Residents living in the shadow of the Mullaghglass Landfill site are to begin legal proceedings against the Northern Ireland Environment Agency in order to address the foul odour which has been plaguing parts of Lisburn and West Belfast. This follows confirmation from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency that the source of the odour is multiple gas wells at the site.
 
In a separate development residents have also launched an online petition calling on Environment Minister, Edwin Poots to close the site immediately. The petition which was launched on Saturday 23rd January amassed more than 1,000 signatures in 48 hours.
 
Local resident Mairead Connolly spoke of her frustration at the inaction arising from the complaints of residents. She said: “It is simply unacceptable that we have had to suffer this for so long. We are angry and it feels like things are getting worse.
 
“We have people complaining of nosebleeds, headaches, breathing difficulties which we all believe is connected to the ongoing gas odour.  As a result of the inaction, we have now instructed our solicitors to initiate legal proceedings to ensure that the ongoing damage to both our health and the environment is urgently addressed.”   

“The main reason for the petition was to raise awareness in relation to the ongoing offensive odour that was traced back to Mullaghglass Landfill site in late 2020. Residents from the greater Colin, Lisburn, Stoneyford and White Mountain areas have been plagued with a nauseating gas-like odour on and off for many years but it has worsened over the last two years and we are now living with it daily.”
 
“Residents from various areas have engaged with their local political representatives to try and resolve the issue but like the residents they have also been greeted with dismissiveness and inaction from both the operator and the regulator. Legal action was the next step to take in order to get a resolution.”
 
Harry Robinson of Phoenix Law who acts for the residents said: “The statutory bodies are, and continue, to absolve themselves of responsibility by failing to take the relevant action necessary to eradicate the odour in question. This failure to act is causing considerable harm to both our clients who live in the locality, and to the wider environment. 
 
“We have now initiated legal proceedings in which we intend on seeking damages by way of compensation for those residents affected by this ongoing odour. 
 
“In the twenty first century it is inexcusable to allow such an attack on the environment to continue without intervention.”

Local Sinn Féin Councillor Daniel Baker has called for the regulators to take action. Speaking to the Andersonstown News he said: “I am continuing to work on behalf of the community regarding the odour. Sinn Féin have a meeting on February 1 with the minister and NIEA. The odour has become a daily occurrence and residents have had enough. Action and not excuses is needed now from the regulators.”
 
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs said the Department is aware of "numerous complaints of odour issues" in the Lisburn and West Belfast area.

"The Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) has been working with Environmental Health Officers from both Belfast and Lisburn councils to investigate these complaints. Together, they have been engaging with residents, the operators of regulated sites in the area and undertaken odour monitoring throughout the area to pinpoint all possible sources of the problem.

“NIEA is in discussions with operators on their immediate actions and longer term mitigations to urgently address this matter. Further meetings with elected representatives and residents have been planned to update them on progress.

“In addition, Minister Poots recently met with residents and their elected representatives to hear first-hand of the difficulties they are experiencing. After the meeting, Minister Poots said: 'The current situation is unacceptable and I have instructed NIEA staff to work with the local councils to increase their efforts to ensure that all regulated sites have in place all necessary measures to reduce the off-site odours which are impacting the wider community. I have also asked my officials to review all enforcement options available to both NIEA and local councils that could be taken to help bring about a resolution to this issue as quickly as possible.'"

The Public Health Agency have advised that if anybody has concerns about the impact of odours on their health they should seek advice from their GP.