MP urges government to act over tip site

Campaigners say they have been failed by the planning system over the tip site

Rotherham's MP has urged the new government to step in to halt the reopening of a controversial tip site.

The Grange Landfill site at Kimberworth, also known as Droppingwell Tip, closed in the 1990s and contains toxic industrial waste.

Grange Landfill Ltd was given permission by the Environment Agency (EA) to dump inert waste on an adjacent field. Rotherham Council declared in 2023 the site had exceeded its boundary, but this was quashed by the Planning Inspectorate when the company appealed.

Labour MP Sarah Champion has written to the environment secretary saying it "cannot be right" to allow the site to reopen after the "most cursory scrutiny".

'Residents trampled'

Planning permission for the site, which dates from the 1950s, remains in place and preparatory work for its use as a tip once again continues.

In a letter to Steve Reed, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Ms Champion said: "It cannot be right that a site dormant for so long can be permitted to reopen with only the most cursory scrutiny on the basis of planning permissions issued before the majority of local residents were even born.

"That my constituents’ views and rights have been lost in this process shows the deep flaws in existing legislation.”

Ms Champion has asked for a meeting with Mr Reed to discuss the site, and said: "It is clear to me that only direct government intervention is able to ensure that the permit variation issued for the Droppingwell site is rescinded.

"I raised this time and time again with the former Conservative government and pleaded with them to stand by local residents trampled by this woeful regulatory process."

Community members have produced merchandise to publicise their opposition to the tip

The EA said the application would allow the deposit of material such as soil and stone and the existing landfilled area would not be reopened.

It said: "Once operational, the site will only receive inert waste, which poses no significant pollution risk to communities or the environment."

Local campaigners formed the Droppingwell Action Group, which has been trying to prevent the tip being brought back into use, branding the move a "disaster for the area".

Millmoor Juniors Football Club, which plays matches alongside the tip, said it was "deeply disappointed" permission had been granted to resume work at the site.

It said: "The current land which our club sits on is a tranquil and pretty place for the public to enjoy as well as an oasis for wildlife to thrive, and the thought of it being turned into an horrific mess with many hundreds of lorries dumping waste and creating an extremely dangerous environment, is saddening to say the least."

Grange Landfill Ltd has been contacted for comment.

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail]