Key Points
- Environmental group Clear the Air launches legal action against Havering Council over toxic landfill site in Rainham.
- Fires at Launders Lane have smouldered for two decades, causing respiratory issues for residents.
- Legal claim challenges the Council’s decision not to classify the site as contaminated land.
- Soil analysis found asbestos, plastic bags, polystyrene, and asphalt in the landfill.
- Local GP reports high levels of respiratory illnesses linked to the site.
- Residents, including cancer patients, report severe breathing difficulties and constant fear of fires.
- Mishcon de Reya argues the Council made legal errors in its decision-making process.
- If successful, the legal action could force a reassessment of the site and remediation efforts.
- The Council states that responsibility lies with the landowner but is engaging in discussions for a resolution.
An environmental group has launched legal action against Havering Council, accusing it of failing to protect residents from the effects of an illegal landfill site in Rainham.
The site at Launders Lane has been burning every summer for 20 years, causing severe air pollution. Clear the Air, a local environmental group, has issued a legal claim through law firm Mishcon de Reya, arguing that the Council has failed in its duty to declare the site contaminated land.
Legal representatives allege that the Council made multiple legal errors in assessing the site, potentially allowing ongoing environmental and health hazards.
What health risks are residents facing?
Residents of Rainham have long complained about the impact of toxic fires, with many suffering from breathing problems, coughing fits, and respiratory illnesses.
GPs in the area have linked high levels of lung disease to the pollution from the site. Some residents, including cancer patients, report struggling to breathe and avoiding the outdoors due to the constant smoke.
One resident, Ruth Kettle-Frisby, co-founder of Clear the Air, said:
“Rainham residents describe themselves as ‘the forgotten people of Havering’; their lives wilfully put at risk, paying for negligence with their lives.”
Others have spoken about waking in the night “in terror, thinking their house is burning down.”
What has soil analysis revealed?
A 2023 soil analysis of the Launders Lane site revealed asbestos, plastic bags, polystyrene, and asphalt, raising further health and safety concerns.
If officially designated as contaminated land, the Council and the Environment Agency would be legally responsible for ensuring that the site is cleaned up.
What could happen if the legal claim succeeds?
Mishcon de Reya states that a successful legal challenge would force Havering Council to reassess its decision based on a more comprehensive and thorough evaluation of the evidence.
If the site is legally classified as contaminated, the Council and Environment Agency would have to take action, including:
- Issuing a clean-up notice to the landowner.
- Taking direct action to remediate the land if the landowner fails to comply.
- Prosecuting those responsible, including potentially holding company directors personally liable.
Ms Kettle-Frisby called the legal action “a huge step forward,” adding:
“The council will not be able to ignore this legal challenge and must face up to the reality of this dire situation and take responsibility where it’s due.”
What is Havering Council’s response?
Havering Council leader Ray Morgon acknowledged the concerns but placed primary responsibility on the landowner.
“We completely understand and sympathise with residents’ concerns about the ongoing issues at Launders Lane. This is why our Administration has done more in the past year or so than previous Administrations have over the last two decades to try and resolve this long-standing issue.”
Morgon stated that the Council had been pressing the landowner to take urgent action and had arranged meetings with the London Fire Brigade and environmental experts to discuss short-term measures.
“We will continue to do everything we can to address the ongoing issues on this site and to push for a solution which suits the local community.”
What happens next?
If Clear the Air’s legal claim is successful, Havering Council may be forced to overhaul its assessment process and take direct action to clean up the site.
For now, residents continue to suffer the consequences of a landfill that has burned for two decades with no resolution in sight.
