© 2007 SmallDole.com
Made by AltCT.co.uk
The Horton Landfill site was opened in 1992 on the site of a disused clay pit, and occupies some 30 ha in area, handling domestic refuse and commercial waste. When the planning application for it was submitted in 1990, it was opposed by the residents of Small Dole, by Henfield and Upper Beeding Parish Councils, and by Horsham District Council, on the grounds that it would cause nuisance to local residents through noise, smell, litter and traffic. These objections were entirely ignored by West Sussex County Council, who granted planning permission, having been assured by the applicants that: "the development should not subject occupiers of nearby properties to unacceptable levels of noise or to nuisance from odours or litter" and that "measures would be incorporated in its design and management to prevent problems with odours, dust, vermin and wind blown litter, and for ensuring the protection of surface and ground water resources…” Residents were told that the site would close on 1st April 2004, with restoration of the site to be completed by 1st November 2005.
Ever since it opened, local residents have suffered continual nuisance from noise caused by machinery on the dump; from the continual smell of putrefying refuse; from wind blown litter along the main roads, in nearby hedges, fields and trees; and from heavy lorry traffic visiting the site. The location of the site, immediately to the south and west of Small Dole village, and the prevailing wind from the south west, means that it is inevitable that the normal day to day operation of the site will cause a serious nuisance to many people.
In 2004, much to residents' surprise and disgust, rather than the site closing as agreed, and without any public consultation at all, West Sussex County Council granted planning permission for a four year time extension for refuse disposal, such that the site is now due to close on 1st April 2008, with restoration to be completed by 1st November 2009.
Much more serious than this in the long term, however, is the extremely visible profile of the rubbish dump in this area of open countryside immediately adjacent to the current Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the proposed South Downs National Park. Again, in 1991, County Councillors were assured that: "The finished ground surface levels on completion of the filling would reflect the original form of the low spur of land running westward from the A2037". This has proved to be wholly untrue. A 1930s Ordnance Survey map dating before the beginning of clay working, shows the site to have sloped gently from a high point by the entrance of the present scout camp, down to the low lying water meadows to the west. In contrast, there is now an artificial hill, of wholly unnatural form, towering above the village.
As if this was not enough, local residents are now shocked and insulted to find that the site's operators, Viridor Ltd have submitted a planning application to further extend the life of the site for yet another two years. This would involve the tipping of a further 500,000 t of refuse, and would be achieved by raising the height of the landfill over a large proportion of its area by yet another 4m. This will be clearly visible on the skyline from both the south and the north, and whilst it remains in operation, the nuisance caused to residents will continue.
Much more serious than this in the long term, however, is the extremely visible profile of the rubbish dump in this area of open countryside immediately adjacent to the current Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the proposed South Downs National Park. Again, in 1991, County Councillors were assured that: "The finished ground surface levels on completion of the filling would reflect the original form of the low spur of land running westward from the A2037". This has proved to be wholly untrue. A 1930s Ordnance Survey map dating before the beginning of clay working, shows the site to have sloped gently from a high point by the entrance of the present scout camp, down to the low lying water meadows to the west. In contrast, there is now an artificial hill, of wholly unnatural form, towering above the village.
As if this was not enough, local residents are now shocked and insulted to find that the site's operators, Viridor Ltd have submitted a planning application to further extend the life of the site for yet another two years. This would involve the tipping of a further 500,000 t of refuse, and would be achieved by raising the height of the landfill over a large proportion of its area by yet another 4m. This will be clearly visible on the skyline from both the south and the north, and whilst it remains in operation, the nuisance caused to residents will continue.