It is quite unacceptable for the fire to be burning for a week now and I have had contact from many frustrated residents from the surrounding area over the last few days.
I visited the area on two occasions last week and again over the weekend to assess the situation first-hand. I could see for myself the extent of the smoke and how it is affecting residents in the area.
I contacted Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service last week who informed me that they did not believe they can safely extinguish the fire. In their opinion, the nature of the waste burning could cause a worse environmental hazard if water is used to extinguish it. They stated that they had contained the fire using mounded soil and were allowing it to burn out of its own accord. They assured me that the fire was being monitored by the Fire Service and relevant authorities.
However the smoke from the fire has continued to cause considerable nuisance over the weekend to local residents so yesterday I re-contacted Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service to press for the need to address the situation speedily.
According to Mr Glynn Luznyj, Director of Prevent and Protect and Director of Response for Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service, they have been dealing with the fire since last week, when a joint decision was made to allow the fire to burn out following a joint assessment between them, the Local Authority and Environment Agency.
The option of putting the fire out was considered, however the Environment Agency advised the Fire Service that the impact of taking this tactical approach would almost certainly have resulted in a severe impact upon the local environment due to the amount of water run-off which would have contaminated local water courses and caused long term pollution issues, given the large bore hole that was discovered at the farm.
He stated that fire crews have made regular visits to the site, constantly reassessing and monitoring the situation and liaising with Public Health England in relation to the air quality and following a site inspection on Monday 12th September, the Fire Service has been able to adopt a safe system of work to use on-site diggers and soil to bury the fire.
This approach still addresses concerns highlighted by the Environment Agency but will also help to alleviate the concerns of local residents by speeding up the extinguishment of the fire.
The Fire Service is working closely with the Local Authority in terms of the clean-up of the site and will support any subsequent investigations into this incident. It has been estimated that the fire should be fully extinguished within the next few days, given the work of the on-site diggers.
Turing to the site itself, I am aware from communications from Cannock Chase District Council that the site owner is already subject to a prosecution for waste related offences and is now subject to further investigations. However this is like 'shutting the gate after the horse has bolted', and we are in a situation that, in my opinion, should never have been allowed to occur. I will therefore be asking the relevant agencies to investigate this matter, focusing on:
1) How the waste was allowed to burn in the first instance?
2) What waste permissions the site owner has?
3) What investigations has the site operator been subject to?
4) What actions will be taken against the landowner in light of this particular fire?
5) What actions will the Environment Agency be taking to prevent this happening again in future?
6) What steps the Environment Agency will be taking in the short term, given the toxicity of the smoke, to protect residents?
7) Whether the Environment Agency has evaluated the levels of toxicity on-site and if not, when it will be doing so?
8) What the impact is for residents of inhaling the smoke, especially those with chest problems? And what the impact will be on children?
I will update my website further when I receive more information from the relevant authorities.
I have also arranged a meeting with the Environment Agency and Fire & Rescue Service on Friday to seek further information and a resolution to this situation.
If you want any more information or updates please contact my office on 01543 877142 or email me on [email protected].