News Coverage Links:

Asbestos Scare as demolition progresses

link  to Evening Argus 13.11.06 story: http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.1017483.0.parents_fears_over_asbestos.php

link to BBC News website on this story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/6148784.stm

 

DO YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE DEMOLITION ON THE HOLLINGDEAN DEPOT SITE?

At the beginning of October there was a demonstration about the demolition. 175 letters were sent to the Council and Veolia requesting a Public Meeting to provide more information for parents and the community.

However, no Public Meeting was offered, and yesterday many parents of children at Downs Infants School were concerned about the activity on the site.

If you feel that there should have been a Public Meeting, and you have not been given enough information about the demolition, you can ring the Veolia Environmental Services Helpline on 426553 or Jim Whitelegg, Senior Environmental Health Officer at the council, on 292381. 

 

Questions that you might want to ask:

• What are the guidelines being followed?
• What checks are in place to make sure they are followed?
• How are you monitoring the site, and what are the results of the
• monitoring?
• What are the contingency plans if there is a problem arising from the
• demolition?

Why did you not have a meeting with parents weeks ago so you could answer these questions?

 

Marchers demand consultation over abattoir demolition precautions

A successful demonstration saw around 100 parents and children demonstrate in an effort to get Veolia and the council to keep the local community informed about safety precautions over the demolition work at the former abattoir site.

Some 175 letters were handed to the council demanding a public meeting takes
place before demolition work starts, but as yet the council has not
responded to this very reasonable demand.

Singing and chanting supporters of Dump the Dump braved the driving rain to make the point that neither the council nor the company have shown the slightest inclination to inform local residents of the procedures in place to safeguard them.

Local media reported (see http://www.theargus.co.uk/display.var.948836.0.children_join_tip_protest_march.php) that the council has been advised that the former
abattoir and surrounding buildings are a hazard following recent arson
attacks and are a magnate for vandals.

These buildings have been derelict for more than two years and yet it
appears that they have only become a danger to the local community and a target for vandals in the last three months. That scenario could only be credible if the council and Veolia did not have a vested interest in demolishing the buildings.

Even so DtD is not against the demolition of these structures but locals
should be aware that they pose a serious health hazard. Asbestos is present in large quantities and demolition contractors will send workers into the area wearing full body suits, including breathing apparatus.

No such protection will be available for the local community. DtD expert
Bernd Eggen points out that the company will have a system of measuring the density of asbestos fibres during the demolition process, but there will be no way of knowing how much of the asbestos escapes into the community.

Once airborne the fibres will be subject to the whim of the local air
currents and there will be no telling where these fibres will land or whose lungs they might enter. Asbestos fibres can sit in the lungs for 20 years before inducing cancerous cells to develop.

By this time children at Downs Infants, or the Junior School will be in
their mid to late 20’s. Parents cannot be so complacent as to leave crucial decisions about the health and safety of their children in the hands of a company whose major goal is to create shareholder value.

The campaign to ensure that both Veolia and Brighton & Hove City Council meet their obligations to the people of this city will continue and to that end we say that prevention is better than cure so Dump the Dump!!

 

Demolition work to start at Hollingdean site:

Will be starting Mon 2nd Oct for 12 weeks. By Veolias admission there will be noise and dust including "amounts of asbestos-based material". Nobody has offered satisfactory evidence that unacceptably high levels of dangerous pollutants will not occur before monitoring and any necessary intervention can be effected.

 

 

Demolition at the Hollingdean site does not mean that the dump can go ahead. Local schools have demanded that pollution levels are monitored closeley. Are you worried about demolition on the Hollingdean site ?

Asbestos.....

Pollution....

Toxic Materials...?

If you have concerns about the demolition please:

• write to Council Chief Executive Alan MaCarthy.
• Write to the Argus
• Contact Dump the Dump via the website

Please keep us informed about the effect of the demolition on your family and our community.

 

DUMP THE DUMP RESPONSE DOCUMENT - DOWNLOAD IT NOW.

We have a 29 page document which we passed to the Planning sub committee, Director of the environment, Chief Executive of the council, all councillors and some council officer, LEA, party leaders and the press on 8th June.

You can download the document here (Click the relevant document style following): PDF or WORD DOCUMENT

THE DATE FOR THE DIARY:
The Planning Sub Committee Meeting for the Hollingdean Waste Transfer Station
has been 99% confirmed for the 19th June, at 2pm. Hove Town Hall.
 
This will be the day when the committee votes on the application of the Waste Transfer Station, Hollingdean Lane !
 
We will make representations for 1/2 hour in front of the committee & there will be various speakers.  We will also be holding a demo outside.
 
Please book time off for the day, and JOIN US at Hove Town Hall. We need your support one last time! This is decision day and we need to let the committee know one last time how large the opposition is to the WTC.
 
Thank you! And see you on the 19th! Please let everybody know about the demo.

New video showing highlighting the traffic disruption and danger to pedestrians is opline here.

It is not too late to object to the new application BH2006/00900! Despite the official deadline, Maria Seale will still count new letters of objection, before taking the final figures to the Planning sub committee. So: we can still write now. If you haven’t done it yet, go on and download our proforma letter and send it off today. Pass two copies to your neighbours and friends - The more letters the better!

Find out more about new application online here.

Comment on new application Number: BH2006 / 00900, address:  Former abattoir, Hollingdean Lane: here.

Read your councillors objections to the new application here.

18-4-06: One day left to object! Join the kids march! Schools return after the Easter break on Wednesday, 19 April, the last day for objections to the new plans to be received at the council’s offices.  Protestors sense a conspiracy to minimise the numbers of objectors’ letters by implementing the 21day consultative period over the school holiday, thereby limiting the chance for parents and governors to discuss and register their views. 
 
Dump the Dump will be providing facilities on the first day back at school after the Easter holiday, for objectors to sign letters and to take them to the Town Hall on a kids’ protest parade at the end of the school day, Wednesday 19th April.  Children, parents, governors and any interested participants will be able to join the parade outside of the schools at 3.30pm and walk through the town to Bartholomews Square to hand in the late-signed letters of objection

12-4-06: What is this new application all about? Get the details and download our latest press release about the NEW application here.

20-3-06: The Hollingdean development re-submission is in!
Onyx and the Council are still trying to make this dump happen. The NEW application number is: BH2006/00900
 
We received a CD with the new application (in electronic format!) on Monday, together with indications of the changes that have been made, in comparison to the old application. The application will be online here and can be downloaded.
 
Remember your old letter of objection will not count; you have to write again quoting the new application number BH2006/00900.
We will have 21 days statutory consultation, so it is up to you – fight it, or live with it.
 
• We will be trying to read the application asap, and inform you of what the changes mean. You may also want to help reading the application. We maybe surprised...
Send us your application change findings by e-mail: click here.
 
• Then get writing -  individual letters, as we found, in the case file, will count far more than just proforma letters. To save us time, send us your own individual proforma letters by e-mail: click here.
 
• We will have tables around the area, where you can sign a proforma, or you can download one from the site (coming after we have read application). Tell at least 2 of your friends, to achieve another 3000 letters of objections again, we all need to get motivated! Want to organise a table? We can tell you how. Let us know via e-mail: click here.
 
• We may also have a direct action committee, so get involved with some ideas. Eg do you know anyone with a lorry?
Email us with your ideas: click here.
 
Please check back soon when we will have details of the new application. Remember - FIGHT IT - OR LIVE WITH IT! Thank you !

Dustcart death figures rising: Waste and recycling firms are put on alert after nine people die in eight weeks in accidents in the industry. Read the BBC report here.

Support for DOVE - As you know Onyx's plans for the Hollingdean site include a Waste Transfer Station which will bulk up waste from across the city to be trucked over to Newhaven.  They have now put in the formal planning application for this incinerator and people in Newhaven really need our support ... URGENT: Click here to find out how to object - deadline 27th Jan.

Fight against waste site is stepped up: Read the Argus artcle from Jan 16th here:

Council approves waste plant plan - what a disaster, but lets keep fighting it...

Council Apology! Alan McCarthy, of Brighton and Hove City Council, has written to Downs Infant School in Hollingdean, Brighton, saying it had failed to consult the school initially... Read more

Dump Dumped? Onyx may go back to the drawing board after its proposals triggered thousands of objections.... Read more

DIY Compost - over 30 per cent of landfill waste is organic matter - dont throw it..use it!... learn how here.

Climate Change will affect the UK significantly - read more here.

Waste Transfers Centers - a fire risk? A fire at a recent London WTC has posed many safety questions... read the full story here.

Maria Seale, the development control officer has requested that the applicant Onyx clarify parts of the application. Onyx will have to respond to these answers with their results. We will be notified and will have 21 days public consultation to respond.

It is not too late to write to Maria Seale and object to the WTC. Send your letter as soon as possible. For addresses and a standard letter click here.

If you have concerns or would like further clarification for example, have you experienced a decrease in the air quality in and around the Hollingdean/ Ditchling Road area? Have you or your children suffered with respiratory problems over the hot days? Write if you are worried.
Write and e-mail the planning sub committee tell them how you really feel.

We also urge you to continue writing to the Argus it is important to keep the discussions live and in the public domain. Talk about your experience of walking to school with the children and the impact CityClean currently has on your walk to school. The CityClean depot should now be at its peak with the fleet increase. Do you find that there are now more HGVs in your area? How does that impact on you? Talk about the railway bridge and the congestion that already happens there. The Vogue Gyratory suffered especially in the heat; did you experience the air quality problems there?

Dump the Dump continues to work hard to defeat this application and to keep up the pressure on our council, making sure it works for us all that is our priority.
We are also working on surveys to gather real facts, real information about what you think. This will be published and on our website keeping you up to date with the latest news.

Extra traffic from £10m waste site will 'ruin our community' read more here

60 angry residents in Rugby Road, Brighton, demonstrated to raise awareness of the noise, pollution and safety risk from heavy goods vehicles travelling from the Cityclean depot at Hollingdean to the rest of the city... and the proposed Hollingdean Waste Transfer Station will only add to this problem! Read more

Right to be angry (Letter to the Argus (19th July) Read more

Questions we need answered at the next public meeting. We've compiled a list of questions that we'd like answered at the next meeting. Click here to download.

Quotations from the United States Environmental Protection Agency:

“Waste transfer stations are facilities where municipal solid waste is unloaded from collection vehicles and briefly held while it is loaded onto larger long distance transport...for shipment to landfills and other treatment facilities.

Although WTS help reduce the impact of trucks travelling to and from the delivery site they can cause an increase in traffic in the immediate area where they are located. If not properly sited, designed, and operated they (WTS)...cause problems for residents living near them.

WTS are disproportionately clustered in low-income communities and communities of coloured (population). They are commonly found adjacent to high density housing...they...bring many problems.”

Brighton Friends of the Earth have produced a helpful factsheet: 40 ways to recycle. Click here to download.

NEW PUBLIC MEETING: Following the chaos at the last attempted meeting Brighton Council & Onyx have scheduled a second meeting in a larger venue on Monday 18th July. Click here for details.

This is an important opportunity for you to ask questions and make your views known, remember if the application is approved the public, unlike Onyx, has no right of appeal

500 people turned up for the last meeting on June 23rd and because of the size of the venue only 200 were allowed in
The Sallis Benney holds 400, let’s fill it to bursting once again! TELL YOUR FRIENDS, bring your kids and if you cannot stay, just walk out half way through. The lawn outside the Theatre can hold lots of people, so bring some water and join us. We will have a walking bus to this venue, starting at 5.30 from Downs Infants School. Then we will gather outside Sallys Benny and then make our way in.

Council in cahoots with Onyx? Dumpthe dump was surprised to see Brighton Council's logo alongside Onyx's on the recent letter about the Waste Transfer Station. We complained! Read full story here.

CHAOTIC SCENES AT DOWNS INFANTS SCHOOL

We would like to say a very big thank you from Dump the Dump Campaign to all of you who turned out on Thursday evening and to those who could not get in and were turned away. It was wonderful to see some democracy (and you) in action and an opportunity to face the decision makers who somehow think they know what is best for us.

Don’t go away though – We haven’t done yet, as the venue chosen was badly organised by the council and Onyx you have been promised a chance to air your thoughts. Coming again very soon (week of June 27th was their promise – watch this space) make sure you get the opportunity to tell them exactly what you want, even if you have already been to the last meeting. We need even more at the next one! For more information and pictures of the meeting click here.

Britain has one of the worst recyling records in Europe. Read the full story here

BRIGHTON ONE OF UK's MOST POLLUTED CITIES - Even without the extra traffic and pollution the WTC will cause! Read the BBC report here.

REAL ANSWERS: You may have received an FAQ from Brighton and Hove Council and East Sussex County Council, to pre-empt some of the questions which could arise on the Thursday 23rd. 6.30 meeting.

We have taken the opportunity to look at the real answers and actually give you some facts about the development.

This document is in progress, and will need completion, however since the meeting will be held on Thursday you can download the document as it stands here.

YOUR ONLY CHANCE TO GET ANSWERS? An alleged PUBLIC MEETING organised by Brighton Council, City Clean, and Onyx has been scheduled for Thursday 23rd June at Downs Infant School, Ditchling Road, 6.30pm.
This is the first time that the applicant and the council have agreed to meet the public, but only if you’ve got an invitation. That's right - you have to be placed on a "guest list" in order to get in!

Click here to send an e-mail asking for an invite or call 01273 274674 to get on the guest list. Please download our flyer here and distribute this to as many residents as possible. If you don't get invited - come anyway and demonstrate - we mean it - you need to be there!

Argus reports Hertford Meeting - Click here

Purse found: At the Town Hall demo - please contact us

Public Meeting - Hertford School 15th June 6PM - Click here for details. Children welcome!

Campaign Poster - download it - print it out - stick it in your window! Let people know you support the campaign - download here

Demonstration Success! On Thurs 12th May over 250 people attended a peaceful demonstation outside the Town Hall. Read more here

Opinions - the debate rages! We've had lots of replies to one particular opinion from an HGV waste driver - read the discussion for yourself here.

Press Releases: We make every effort to keep the press and media informed of our campaign. To view the press releases as and when we send them click here.

Kicking up a Stink - 2! The latest newsletter and factsheet is available to download here. It contains progress updates for the campaign and the WTC along with details for plenty of ways you can make your voice heard.

Where do you stand Public Servant? Find out here

BBC reports the campaign! Click here

View from a childs window - see how the increase in traffic is already affecting our children. Click here

The Dump the Dump kids party was a great success - more info here

20-4-05 Keith Taylor, Leader of the Green Party in Brighton & prospective parliamentary candidate has visited Downs Infants School with the Environmental Editor of the Independent to discuss the impact of the proposed development.

14-4-05 Cityclean fleet already exceeds predicted numbers– click here for more info.

12-4-05 For top tips & ideas on how to reduce your waste - click here

04-4-05 We are aware that a new campaign has started at the proposed site. This is a separate campaign to the refuse-refuse campaign.

David Lepper MP supports campaign: David Lepper has sent letters to the City Council and The Argus outlining his objections to Hollingdean Depot as the site for the Waste Transfer Centre. To read his letter to the Argus click here.

Kicking Up a Stink - Issue 1 out now! The newsletter of the campaign contains latest news, information about how you can get active and support the campaign and names and addresses of concerned parties. Download it as pdf file. Click here.

Residents take the debate to the Argus letters page- click here

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