Rugeley farm blaze: Slitting Mill operators banned from shifting waste
The operators of Slitting Mill farm in Staffordshire, which was the subject of a huge fire earlier this year, have been banned from importing and processing waste.
A fire broke out at the Rugeley site in September and has been burning ever since.
A high court injunction was granted earlier this month and now the full details of what the injunction means have been released.
Denis Ward and Steven Reeves-Morgan must not bring waste onto the site, not recycle or burn any waste or disturb the waste which is currently burning.
In addition, they cannot remove any waste unless it is being taken to an authorised site.
Any breach of the order could result in a fine, assets being seized or imprisonment. A trial is expected to take place in earlier 2017.
Staffordshire County Council's environment leader Gill Heath said: "We're pleased to have been able to take positive action against two people who have been operating this unlawful site.
"Their actions and the fire have caused distress to the local community and have been unacceptable. The county council has served this order on behalf of all of the organisations involved in dealing with this matter.
"We hope now that the two people who have received the orders take this seriously and comply with them."
In light of the consistently low and reducing levels of particulates observed at both monitoring sites, the decision has now been taken by Cannock Chase District Council to cease air quality monitoring.
The district council will continue to keep the situation under review and will be able to reinstate monitoring at short notice if needed.
