Two online petitions aimed at closing down Fleetwood's controversial landfill site

Residents have complained about the toxic emissions of methane and Hydrogen Sulphide which have not only plagued them with a smell of rotteneggs, but led to concerns about the health implications.

One of the petitions calls on Parliament to consider a motion that all landfills that cause smells and toxins near residential areas should close.

This petition currently has 3,498 signatures but needs 10,000 before the Government will respond to it and 100,000 signatures before it will be considered for debate in Parliament.

Set up by Fleetwood resident Thomas Mitchell, the deadline for the campaign is May 13 2025 .

He is calling for more people to sign the petition and says: “Hydrogen Sulphide could cause respiratory issues to residents nearby the landfill, and also cause an unwanted smell. I am concerned that landfill sites that are causing issues are continuing to operate.”

Mr Mitchell has also set up a petition specifically about the Jameson Rod amenity, which is run by Transwaste Ltd.

He said on this petition : “Since the landfill has been reopened, it has caused a smell, which has affected the whole of Fleetwood, which is around 25k in population and it also affects other areas, such as Knott End and Thornton-Cleveleys.

“The smell is coming from the landfill leased by Transwaste Ltd from Wyre Borough Council and is causing health issues with people who have breathing difficulties.

“ It is also causing other reported health issues such as headaches, Itchy/watery eyes, and sore throats. Some people have reported that the smell is affecting their sleep.

“The smell is an unpleasant egg smell and depending on the wind direction, homes nearby keep getting the smell coming all the way through their homes.

“It has also caused traffic issues, such as lorries waiting on main roads to go into the landfill and dump all the waste.”

Both petitions have been backed by Lorraine Beavers, the Labour MP for Blackpool North and Fleetwood, who has also called for the landfill site, which is leased from Wyre Council, to be closed down.

A campaign group, Action Against Jameson road Landfill, which now has almost 3,000 members, echoes those sentiments and has staged numerous protests.

The Environment Agency has been closely monitoring the site and last year temporarily suspended activities at the site which urged Transwaste to undertake action to tackle the toxic emissions.

Transwaste says: “Since acquiring the site, Transwaste has undertaken over £2m worth of work to bring the site up to the latest standards and to install gas capture infrastructure.

“This essential work initially meant disturbing the old waste in Cell 5 which caused an initial odour problem. Work in Cell 5 has now been completed and it has fully functioning gas capture infrastructure in place.

“Cell 6 has now been constructed to the latest standards and had gas capture infrastructure installed in order to proactively prevent any future odour problems.”

The Jameson Road petition can be found at : https://www.change.org/p/close-the-landfill-on-jameson-road-in-fleetwood-operated-by-transwaste