Last week, the Environment Agency (EA) and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) published the findings of six months of air quality monitoring linked to odours from the Lower Compton landfill, concluding that the results did not indicate a significant public health risk.
The report prompted questions from residents about why the monitoring station was based at Priestley Primary School and why only one location was used. Former Calne town councillor Michael Hudston also challenged the report, arguing it placed too much emphasis on average hydrogen sulphide readings rather than the highest concentrations recorded during the monitoring period.
In a blog published on Friday, Mr Hudston also questioned whether a single monitoring location could accurately reflect the experience of residents reporting odours in other parts of the town and renewed his call for the Lower Compton landfill to close.
Calne News put those questions to the Environment Agency.
An Environment Agency spokesperson said: "We are confident that the mobile monitoring facility is in the best place, and the location is supported by analysis of odour reports received from the community.
"Our monitoring is designed to assess whether a site is compliant with the controls in its Environmental Permit that protect people from unacceptable levels of odour."
The Environment Agency said the monitoring unit was installed at Priestley Primary School after considering a range of factors, including the need for a secure location, a reliable power supply, electrical safety requirements and permission from the landowner.
It said suitable sites meeting those requirements can be difficult to secure and that keeping the monitor in one place over an extended period allows it to gather data across different weather conditions, wind directions, temperatures and atmospheric pressures.
The agency said regularly moving the equipment to areas where odours had been reported would risk "chasing the plume" rather than gathering representative data about air quality and potential exposure across the wider community.
It also said trained Environment Agency officers carry out odour assessments in the community, with data from the monitoring station used to support those assessments.
The agency added that the mobile monitoring facility was not deployed to investigate public health impacts. It said responsibility for investigating potential health concerns lies with Wiltshire Council and the UK Health Security Agency, adding that data collected at Priestley Primary School has been shared with UKHSA to support its work.
Mr Hudston responded: "Whilst I understand the need to select a location suitable for the equipment, I get the impression that they didn’t ask any homeowner who has made repeated complaints if they were willing to host the equipment. It seems to me that they went for the easy option."
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