Locals suffer nose bleeds and vomiting from landfill's ‘toxic' stench

Independent

07-02-2025

A 'toxic stench' at a Lancashire landfill is being blamed on Storm Eowyn.
The storm ripped off some capping at the Jameson Road, Fleetwood site, unleashing the odour, Transwaste said.
The company said the smell should disappear once repairs were complete.
However, an MP said locals had been putting up with the awful stench for a year now, with some experiencing vomiting, nose bleeds and breathing problems due to the foul smell.
Labour MP Lorraine Beavers told the Commons on Thursday that the landfill had been emitting the stench — described by residents as a 'rotten egg smell' — since February 2024.
Transwaste said the original odour problem was caused by installing new equipment when it took over the site in 2023.
That released a 'temporary odour' as old waste was disturbed after six years, but the gas capture infrastructure and new capping solved the odour problem, the firm said.
'Unfortunately, during the record-breaking winds of Storm Eowyn, the capping was ripped off, allowing odour to escape.
'We have been working to repair and restore the capping and we expect this to be completed within the next few days when we anticipate things will return to pre-Christmas conditions with no odours.'
The Environment Agency expects the odour issues to reduce within the next seven days, environment minister Mary Creagh had told the Commons.
At environment, food and rural affairs questions, Ms Beavers said: 'The people of Fleetwood and Thornton and beyond have suffered from toxic stenches for the last 12 months.
'Last night was extremely unpleasant, with residents reporting nose bleeds, breathing problems, headaches and vomiting this morning.
'The stench is because of the mismanagement of the local Jameson Road landfill site. Despite multiple interventions by the Environment Agency, including the six-week closure, the smell is now as bad as ever, if not worse.
'What can the government do to ensure the Environment Agency have much stronger powers to deal with landfill sites that bring daily misery to residents, like those living in my constituency of Blackpool North and Fleetwood?'
Ms Creagh replied: 'My heart goes out to her constituents who are clearly suffering terrible public health consequences from the stink at the site.
'There is an ongoing investigation into the cause of odour issues that have impacted the community in Fleetwood, and it escalated in January '24.
'The Environment Agency have told me they expect odour issues to reduce within the next seven days. Should this not occur they will consider any and all appropriate regulatory intervention to reduce the impact on the community.'
The Environment Agency said Transwaste Recycling and Aggregates took over the landfill site at Jameson Road in late 2023.
Transwaste said the Environment Agency regulates it with unannounced visits, drone flyovers and odour monitoring.
The firm said a UK Health Security Agency representative deemed the levels of landfill gas at the site 'very low' and 'well below the level to cause any health effects' in September.