Walleys Quarry: Hazardous waste 'illegally dumped' at landfill

An MP has alleged rat poison and other hazardous waste has been illegally dumped at a landfill site.

Aaron Bell made the claims about Walleys Quarry in Staffordshire during a debate at Westminster Hall.

Using parliamentary privilege, the MP for Newcastle-under-Lyme said a whistleblower had made the claims to the Guardian newspaper.

The landfill's operator, Walley's Quarry Ltd, said it "unequivocally refutes" the allegations.

They were made on Tuesday in a debate led by Mr Bell on criminality within the waste industry.

He told MPs Guardian journalist Rachel Salvidge had been attempting to publish an article detailing the allegations but had not been able to do so after receiving legal threats from Red Industries, the parent company of Walleys Quarry Ltd.

Quoting from her piece, Mr Bell said a whistleblower shared emails which appeared to show hazardous material had been routinely dumped at Walleys Quarry to save the company money.

The material included rat poison, arsenic and zinc, he added.

"In the light of these revelations, I must ask that the operator's permit be suspended while the allegations are fully investigated," Mr Bell told the debate.

In December, the Environment Agency launched an investigation into alleged illegal waste activities at the landfill site.

Walleys Quarry Ltd said it "unequivocally refutes these false allegations in their entirety".

"There is absolutely no evidence to support Mr Bell's claims," it added.

"Walleys Quarry Ltd has never received or disposed of hazardous waste in contravention of any regulations and will strenuously defend itself against any allegations that it has.

"He is also fully aware that the recent full and independent survey carried out on site by MJCA Environmental Consultants found that all materials analysed from the Walleys Quarry landfill fell well within regulatory limits.

"The independent inquiry found that 'the waste arisings comprised waste which is typical of the broad range of waste types which typically are present in non-hazardous waste landfill sites'. This report is with the Environment Agency".

The independent survey measured five samples taken from wells at the landfill in October, analysing them for a range of heavy metals, arsenic, asbestos and water Ph, among other factors.

Parliamentary privilege protects MPs and peers against civil or criminal liability in relation to statements made in the House of Commons or House of Lords.

Mr Bell also used the debate to say the smell from the landfill site, the subject of thousands of complaints in 2021, was "well and truly back".

"It's making thousands miserable and affecting their quality of life," he said and added local councils felt the Environment Agency's approach to tackling the issue "has run out of road".

The smell comes from hydrogen sulphide (H2S) gas and has been the subject of an ongoing legal battle over its affect on residents in Silverdale.

Nathan Wint, who lives in the area said there had been a reduction in the smell from the site but "all of a sudden, it got dramatically worse".

The Environment Agency said it would continue to work with the local authorities and other groups to bring H2S emissions under control.

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