Westmill Landfill

[craig]

Thanks again Biffa - windows have to be closed because your business stench has enveloped the area.

Call logged with EA - 0800 807060
Pleased to hear more people have logged tonights incident.

If no one calls to inform the EA - there is not a problem, so please call.

0800 807060

(ref:1261493)

[Scouter]

I used to call regularly but have developed a certain amount of apathy. If the EA has teeth they ain't bitten yet because this is happening all the time!

[WarePerson]

Is anything actually going to happen though. We have been reporting and reporting. We have had to shut doors and windows on the hottest days of the year. They keep posting various "one off" reasons for this smell, wonder what the latest will be??

[ReDan]

Noticeable odour as far away as High Oak Road this evening - I guess the bacteria must be loving this warm weather!

Seriously though, one would think the problem would ease as the cells get gradually filled-up and they move further away from the A10 but obviously not.

Anyone know what the life-expectancy of the landfill site is?

Winifred - I used to live on the Old Vicarage Estate and only moved because we outgrew our two-bedroom house. There were occasions when the smell was unpleasant but nothing that would stop me buying a property in the area again. I guess people's perceptions are different - at the time of the BIFFA class action, some people were claiming that they couldn't venture outside their homes and yet one neighbour spent thousands getting the architects in to re-design their garden and another who installed quite a sizeable swimming pool! Certainly didn't affect our day-to-day lives to any great extent (though a few times they tried to spray perfume in the vicinity of the site which made the estate smell like cherries - not sure what was worse!).

[REG]

And the flies!!!! I have never had a fly problem but this summer has been so bad I have been buying all sorts of fly killers. Ware just smells bad. Plus the air quality is so poor its plays havoc with asthma. Where are the EHO, s?

[mb1]

On the lifetime of the landfill, it was supposed to be full and returned to meadow by 2017. A combination of the recession and greatly increased recycling means Biffa has asked to extend its life for ten years. This is also affected by continued quarrying at the back of the site, which was supposed to have exhausted gravel etc by 2015, which will not be the case. Since this is the only landfill in Hertfordshire, it will be kept going although the cells in use will gradually move back towards Westmill.

[RCR1]

Yes, repeated ringing to report the smell is a pain and the occasional feedback from Biffa via EA usually includes a list of reasons that dont inspire confidence.
Does anything happen as a result of ringing. Well first & obvious to all, no ring=no problem. However it does prompt the EA to inspect the site (announced & unannounced) and if they have breached their permit then Biffa's annual licence can go up by between 10% and 300%. Of what amount I wonder.
The escape clause here though is that the Biffa permit states " the site must not cause pollution due to an odour, as determined by an authorised officer of the Environment Agency unless they have used all appropriate measures to prevent that odour.". So what/who defines 'appropriate'? In addition EA can prosecute of course
Apparently the EA 'doesnt regulate statutory nuisance' as thats the job of EHDC. I wonder whether they are aware of the problems in recent months? Anyone know?
The height of the land has risen which will assist wind in distributing odour & I remember they were requested to reduce the height some years ago. It may also partly explain why its only in the last 12months that we have had the smell problems & we have been here since it opened as a landfill.
Of interest, recent research into health aspects of being near a landfil site says "Health Protection Agency experts have considered studies looking at emissions from sites and research on health effects posed by modern landfill sites and concluded there is little cause for concern for those living nearby.".. the report is here http://www.hpa.org.uk/webc/hpawebfile/h ... 9969974126.
Most of the above comes from questions to EA. However the lack of feedback from EA is disappointing. eg I often ask for feedback to my calls and am told I will get a phone call. Its only happened once and on that occasion the EA guy rang back to say he didnt know anything about Westmill..he was just the duty man! Not very useful

[WarePerson]

I asked for feedback last night, and was told I'd get a call from them today?? It is getting to the point where health is being affected (asthma is noticeably worse during these spells) Unless I'm wrong, we are all breathing in methane which cannot be good for anyone let alone children and people with respiratory problems.

[WickenMan]

E-mail from the EA 29 Jul 2014 15:16hrs

Following the recent increase in odour reports from the vicinity of Westmill landfill, please find below Feedback from the site.
Regards
Victoria Bainbridge, PPC Officer, Environment Agency

Incident Feedback:
We have recently seen an increase in complaints made about odour from Westmill Landfill site, we have investigated and come to the following conclusions:
Cause: There are multiple causes that may have contributed to the gas complaints. The current tipping area is almost to height but until it’s up to finished height we are unable to plastic line the flank, it has been temporarily capped with inert material, we believe the odour to be coming from the bottom of this flank. The continued hot weather has dried out the ground which creates an easier pathway for gas.
Outcome: We have identified an area along the bottom of this flank that is a potential gas pathway, we have soaked this area to try and seal it better, then in order to remediate this we are going to continue the clay seal that was placed previously at the Westmill 1 end of this flank all the way along until it reaches the existing plastic liner, we use clay because of its density it creates a more robust seal even in hot dry weather, this work will be finished by Wednesday at the latest. We will line this flank with plastic as soon as the waste is to height, we estimate this will be September.

Should you detect an odour from the landfill at any time we would ask you where possible to report it either to ourselves Westmill landfill site on 01920 462163 ( Monday-Friday 8:30-4:30) or to the Environment Agency on 0800 80 70 60 whereupon we will endeavor to rectify the situation as soon as possible.

Biffa Westmill

If you wish to report an incident please phone our Incident Communication Service on 0800 80 70 60, or for specific requests for information you can contact our National Customer Contact Centre on 03708 506 506

[david c]

I've just noticed this article on BBC News:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-no ... e-29893132

Not sure if this would change/influence anything for the Westmill Stench