South Scotland MSP Brian Whittle has brought together representatives of SEPA, South Ayrshire Council, the Tarbolton Community and local politicians to discuss the future of Tarbolton Landfill.
Since its operators went into liquidation, there has been no pollution management on the landfill site and uncapped sections of the site have been left exposed to the elements for well over a year.
While the site has technically been under the control of the liquidators since the operating company closed its doors, their role is to close the business down and deal with outstanding debts rather than pay for the cost of ongoing maintenance.
After raising the issue in Holyrood several times, and holding discussions with SEPA and local residents, Brian has brought them together along with local politicians from across the political spectrum to get everyone on the same page. During the meeting, the group heard from SEPA about the work being done to assess the condition of the site and the development of plans to put a permanent solution in place.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“Every local politician has been approached by people affected by the condition of the landfill site so I thought it was about time to get everyone round the table and discuss what can be done to deal with it.
I’m grateful to SEPA, South Ayrshire Council and everyone else who took the time to attend, including my fellow MSPs. This isn’t an issue that involves politics, it’s simply a problem that needs to be solved.
While it’s disappointing that local residents have had to deal with the smells and pollution from the landfill for so long, I’m confident that we are now getting closer to having a clear picture of the future of the site.
Until then if anyone has any concerns, they should contact myself or another one of their elected representatives and we’ll do our best to help.”
