Councillors approve composting plan – even though they think it smells

COUNCILLORS at Warrington have approved plans for a composting operation on farm land even though they believe it causes a smell problem – and despite 100 people lodging objections to it.
The borough council’s development management committee has already refused permission for the scheme once, but the applicant has appealed and councillors were warned council was likely to lose when the appeal was heard.
The scheme involves composting organic waste to create agricultural fertiliser at Diggle Green Farm, Wilton Lane, Culcheth and has been scaled down compared with the original plan which was refused.
As a result of it being approved,  the applicant has agreed to abandon his appeal, which was due to be heard in November.
Conditions will be imposed to restrict working hours and limit the number of lorries allowed to visit the site.
Residents’ main complaints related to smells, flies and increased traffic caused by existing composting on the site.
Waste materials can now be brought by road from a wider area for composting on the site.
Areas where waste could be imported from include Cheshire West and Chester; Cheshire East; West Yorkshire; Merseyside (Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens, Knowsley and Wirral boroughs), Halton; Warrington; Greater Manchester Authorities (Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan boroughs); and Derbyshire.
More than 100 individual letters of objection were sent in, including many from the Doeford Close and Kenyon Lane areas.
Culcheth and Glazebury Parish Council also expressed its concern over the scheme. They believe Kenyon Lane and Wilton Lane are not suitable for the large vehicles used to bring the waste to the site.
Officers pointed out the scheme would reduce the need for artificial fertilisers on land at Diggle Green Farm, which would also have to be brought to the site by road.
They also noted that no new buildings would be required on the site – unlike the previous application which was refused.