Brian Whittle MSP has raised the continuing saga around Tarbolton’s abandoned landfill again in the Scottish Parliament. During Portfolio Questions at Holyrood, the South Scotland MSP called for the Scottish Government and SEPA to find a solution to the ongoing issues with noxious smells and contaminated water leaking from the site.
Well over a year since the site’s operators went into liquidation and all pollution management at the landfill ground to a halt, there’s still no agreement between South Ayrshire Council, SEPA, the Scottish Government and liquidators over who is responsible for managing the site day to day or making it safe for the long term.
While the Scottish Government view is that the liquidators, who now technically own the site, have responsibility, the liquidators are essentially there to close the business down.
After Brian spoke about the impact the landfill is having on local residents, including some who now don’t like letting their children play outside because the smells from the site contaminate clothing, Roseanna Cunningham, the Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change & Land Reform, assured the MSP that SEPA were monitoring the situation. The Cabinet Secretary confirmed that SEPA are studying what work is needed to properly maintain the site and mitigate existing pollution. She also confirmed that because the current condition of the site was so poor, some remedial work would be funded now to allow the study to be completed.
Speaking after portfolio questions, Brian Whittle MSP said:
“While it’s good to hear that the Scottish Government are finally taking steps to determine what needs to be done to make the landfill site safe, there are still huge question marks over who’s going to take action.
I know there are complex legal issues involved here, but that’s no comfort to people living with this abandoned landfill on their doorstep.
I will continue to put pressure on SEPA and the Scottish Government to take the necessary action to make Tarbolton Landfill safe and protect the local environment and residents from any risk of harm.”