Foul smell from Belfast landfill site ‘not a tolerable situation’

Residents living near a controversial landfill site are continuing to call for its closure, after Belfast City Council issued a notice on the management company to get rid of the foul smell.

The odour from the Mullaghglass facility on White Mountain, on the outskirts of west Belfast, is so bad it can be picked up miles away.

Residents also say they are inundated with flies, insects, and rodents.

It is not a new problem – the campaign to close the site has been ongoing for 15 years.

Last month, Belfast City councillors issued an abatement notice on the company that operates the landfill site, asking them to “halt the nuisance from the odour”.

“It’s that strong at times, you won’t leave the house,” Sinn Féin councillor Daniel Baker said.

But Alpha Resource Management says it is doing everything by the book and will be robustly challenging the abatement notice through the appropriate legal channels.

In a statement issued to UTV, the company said: “We work to the highest environmental and industry standards in operating and managing our site.

“We comply in full with the NIEA-issued permit for the site, continually reviewing all aspects of its management and regulation with the relevant local councils and industry regulator Northern Ireland Environmental Agency.

“NIEA has recently reaffirmed our compliance with the permit. We are in regular contact with the local community and its representatives to thoroughly investigate any complaints.”

However, Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots has now said he will visit the site himself, after thousands of residents petitioned him to push for action.

“It is not something that I believe is a tolerable situation,” he said.

“I want to ensure either we get on top of the smell problem, or indeed we do look at the suspension of activities at the site.”