Steve Double, Member of Parliament for St Austell and Newquay, has this week met with South West Water to try to resolve the historic odour complaints from local residents concerning Menagwins Sewage Treatment Works.
At the meeting, also attended by local Cornwall Councillor James Mustoe, and Chairman of Pentewan Valley Parish Council, Steve was given a tour of the works by South West Water’s Head of Waste Water Management and Customer Delivery Manager and discussed ways that South West Water could improve their management of the site.
Commenting Steve said:
“The issue of unpleasant odours from Menagwins is something I have been made aware of by a number of local residents. I subsequently wrote to everyone in the surrounding area and received a great deal of feedback – all pointing to the fact that conditions around the area have got worse over the last few years.”
“I am pleased to have had the opportunity to visit the site for myself and see the way in which it is being maintained. I am glad that as well as their recent announcement of more local investment, South West Water have now agreed a clear time line for its delivery by 2017. At my urging South West Water has also committed to working more closely with the Parish Council and local residents to establish an Odour Liaison Group which should ensure that issues with the site are dealt with in a more timely manner, as the overwhelming feedback I received showed that the system that was in place was not fit for purpose.”
“I will continue to work closely with local residents and Cllr Mustoe to ensure that South West Water maintain their site to an acceptable standard”.
Commenting Cllr Mustoe said,
“I was sorry to see that the residents who live near the Menagwins works have to put up with the terrible odours from the site on a regular basis and have worked with the Parish Council since my election to try to resolve this long running issue. I am pleased that Steve has listened to local concern and is working with me to resolve this. This situation is unacceptable, both for the local people and for users of the popular nearby Pentewan Cycle Trail. I will be working closely with our MP and residents to ensure that South West Water do everything within their power to be neighbourly and run their site in a way that does not disrupt the lives of those who are nearby.”