Former Landfill Site, Castletown
The Highland Council has written to residents in 150 properties in Castletown, Caithness, to advise them of work which will begin next month to identify if gases are being generated in the nearby disused landfill site and if the gases are moving towards the town.
Work is due to start on 16 March and continue for eight weeks. Monitoring will continue, initially, for a period of three months. Test bore holes will be drilled on the perimeter of the landfill site. As soon as the results are known, the Council will again contact residents and businesses.
In a letter to residents, Mr Ian Hargrave, The Highland Council’s Area Manager for Caithness, wrote: “I should emphasise that The Highland Council is carrying this work out in the interest of public safety and that the investigation works are precautionary and gas generation may not be occurring on site. Residents and businesses within Castletown will continue to be advised of any developments as the works progress. If gases are found to be moving from the landfill site, monitoring will then need to be carried out in properties close to the landfill.”
Residents with any query should contact the Contaminated Land Team on Freephone 0800 838 009. This number will be staffed until 9 pm tonight (Tuesday) and from 9 am – 5 pm Monday – Friday.
Mr Hargrave said the Council had a duty to investigate land which may be contaminated and ensure that any necessary remediation is carried out. The landfill was operated by the former Caithness County and District Councils from the 1970s until closure in the late 1980s. Monitoring on the landfill in the 1990s did not show gas being generated. Gas generation within landfills depended on a number of factors, which included the composition and volume of waste deposited, the site hydrology, and the age of the landfill.
He added: “Since monitoring was carried out in the 1990s there have been improvements in the techniques in landfill gas monitoring and procedures for assessing gas problems. We are planning to carry out investigation works to assess if gases (methane and carbon dioxide) are being generated in the landfill and whether they are moving towards the town. Landfill gases present a risk if they are confined within enclosed spaces such as holes in the ground, rooms or spaces in buildings, cellars and service ducts.”