Pebsham tip life extended by two years

Landfilling is likely to continue at the site until August 2008 rather than the long-anticipated 2006.

East Sussex County Council revealed the shock news following pressure from Cllr Jean Hopkinson and residents who had been tipped-off by site operator Biffa.

The announcement is a blow to plans for a Countryside Park at Pebsham and has sparked angry reaction from residents. Long-suffering neighbours had clung to the hope the site would be closed down between 2005 and 2007 - the time scale referred to in the county's Waste Local Plan. But the council now says those dates were just an estimate by Biffa and it appears the site can accommodate more waste than originally thought.

Cllr Hopkinson said: "This has caused a lot of anger and misunderstanding in Pebsham because we have found out through the back door."

County waste officer Peter Earl said Biffa had no time limit by which to complete tipping under the original planning permission.

He said landfilling was not an exact science. That means any dates can only be roughly estimated.

But he explained Biffa did have guidelines over the contour of the site to ensure adequate drainage and landscaping when landfill finishes.

Cllr Hopkinson added: "It seems as though Biffa's contract can be extended repeatedly for as long as the county council chooses. Given that the waste contractor, Onyx, has stated that it is only interested in Pebsham, people are extremely perturbed at the lack of clarity of the whole situation."

Bob Wilkins, director of transport and environment said: "The finished site levels have not changed and the revised end date for Pebsham reflects only the practical completion of the existing permitted site and is not related to any ESCC contractual matters.

"The situation reflects the difficulty in estimating the quantity and nature of wastes with increased recycling and composting. In 1998 it was thought that the site would now be closed and in the current Waste Local Plan 2005 to 2007 was given as the end date. The information from the operators indicates a further eight months of tipping on the previous estimate."