Residents dwelling close to ‘unlawful’ landfill really feel trapped of their properties as rotten stench is wafting over and ruining their as soon as idyllic Welsh city
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Residents say the stench of an ‘illegal’ landfill has ruined their once idyllic market town and become so severe that it is making them nauseous.
Situated in the peaceful mid-Wales county of Powys, Llanidloes was dubbed one of the best places to live in the country less than a decade ago.
But in recent years the lingering smell of ‘rotten eggs’ at the nearby Bryn Posteg landfill has become utterly unbearable, desperate locals have told the Daily Mail.
‘Some of us can’t open our windows anymore. We feel trapped in our homes,’ Xander Ashwell, who lives just a short from the site, says.
‘When you drive past the site you can taste it. It’s really oppressive and it’s been responsible for people getting migraines. It’s a horrible thing.’
The tip has been a part of life in the rural town for more than half a century. However, having once been merely a small, council-managed dump a couple of miles away, has escalated into a ‘total mess’ under private ownership.
Assessments carried out by the body which oversees the site, Natural Resources Wales (NRW), have described it as the ‘worst performing landfill in Wales’.
Yet frustrated residents like Mr Ashwell claim that NRW have done very little – even nothing at all – to improve the situation.
Residents living in the Mid-Wales town of Llanidloes say the stench of Bryn Posteg landfill (pictured) is making their lives a misery
The landfill, situated a couple of miles from the town, has been out of use since September but the smell persists
Last year, reports revealed that illegal methane levels 84 per cent above the limit were recorded at the site. While the Nant-Y-Bradnant river which runs nearby has become murky and polluted by solids discharged from Bryn Posteg.
Pictures shared with the Mail show the dire state of the landfill, where thousands of tons of waste festers and has piled up into a mound which can be seen from more than a mile away.
Local teacher Lisa Stephens, 53, who has lived in Llanidloes her entire life, claims the smell of the filthy site is so pungent that it affects those residing far beyond her home.
She said: ‘The site has been here as long as I have been alive but it was just a dump when it started. Now it’s emitting smells which are acrid and offensive.
‘It’s worse when it’s cold. It gets you in the back of the throat. The smell floats down the valley and seeps because it’s on high land. People can smell it five miles away. It permeates the whole community.
‘I’m under half a mile from the site of the landfill and I’ve got animals on my land and I’ve got two wells. Back in the 1980s when the site was put in, they made sure that everyone here was put on mains water.
‘None of my animals will touch the water from the well – not the horses, not the sheep. They won’t go near it.
‘We want the site to be properly managed by the people who have benefitted from it for so many years. We don’t want to wake up to stinky houses every day and a stinky town because we’ve got such a lovely community here – but we’re going to be the stinkiest town in Wales if we’re not careful.’
Last year alone, reports revealed that illegal methane levels 84 per cent above the limit were recorded at the site
The nearby Nant-Y-Bradnant river has become murky and polluted due to the landfill
Locals like Miss Stephens are accusing Sundorne Products (Llanidroes) Limited, the company operating the site, of neglect – and it seems that they have reason to do so.
The company was warned of their duty of care to the environment as early as 2011, when they accepted an £80,000 fine for polluting the Nant-Y-Bradnant river.
Then in 2019, Sundorne Products was fined some £55,000, according to reports, for breaching environmental permit conditions. At that time, the business admitted failing to control leachate levels and a failure to minimise emissions of landfill gas amongst other charges.
In one even more shocking incident, the operator was ordered to pay close to £200,000 after an employee of theirs had to have both of his legs amputated following a horrific accident at Bryn Posteg.
Emrys Hughes, then 65, suffered near-fatal and life-changing injuries when he was hit by a shovel-loading machine. The incident was described as ‘an accident waiting to happen’ because the yard had no system to separate pedestrians and moving vehicles.
Yet as recently as a year ago, Sundorne was hit with a £100,000 fine for failing to protect its workers and the public from risk of injury following an inspection by the Health and Safety Executive.
For locals, the situation is desperate.
Tipping at the site has been discontinued since September amid a process to change it from an active to a closed landfill by July, depending on the weather, but the disgusting smell persists.
‘It’s like rotten eggs or burning rubber. It seeps into your home and lingers,’ one resident told the Mail of the smell at the site
Llanidloes Town Councillor Eleanor Manning, 31, says she and others feel ignored, and have decided to speak out following years of frustration.
‘The landfill has been a constant presence in my life for as long as I can remember,’ she tells the Daily Mail. ‘When the stench is bad, it is impossible to escape.
‘It’s like rotten eggs or burning rubber. It seeps into your home and lingers. I have had countless days cut short or completely ruined by it. I can’t open my windows, sit in the garden or walk around the local area. Occasionally it’s bad enough to wake you up from a sleep.
‘This area of Wales is wonderful and we want to be proud of it, but with this constant impact it is hard to be.
‘Speaking out now is not something we’ve rushed into – it has come from exhaustion and the feeling that we are being ignored. It’s not about confrontation or blame, it’s about accountability, the right to enjoy where you live and the ability to live normal lives in our own homes.’
Responding to a request for comment, NRW told the Daily Mail: ‘We are aware of an increase in odour complaints and pollution concerns from the public relating to Bryn Posteg landfill, Llanidloes.
‘While waste is no longer being accepted at the site, there is currently significant activity on site as the operator undertakes capping works. These works can disturb existing waste and release pockets of odour.
‘We are conducting site visits and are in regular contact with the operator to ensure that all works are undertaken in line with the requirements of the site’s environmental permit and in a manner that minimises any impact on the environment.
‘Where any breaches of the permit are identified, enforcement action will be considered in line with our enforcement and sanction policy.’
Sign the ‘Save Llanidloes’ petition here.
