Tonnes of "toxic" waste dumped in Essex countryside
It is causing a "significant" odour
Around 700,000 tonnes of “toxic” waste was dumped in the north Essex countryside, causing “significant” odour and “pollution risk”, a meeting has heard.
The waste has been dumped at Crumps Farm, Stortford Road, Little Canfield, near Dunmow, which has also meant “residents have had their living conditions affected by the odour” of the site, Uttlesford District Council’s planning committee was told.
A planning application was submitted for permission to import and deposit material and waste, and to raise land levels, install landfill infrastructure, and undertake engineering works to facilitate the satisfactory restoration of the land, including 121 commercial and industrial units and a solar farm on part of the site.
Uttlesford Council is a consultee on the application and Essex County Council will make the final decision as the application relates to waste and landfill. Uttlesford Council’s committee discussed the plans on October 22.
A council officer told the meeting: “The site has a long and problematic history; it’s not a blank canvas. It consists of three key areas: Area A, a capped landfill site which is still undergoing decommissioning, Area B, an old ballast washing site, and Area C, an area containing an estimated 400,000 to 700,000 tonnes of unauthorised waste deposited without consent. This area has no engineered cap and is generating significant landfill gas odour and poses a documented pollution risk.”
Councillor Virginia Barlow, from Great Canfield Parish Council, said: “No one is in any doubt that there is a substantial amount of commercial and industrial waste illegally dumped on the site, and the Environment Agency has confirmed this in numerous reports and in liaison meetings over the years. It seems criminal that we are at this point after so many years of trying to get authorities to listen, and there is no doubt a solution needs to be found urgently to make this site safe for the future. Most importantly, there is potential danger to the surrounding environment, including the River Roading, residents and employees on the site during construction and potentially for years afterwards if the contamination is not dealt with.”
The council refused planning permission for the application.