Dump described as 'uncontaminated' to be reviewed

A council will need to reassess its decision not to call a perennially burning rubbish dump "contaminated".

Havering Council's decision was challenged in the High Court on 17 June by Clean the Air in Havering, a group set up to tackle the fires at Launders Lane in Rainham.

The landfill site, on Arnolds Field, has caught fire more than 100 times since 2019, sending smoke into homes, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said.

Deputy leader Gillian Ford said: "The site belongs to the landowners and it is their responsibility to make it safe – we are ready to work with them to solve the problem."

Justice Nathalie Lieven ruled the decision not to designate the land as contaminated by Havering Council in July 2024 as "premature and unlawful".

She also found the town hall misunderstood the law by failing to consider smoke as a potential contaminant under contaminated land rules.

The council has said its options are "limited".

Ford added: "We are now reviewing the detail in the ruling. One thing that is clear is it has asked us to reconsider our decision on whether Arnolds Field is 'contaminated land' or not.

"Despite the landowner's claims that they're trying to 'improve the site for the local community', the fact remains that they have not yet submitted a formal planning application, and we have seen no evidence to suggest they are serious in finding a solution."

Ruth Kettle-Frisby, one of three local mothers leading the campaign, said residents had reported "constant coughing and stinging and irritated eyes," and had been forced to "close all windows during this hot weather".

"This month, Rainham residents have reported their understandable distress as they enter 'another summer of hell', with smoke already entering nearby schools," she added.

Emily Nicholson, from the law firm Mishcon de Reya, who represents the campaign group Clean the Air in Havering said: "This is the first judgment that we are aware of which deals with assessment under the Contaminated Land Guidance, and it clarifies an important point on smoke being able to be assessed as a contaminant linkage for the purposes of the contaminated land regime.

"It also makes clear that where health impacts come from specific sporadic events, such as fires, decisions must be made based on evidence of the impacts of those events."

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