Person now employed to log reports of smells from Southall Gasworks site

Concerns about the environment have been expressed since start of development

A local stink officer has been deployed to log stenches in an area where residents have complained about foul smells for more than four years.

Since 2016 residents in Southall have been worried about possible pollution from a gasworks site that is being turned into a 3,750 home development.

Developer Berkeley Group has been clearing chemicals including benzene, naphthalene and cyanide from soil on the former industrial site. They say remediation work was completed in September 2019.

After a change in leadership in May, Ealing Council has hired a dedicated environmental protection officer to log complaints about “odours” near the site.

Ealing council leader Councillor Peter Mason, whose ward borders the site, now promises an “open, inclusive and transparent” council that will “engage with residents and the challenges they face”.

Cllr Mason wrote an open letter to local campaigners, Clean Air for Southall and Hayes (CASH) in May addressing concerns that the council used their “woefully” limited powers as an excuse to “stonewall” any complaints.

He said: “Residents must have confidence that we are working to protect their interests and are not unduly swayed by the needs and demands of developers.

“The appointment of an environmental protection officer who will be based in Southall will make it easier for residents to report and also ensure that complaints are logged, witnessed and evidenced in order that they can be used in any future statutory abatement notice.”

The council say legal advice is being commissioned to work out what conditions are needed to take action against Berkeley Group.

Residents are also still waiting for an independent air monitoring station to be placed nearby.

Angela Fonso, of CASH, is pushing for the council to issue the developer with an abatement notice and encourages residents to report issues to the new council officer or on the OdourCollect app.

She said: “I would like to hope it’s a positive sign, but I’m sceptical given that this situation has been going on since 2017, with hundreds of complaints.

“Nothing has been done to hold Berkley to account for polluting the community.

“I think they’ve basically ignored us, gaslit us and denied our experience.”

Ms Fonso and Ealing Independents founder Leslie Bunder both say Ealing Council already commissioned legal advice about serving an abatement notice in 2019, but failed to take action.

Ms Fonso added, “I’ve said for a long time that this odour is a statutory odour nuisance.

“It’s all well and good logging, but the council are not willing to serve an abatement notice.”

The officer will be based in Southall and will respond to odour complaints during core hours (8am-4pm, Monday-Friday). The council says further recruitment is ongoing to allow for operational hours to be extended.

To allow the officer to respond to reports of odour, residents are asked to report it at the time of smelling it using either the Odour Collect App or by emailing southallodours@ealing.gov.uk, both of which notify when an odour is reported so action can be taken promptly.

Residents can also call 07971 988907 and leave a message between 8am-4pm, but for prompt action it is best to report via the app or email.

Ealing Council and Berkeley Group have been contacted for comment.

Josh Mellor - Local Democracy Reporter

August 16, 2021