concerned about their personal health, they should visit their General Practitioner (GP) or contact NHS Direct on 111 or https://www.nhs.uk/

Posted: Fri, 26 Feb 2021 16:56 by Jon Chitty