The source of a mystery pong that has been plaguing people who live and work in an area of Weston-super-Mare has been located, and a local community leader has reassured residents that they should be odour-free from now on.
Described as an ‘unpleasant odour’, local councillor Ciaran Cronnelly said the pong ‘has been sporadically hitting commercial and residential areas’ in his ward. Cllr Cronnelly is the councillor for Winterstoke ward at North Somerset Council, and is also the leader of Weston super Mare Town Council.
The smell was affecting stores, homes and businesses around Weston Village, Hutton Moor, Hutton Park and Haywood Village on the outskirts of Weston and Cllr Cronnelly said he called in the Environment Agency to investigate.
The smell was traced to a waste and recycling firm that were operating an anaerobic digester near the Hutton Moor roundabout.
“I’ve discussed these concerns with both the Environment Agency and the company running the anaerobic digestion plant,” he said. “A leak detection survey has been carried out at the plant, which identified some minor leaks. Repairs have been carried out and completed a few days ago, which are hoped will resolve the problem.
“Further surveys and monitoring will continue to ensure these are successful,” he added. Cllr Cronnelly said that residents should contact the Environment Agency if they smell the whiff again. “Hopefully the recent repairs alleviate the malodour, but if residents and businesses continue to be affected by malodour believed to be from the anaerobic digestion plant, you should report this to the Environment Agency using their 24hr incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60,” he explained.