1. Calendar
  2. 1 update

Protest over Saltend stench

Campaigners are due to stage a fresh protest this lunchtime outside Yorkshire Water's controversial waste water plant at Hull.

Live updates

Protest over Saltend stench

Campaigners are due to stage a fresh protest this lunchtime outside Yorkshire Water's controversial waste water plant at Hull.

Campaigners protest about the odour from Yorkshire Water's Saltend plant Credit: ITV Yorkshire

Earlier this week East Riding Council issued an abatement notice to Yorkshire water over the bad smells coming from the plant in Saltend.

The council issued the notice after angry residents handed in a petition to the local authority calling for action to be taken over the odour.

For ten years the site has plagued residents in the immediate area of Hull, Hedon, and surrounding villages up to 5 miles away with horrendous smells.

This year a facebook page was set up that received over 2,000 members within 24 hours. At the same time an online petition also received 2,250 signatures asking the council to issue an abatement notice on YW.

"Since 14, July 2015 officers from the council's environmental health team have been investigating complaints from residents about odours coming from Yorkshire Water's waste water treatment works at Saltend.

"The investigation confirms that a statutory nuisance exists. The council has a legal obligation to serve an abatement notice on Yorkshire Water, which has now been done."

– Nigel Leighton, Director of environment and neighbourhood services, East Riding of Yorkshire Council

"I am very pleased to hear of the Council's action to serve the Abatement Notice on Yorkshire Water.

"The Council has taken this decisive step following a summer of horrendous smells suffered by residents in the area around the Saltend Water Treatment Works.

"For years I have been campaigning to stop the stink and I hope this shot across the bows to Yorkshire Water will prompt it to sort it out once and for all.

"While progress was made with the introduction of the second odour control unit in 2011, Yorkshire Water has not got a grip on controlling the foul odours during the summer pea season.

"The Abatement Notice puts Yorkshire Water on the spot - sort out the smells before next summer or risk finding yourself in court."

– Graham Stuart, MP for Beverley and Holderness

"We understand the strength of feeling in the local community regarding this issue and we respect their right to protest peacefully outside the treatment works.

"We remain committed to resolving this problem and are continuing to take steps to recover the performance of the site in the short term.

"Last month we also announced a full review of the site's treatment processes and future investment needs to establish what needs to be done to ensure we can adequately cope with peak season flows in the future.

"We will be aiming to provide an update on our medium and long term plans for the site in the coming weeks."

"In the meantime we would like to apologise once again to those customers affected by this problem."

– Yorkshire Water spokesperson
Back to top