Are you GREEN? Are you doing all you can to save the environment? Are you saving water, recycling your glass, plastics and tins? Do you donate your old clothes to charity? Me too! I 'police' the lights and appliances, make sure my boys don't drop their rubbish outside, insisting that if they can't find a bin they must bring it home. So WHY would I be so against a composting plant? It SOUNDS fantastic! The answer to our landfill problems, the answer to saving the environment, the answer to our guilt maybe? Well...no...it's NOT, not for those of us who live right beside it. I can hear you shouting at me now! 'NIMBY PAMBY!' What do you KNOW about these composting plants though? Are they all about recycling our food waste into a magic nutrient for our farmers? You might be surprised to know that recycling this sort of waste (catering waste including MEAT) was banned for a while after the swine flu outbreak and even now has to be controlled. Animals are not allowed to graze land with this compost on it for several weeks because of the risks of diseases like mad cow, scrapie and swine flu. These deceases are known to be caused by animals eating animals (it's just not what they are meant to do) Could it be that REALLY they are about getting landfill down for the EU? Is it a money making machine? I think so!
Anyway, quite apart from this is the problem of the smell coming from these places. So putrid and disgusting that people in this area are BADLY affected. For the past few years we have not been able to enjoy our summers outside in our gardens, I haven't fancied going for a walk, we can't even open our windows without the stench taking over the whole house. Our clothes hanging on the line smell of it, the interior of the car smells of it, we probably smell of it! You might think, so what?! You live in the country, those sorts of smells are everywhere. True! But would you be shocked if I told you the smell of pig, cow and chicken poo smell a million times BETTER than the smell we have to endure? Not just in the summer either, the truth is that if the wind happens to be blowing this way (too often for our liking) we suffer. Suffer? Too dramatic? Not really when you consider the health problems we seem to be suffering from. Sore, itchy eyes, sore throats, headaches, coughing, breathing problems, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and possibly even exhaustion and cancer! I certainly feel more people than usual in this area seem to have died of cancer or fought cancer in recent years.
My five year old boy has missed two weeks of school since they started back this school year. He has had so many rounds of steroids and antibiotics that my GP is VERY concerned about him. We saw the asthma nurse and we talked about him possibly being referred so they can prescribe him a new inhaler. All very worrying. We all notice that when the NEW EARTH SOLUTIONS composing site is smelling worst we are all affected. My husband was diagnosed with asthma a few years ago and lately I have seen him struggle so much he has had to slow down in general. My 10 year old son may have asthma too and I was diagnosed with it over 15 years ago. We all notice we have to use our inhalers more when the smell is bad. I asked the nurse if this place could be causing the problem and she admitted it couldn't be ruled out and even added that even when the smell is not there, the spores could still be in the air. The GP said much the same, she could rule it out.
After a local meeting involving local residents, environmental health, local council, local MP, environment agency and the operations manager plus the site manager of NEW EARTH SOLUTIONS, we are STILL stuck with it. It seems to me that the snvironment agency are doing all they can to make sure this works, saying that their permit states that as long as they are SEEN to be trying to make improvements they are still allowed to operate. Yesterday we learned that NEW EARTH SOLUTIONS have a new contract to recycle food waste from people in Bath here in Sharpness. Not only that, they are planning on opening a new site in Avonmouth, which means we will probably get the smell from there too.
We would love to move on health grounds. It's such a shame because we love the area and the house is very cheap to rent. It upsets me to think they can just do as they like, releasing goodness knows what gas into the air.
My husband set up a group called WE THINK NEW EARTH SOLUTIONS STINK I hope you will look at it and read all the information he has found on there. You can also see an article about our situation in the Gloucestershire Gazette this Thursday. If anyone has any information on what gases these places emit I would be very grateful.
Bioaerosols
ReplyDeleteIndustrial composting
Bioaerosols are naturally occurring bacteria and chemicals found in the air, produced when organic matter, particularly compost, decomposes. They can also be found in high quantities in woodland and damp buildings. Although most people are unaffected by bioaerosols at normal environmental levels, they are thought to cause respiratory problems, nausea, headaches and fatigue in some people.
There is a body of research which suggests that high levels of bioaerosols are found in greater concentrations in industrial-scale composting as large amounts of vegetation breaks down. In recent years, there has been a growth in the number of commercial composting sites in the UK. This is because composting is seen to be more environmentally friendly than placing waste in landfill sites. The Environment Agency (EA) is responsible for making sure that commercial composting sites in England and Wales are operated correctly, so that the benefits of composting are maximised, with minimum disruption to local communities.
In November 2010 the EA published a revised position statement [external link] on the potential health effects from bioaerosols from commercial composting sites, containing guidance for permit applicants. Although there is no new evidence showing that people living within close proximity of composting sites are likely to suffer adverse health effects, the EA decided to take a precautionary approach to permitting and monitoring these large composting sites located close to communities.
Here is some info regarding the main hidden output of these plants, in olden times this was referred to as farmers lung but like all things has to be given a posh name to make out it is being controlled.
The truth is the EA are in these peoples pockets and have to sign into any site before entering for H+S so all the bad practices are hidden before there signature hits the box.
I expect the real harm done by these sites with the transport and heavy plant pollution along with the masses of leachate produced and disposed, huge water consumption and continual un-monitored releases of gases to atmosphere they really are causing the planet long term harm for government targets and mass profit thousands of tonnes go on and off weighbridges all over the country to be renamed and hidden for the recycling figures they need to hit.
The product this company are calling CLO has no fit purpose for the planet other than to tip on landfills so with the millions of tonnes they will eventually produce and the lack of landfills where are they going to hide it?
To better understand the impacts of high concentrations of bioaerosols on the health of people living and working close to large composting sites, a Health Protection Agency (HPA) group was formed in 2010, to evaluate available information.
Recycling in all areas I have worked is just a profit driven corrupt environment using government guidelines for profit, and the sad thing is this is the real protection for our planets future but the truth is there is one common denominator £££££££££££££ not your health or your surrounding homes because like with asbestos it will be years before the long term effects are even recorded.
Keep asking questions monitor your families health but they have legal, government backing with a lot more money than yourself so its rather one sided.
After 12 years in this industry I feel let down as you can read.