By George Lythgoe
Last year it pumped out putrid smells that hit the people of Rochdale and Bury in the nostrils, but one small area has been dealing with these problems for years. The Pilsworth South Landfill, just off Junction 3 of the M66 motorway, quite literally caused a stink at the beginning of 2024. Politicians described it as ‘like being hit in the face’ and locals said they’d been left feeling sick. There were even calls for site operator, Valencia Waste Management, to have their licence revoked over the problem. The Environment Agency installed new monitoring facilities to track air quality around the site in the aftermath. But EA bosses later said there were no plans to remove Valencia’s licence after action on odour was taken. For residents who live in the houses on Heap Street – this stench was nothing new. The people living in these homes, on the edge of Heywood , are the closest residents to the landfill site. The infamous ‘Pilsworth stink’ is just one of a number of problems they’ve had with the site over the years. “It used to stink,” according to local resident Barry Wolstenholme. “You couldn’t leave your windows open. “It wasn’t right, last summer when it was really warm and you wanted your windows open. “You’d think they’d go somewhere else with more of the rubbish. It shouldn’t just be here. “They’ll be making good money from it, but we suffer with it. “When they found all that rotten meat a few years back the bluebottle flies that came as a result were awful. You just don’t know what they’re dumping.” Pointing in the direction of the landfill site just half a mile away, Barry added: “When you come down here, you can see that. It’s like Mount Everest of rubbish.” His wife Greta was concerned about the health and safety aspects. Reflecting on the six months of stink, she said: “It was completely awful. As soon as you’re on the motorway you could smell it. “It has been steadily getting worse over the last few years really. We’re used to the farm smells, but this was something different. “We are really worried about health and safety. There is a school here so it can’t be good for them.” Fereshteh, who lives just around the corner off Bury Old Road, had the same concern as Greta. She didn’t open her windows or want to let her daughter play out during the stink over fears for her health. When her daughter returned from school, she asked her whether she wanted to play out when all that was going on, her response was ‘absolutely not, it was horrid.” The area is now heavily industrialised, but used to mainly be farmland. So for Dennis Hatherley, who has lived in the area since 1973, the smell wasn’t much of a problem. The 79-year-old told the Manchester Evening News : “It’s never been a major concern for me. I’m so used to it by now. “It’s a lot higher now than when it was a farm. The smell was never too bad here to be honest. “Some people were very put out by it. It was no worse than cow slurry smells you get around here. “The smell didn’t bother me, I’m used to farmyard smells. They were more upset about the smell in the centre of Heywood. “It never seemed too bad, but there were some that claimed it made them vomit.” The Heap Street resident went on to say that under previous management there used to be meetings between locals, politicians and the operator to discuss any problems. He would welcome the return of something similar to iron out any future issues. This could be needed as there are now growing concerns because the landfill site is about to get even bigger . A draft permit has been issued by the Environment Agency to increase the volumes of mixed non-hazardous waste allowed to be treated at the site’s new recycling plant. The idea behind the new plans would see recyclable material already in the landfill site and other rubbish being brought in reprocessed. Derek Stubbs has reservations over the new processing plant. He has lived in the Heap Street area for the majority of his life and his children all live locally. The 65-year-old said: “The council are moaning about it, but nothing seems to be changing. The smell has calmed down, but there is no guarantee it’ll last. “It used to be a quarry so it started fairly low down and now it’s getting higher and higher. I’m worried it could become Heywood’s skyline. “We have to pass through it more as we live here. We get the smell and the problems because we have to cut through, it’s more personal to us. “I like the area because it’s nice and quiet, but that lets it down. It’s the shame of the area. “Other than that, it’s a perfect location.” He went on to point out the area’s countryfied location alongside its quick links to the M66 and M60 motorway networks. Although wary about the new processing facility, Derek was more concerned about the state of the roads around the site. He added: “The concern I have is the rubbish down the road. I think the wind puts it there. “You’d think they’d have cameras there to stop the littering and fly tipping. “It’s for them to move rubbish, that’s their land, they’re not caring for the community in terms of keeping things clean.” One of his neighbours, Andy Hall, used to live in Unsworth when the Pilsworth stink hit early last year. He described the smell as ‘horrendous’. Despite moving closer to the landfill site geographically, the smell problems he says are less. He feels the new processing facility will actually improve things. However, Andy shares concerns over the state of the roads around the landfill site and has urged Valencia to clean up after themselves properly. “With the new plans, if they’re going to be recycling more material rather than putting it in the landfill, that would be better,” Andy told the M.E.N . “This is because it would take rubbish away from the landfill. “I wouldn’t want it to go back to how it was when it was stinking. The EA are very strict about this stuff now. “My concern is the stuff on the roads around the site. That’s their responsibility to sort that, but it’s not changing. “There is a hell of a slot of windfall litter. They need to look at that.” A spokesperson for Valencia said: “We are pleased to see the Environment Agency issue a draft permit for our materials recycling facility at Pilsworth. “We have invested significantly in the site since we have taken over ownership to improve the site’s performance and compliance. “Once operational the MRF will offer our customers in the region a way to segregate any recyclable material from their waste and send this material for reprocessing, greatly boosting sustainability. “Our operations are focused on minimising disruption to our communities, the new MRF will be equipped to identify, isolate, and remove non-conforming waste before it is sent to the landfill site.”