WINNINGTON residents are worried their neighbourhood could be blighted by plans for a giant waste tip.

Paul Rosa and fellow neighbours in Dyar Terrace fear the planned tip would smell foul and are also concerned about house prices.

The tip plan has been put forward by chemical giant Brunner Mond which hopes to develop its existing 150-acre waste disposal site at Wallerscote Lime Beds.

At the moment it is slowly being filled with industrial waste.

But if the plan is approved Vale Royal's household rubbish could be dumped there - filling the site up faster, within 10 years.

Paul said: "This site is only hundreds of metres away from Hartford, Weaverham, Barnton, and Winnington.

"There is already a terrible smell from a nearby sewage works and if the waste site is developed we are convinced we will be faced with a similar problem.

"And if Brunner Mond's plans for an incinerator at Lostock get the go-ahead Northwich could be turned into the dustbin of Cheshire."

Mr Rosa argued that a domestic landfill site could affect sales for proposed housing developments in the area as well as existing house prices.

The Wallerscote Lime Beds site is currently used for the disposal of inert and non-hazardous waste from Brunner Mond's operations.

It is expected to be filled in 25 years but Brunner Mond has argued that by developing the site this could be reduced to 10 years and 100 acres of the area would be transformed into parkland.

Brunner Mond Director Mark Chitty added: "All these kind of sites are highly regulated and have to meet standards set by the Environment Agency.

"Not all the site will be used at once and work would be done on a day to day basis so rubbish would not be lingering for days on end."

Brunner Mond's plans for a landfill site and an incinerator also include an urban village development near Winnington.

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