Parents feared gas leak at Derbyshire school as 'horrendous' landfill site smell means children can't play outside and brings residents to tears

People in Poolsbrook and Duckmanton have been complaining about the smell, noise and flies at Erin Landfill site for years – with issues getting worse in the last eighteen months.

They hoped things would start to improve after Valencia, the landfill site’s operator, attended a public meeting at Poolsbrook Welfare Club last November and promised to reduce the smell and meet with the residents affected.

Another meeting was hosted in December but since then, residents say there have been no signs of improvements – with neighbours saying the smell is ‘horrendous’, especially in the mornings, and the local school is unable to take children outdoors.

Louise Tate, headteacher at Poolsbrook Primary Academy, which is affected by the odour, said: “I get complaints about the smell from the parents on a daily basis. Parents even questioned me on a couple of occasions as to whether we've got a gas leak at school because of it. It smells really bad in the morning, me and another teacher could even smell it on the motorway before we got to the school.

"It smells like a gas and children make comments on it as they arrive in the school. We can't take them outdoors in the morning. It really affects our early years. We can’t get any answers from the site operator and we can’t give parents the answers they deserve.”

Cllr Anne-Frances Hayes, who has been working closely with Poolsbrook Primary Academy, said that the issue is much wider and has been getting worse for the last two years.

Cllr Hayes said: “It's a horrendous smell and my case work is inundated with reports about the odour. This constant smell is causing people's mental well-being to suffer. I'm getting people phoning me up in tears, because the smell is here again, and they're worried they don't know what it is. It's massively impacting people's quality of life.

"We've got two primary schools in the vicinity. Valencia is getting away with putting people's mental and physical health at risk, including little children. It's not acceptable.”

One of the residents affected is Darryl Yeates, who can see Poolsbrook Primary Academy from his windows. He has been repeatedly reporting the smell and noticed that on Wednesday, February 7, the odour was particularly bad.

He said: “It absolutely stank at 6 o’clock. I was going to take my dogs out, but I couldn’t because the smell was horrible. And as soon as I opened the door, the smell was in my kitchen. If I open the door in the morning, my kitchen, hallway and my utility room stink. It's not acceptable. It's 2024. We should we shouldn't have to put up with this.

"But the worst thing for me is the school, which I can see from my house, there are little kids in there. Nobody should have to put up with this, especially little children.

“I’ve worked in the oil industry since 1979, I’ve been a safety manager for a large oil company for years and I just cannot believe what this company is allowed to be getting away with at the landfill site. I’ve reported the smell again, and again and again. But nothing happens.”

Cllr Hayes said that she was also frustrated with the lack of response from Valencia.

She added: “Valencia promised me that the meeting with residents would be in January. Later they said it was now going to be in February. It is February now and we've not had a notice of that meeting at all. The funding Valencia promised for Poolsbrook and Duckmanton hasn't materialised either.

“They're not being open and transparent. The very least they could do is allow people like Louise and residents the courtesy of knowing what's happening. Louise has had parents thinking it's a gas leak at the school, she should be able to tell people what is happening and why.

"We're talking about primary school children with little lungs, and parents that are truly very worried about what effect that can have on those kids.”

Cllr Hayes added that the landfill site was causing other issues in the area – including loud noise disturbing residents.

She said: “We've had problems with noise over weekends. Valencia hasn’t told residents that they are planning to do work in advance, as they should have – and residents have been plagued on Saturdays and Sundays by a racket coming from the site. This has been reported to the Environmental Agency and after that, the agency told Valencia that in future they have to inform residents. I'm not convinced that they'll do that.”

Following the complaints from the school and residents, Derbyshire Times contacted Valencia.

A spokesperson said: “Valenica resumed the community liaison group in December, and we committed to reconvene with a further meeting following investigations into feedback received from residents. We want to be able to give comprehensive answers to the questions posed and anticipate the next meeting in March. Valencia will contact residents who signed up to our community email distribution list.

"Valencia has recently undertaken engineering work on site to install capping and contour the landform in accordance with its planning permission. The installation of capping on landfill sites helps to reduce odour emissions by covering wastes with an engineered barrier, and Valencia undertakes capping on areas of the site when final waste levels are reached.

"Odour can be affected by changes in local weather conditions (temperature, pressure etc) but Valencia have not registered any noticeable changes in the morning.

“As organic material within the waste decomposes a landfill gas is created, this is captured and used to produce electricity. Valencia works to ensure that odour emissions from the landfill site are minimised by collecting as much landfill gas as possible for electricity generation, this is achieved by undertaking capping when final waste levels are reached and installing gas collection infrastructure such as extraction wells and pipework systems.

"The site is regulated under an Environmental Permit and adheres to monitoring and management plans to minimise the potential for odour emissions from the site. Valencia recognises that odour is not pleasant, but it is not harmful. The Environment Agency also regularly visits the site with no adverse findings.”

Cllr Hayes has also been in contact with councillors from Greater Manchester where another Valencia’s landfill site is also emitting unpleasant smells.

When asked if issues at Duckmanton and Great Manchester sites are linked, a spokesperson for Valencia said: “Landfill sites are highly regulated by the Environment Agency, each site holds an environmental permit that stipulates stringent operating procedures to ensure operations do not harm human health or the environment.

"Occasionally some of this gas is released when engineering work is conducted onsite, for instance when capping works are undertaken. Valencia works to ensure as much of this landfill gas is captured and processed, to reduce any potential for odours onsite and maximise the production of green energy. The landfill site at Erin currently produces enough renewable electricity to power the equivalent of 11,850 homes.”