Saxon Pit in Whittlesey poses "no threat to public health" according to available data, but a report published today by Cambridgeshire County Council's public health team admits more needs to be done to reassure residents.
The report looking into any potential health concerns in relation to operations on the industrial site contains five recommendations and says further evidence would be "beneficial" to assess air quality at the Saxon Pit boundary, if there are ongoing noise or odour issues, and the cumulative impact on health, including mental health.
The Cambridgeshire County Council Public Health report into current operations at Saxon Pit makes several reassurances and says there are no identified risks to public health from water from King's Dyke being used for livestock - it is not used for human drinking water - emissions from land (gas) at the site, and air quality in the location of Hallcroft Road, where air is currently monitored.
However, in a pre-publication press briefing, it was admitted that there is no proper monitoring around the perimeter of the site and that it is unclear where dust reported by neighbouring residents may be originating from or what, if any, contaminants the particles contain
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As a result, more detailed monitoring of the air quality is to be carried out by the Environment Agency using more sophisticated equipment.
The county's public health service instigated the risk assessment in response to public concerns about the site, off Peterborough Road.
Three businesses operate on or near the site: Johnsons Aggregate Recycling, dealing with the treatment of incinerator bottom ash; Forterra, manufacturing house bricks; and East Midlands Waste Management, importing waste to stabilise the pit face and with permission to recycle metal, the report says.
All emissions from the businesses are regulated through Environment Agency permits, and the report states that the site as a whole is operating at an expected level of permit compliance. It is currently at level B - the second-highest standard.
The risk assessment looked at potential risks to human health from emissions to air, land and water from current operations at Saxon Pit.
The resulting report was drawn up with input from UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), environmental health at Fenland District Council and the Animal Plant and Health Agency (APHA), as well as advice from the Environment Agency and Waste Planning Authority at Cambridgeshire County Council.
Sally Cartwright, director of public health at Cambridgeshire County Council, said: “We are pleased to have carried out this work with our partners, which brings together all the available relevant data on the potential health impacts of these operations in the community.
“The assessment shows that the regulatory arrangements for the site with multiple activities is complex, and that understanding the combined effects on health can be challenging.
“The cumulative impacts on health and wellbeing need to be better understood and assessed, and we’re proposing further work to address that.
“We’re also keen to gather further evidence and data, and a plan is in place to do that. We recognise that recommending further analysis, particularly around air quality, may cause concern.
"Our intention is the opposite. We want to strengthen the evidence base to provide further reassurance.
"Positively, the most verified data we have on air quality in Whittlesey from Hallcroft Road shows it to be in compliance with national air quality objectives.
"It’s important to note that overall air quality is not just impacted by industrial activity, it is also affected by other local sources, including transport and domestic open fires and solid fuel stoves.
“We’d like to involve the community as we move forward, with plans to hold quarterly regulator meetings with residents and to establish a new, larger group, including community representatives, to oversee the delivery and implementation of the recommendations arising from this assessment.”
The report makes the following recommendations from the director of public health:
1. Regulators hold quarterly meetings with residents to provide updates and increase trust and collaboration between the community, operators, and regulators.
2. Public Health at Cambridgeshire County Council to work with residents on a cumulative community health impact assessment.
3. The Environment Agency (with support from Fenland District Council) to increase monitoring to ensure risks to human health from emissions to water remain low.
4. Multi-agency partners to work together to develop an air quality monitoring strategy to understand air pollution risk and the Environment Agency to ensure regular review of dust emission management plans.
5. Public Health at Cambridgeshire County Council to explore opportunities to strengthen policies and practices around waste and human health.
Sarah Dougan, consultant in public health at Cambridgeshire County Council, said more work would be done to assess the health impact on residents, particularly on mental health, because she said if people were struggling to sleep, feeling irritated or angry, by what is happening at Saxon Pit, then that was important to recognise and address.
However, she said it would be difficult to determine whether a person with lung cancer, for instance, had developed the disease as a result of the industrial site or as a result of other factors.
She also pointed out that any dust reported by residents in their gardens could have come from anywhere, including off of fields, which is why monitoring and looking at wind direction would be important.
The air quality around the pit boundary was a bit of the jigsaw that was missing. But, Ms Dougan said, once the new monitoring equipment was in place then it would be producing data almost immediately.
That, she said, would be used to produce a standalone report on air quality, and a cumulative health assessment.
Public briefing sessions about the report are being held today (Tuesday) at 11am and 6pm via Microsoft Teams, with people who had previously raised issues and questions about activities at Saxon Pit having already been invited. To request the joining link, please email PublicHealth.AdminTeam@cambridgeshire.gov.uk
A future information event will be held for the wider community, with details to be confirmed soon.
Regular meetings will also be offered on an ongoing basis in line with the recommendations in the report.
Anyone with questions can visit www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/saxon-pit to see a list of answers to questions already raised. Further questions can be emailed to: health.protection@cambridgeshire.gov.uk
Read the full report at: www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/saxon-pit
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