Leamington Spa fly issues

What is an environmental permit?

Handling and processing waste typically requires an environmental permit, except in certain cases where a registered exemption applies.

Permits contain a number of conditions which control pollution to the land, air and water from regulated facilities, that are covered by the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016. The Environment Agency is authorised to determine applications for environmental permits. It is also required to carry out periodic inspections of regulated facilities.

How does the Environment Agency regulate environmental permits?

The Environment Agency decides whether to grant or refuse an application and, where applicable, what permit conditions to impose. Permit conditions may require an operator to use appropriate measures to control potential amenity impacts (such as flies and odour).

It is our role to assess compliance with permits and to take appropriate regulatory action if we identify any breaches. We do so by reference to our enforcement and sanctions policy and the Government’s core guidance on environmental permitting, and with appropriate regard to the Regulators' Code.

We aim to make sure our enforcement response is proportionate and appropriate to each situation. Our first response is usually to give advice and guidance or issue a warning to bring an offender into compliance (with permit conditions) where possible.

If an operator acts in accordance with our advice and guidance, we will not normally consider taking formal enforcement action.

Our officers assess compliance with permit conditions in a number of ways including by announced and unannounced site inspections, and by conducting off-site odour assessments. You can read more about how the Environment Agency assesses compliance with environmental permit conditions here: Assessing and scoring environmental permit and licence compliance.

When would the Environment Agency revoke an environmental permit?

An environmental permit remains in force until it is surrendered by the operator, is disclaimed by a liquidator, or is revoked by the Environment Agency.

Environmental permitting: Core guidance produced by the Department for Environment & Rural Affairs (Defra) indicates that it may be appropriate for the Environment Agency to issue a Revocation Notice where “exhaustive use of other enforcement tools has failed to protect the environment properly, where the permit holder is no longer the operator or where the operator is considered not to be competent.”

This means that normally, we will only consider revoking a permit if there is serious pollution and all efforts have been made by the operator to take appropriate measures.

Who should I speak to about health concerns?

The Environment Agency is not responsible for providing public health advice. If you have any health concerns, you should contact your local General Practitioner (GP) or call NHS 111.

How do I report an environmental incident about a site that the Environment Agency regulates?

Please report any incidents at Environment Agency-regulated waste sites to our 24-hour incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60.

We urge people to report any issues as soon as practically possible and provide as much detail as possible. For example, if you are reporting an odour, it would be helpful to our investigations if you can also provide the type of odour smelt, or a description of the odour and its strength.

Incident reports help us build a picture of the issues being experienced in the community and inform our regulatory activities.

What will the Environment Agency do with my incident report? 

All reports received via the Environment Agency 24-hour incident hotline, and the reports we receive from Warwick District Council, will be logged and investigated. The Environment Agency will not provide feedback to individual reports of environmental incidents.

How do you regulate off-site odour?

The permit includes a condition that requires the operator to prevent odour off site or, where that is not possible, to keep it to a minimum. The operator will describe how it will achieve this in a document called an Odour Management Plan (OMP). The OMP must be kept up to date and each revision is assessed by our officers to ensure it covers all the key areas of operations in relation to odour management.

Officers assess compliance with the odour condition by:

1. Verifying the presence, type and intensity of odour in the vicinity of a permitted site,
2. Identifying whether the site is the likely source of the odour, and if so going on site to determine the causes of any odours and whether the operator is taking appropriate measures to control the odour.

What have you done about our incident reports to date?

Following the reports of flies, odour and occasional noise issues we started receiving last year, we have increased our regulation at 2 permitted sites Fortress Recycling and Resource Management Limited and Plasgran Limited (Berry Circular Polymers).

To investigate concerns, we have increased the number of site inspections at these sites throughout 2023 and 2024. The site operated by Plasgran Limited has been our main focus.

We secured the services of an entomologist (an expert in the study of insects), who conducted audits at both sites in January 2024. Our officers have required several additional measures to be implemented at both sites, building upon the advice and guidance from the entomologist. This should mean that the risk of fly numbers becoming problematic continues to decrease.

We invited residents who told us they were being impacted by flies, to take part in a fly monitoring exercise in their homes. The purpose of the monitoring was to help us gather data on the species and fly activity in the local area. Only one resident consented, and the fly monitoring has concluded.

We provided data from this monitoring exercise to the independent entomologist, which was reviewed alongside fly monitoring data provided by Plasgran Limited. The entomologist has also reviewed photographs of flies in external fly traps that have been sent to us by residents. The entomologist has concluded that very low fly counts have been recorded. Photographs provided showed greenbottles and cluster flies, both of which occur naturally in gardens. The photographs showed a lack of housefly dispersal from any site

We will continue to regulate all regulated facilities in the area, to ensure operators comply with their environmental permit and are taking appropriate measures to control odour and flies.

Odour and fly issues are very difficult to quantify and address. Please continue to report any issues you experience to our incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60 and we will investigate them as swiftly as possible.

Who investigates statutory nuisance?

Under Part III of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, the relevant local authority (in this case Warwick District Council) must investigate complaints about issues that could be considered as a ‘statutory nuisance’. Matters that can be considered as potential statutory nuisances include noise, artificial light, and insect infestations from industrial, trade or business premises.

If there is an environmental permit, Warwick District Council must get the Secretary of State’s permission before prosecuting for breach of any abatement notice that it serves. You can read more here about the Interaction between Environmental Permitting and local authorities' statutory nuisance duties.