Residents of a York village are growing increasingly concerned as a persistent smell continues to plague the area.
As previously reported, the mystery smell first emerged in Bishopthorpe earlier this year, with initial blame placed on the nearby Naburn Sewage Works or the River Ouse.
However, as the smell has become increasingly more putrid and doesn’t appear to be shifting, some villagers believe a more serious cause may be to blame.
A resident, who has lived in Bishopthorpe for over 30 years, states that she can “hand on heart” say that the smells are not coming from Naburn Sewage Works.
“Whenever I phone to complain, it’s Naburn that’s blamed. Whilst it may be prone to slight odours in hotter weather, the smells are not from there.
“We know what the smells from Naburn are like, we’ve lived here long enough to be able to differentiate between them!” She told YorkMix.
The resident reported that the smell surfaced around March and initially lingered for a couple of months.
Now, she reports that the stench comes in sporadic waves, lasting several days or a week at a time, and for full 24 hour stretches, “There is no escaping the foul odours!”
Her frustrations are heightened as her complaints to City of York Council are met with “having to accept Bishopthorpe is a semi-rural village.”
“Whilst they appear to be proactive in their investigation, we are constantly told that the sewerage works have been visited,” she told YorkMix.
Site suspicion
The resident pointed out that in order for Naburn Sewage Works to be the root of the problem, the wind direction to Bishopthorpe would have to be travelling easterly.
“The wind direction is nearly alway southerly, or south westerly when the smells are at their worst. This means that the odours are blown from south of Bishopthorpe,” she told YorkMix.
She believes the true source lies at Acaster Airfield, just over three miles from Bishopthorpe.
In the former Royal Air Force station, there’s a Sludge Liming Treatment plant which was given a six month license by the Environment Agency in March.
It operates under 4Recycling Limited, a company based in Knottingley.
The resident states that human waste kept at the plant is causing the stench, which she reported to have started in March.
“Human waste, while being a fertiliser, is horrendously strong and lasts for the best part of a week, and in the first instance it lasted for months.”
She claimed that the site currently holds a temporary licence, which she fears may become permanent in September.
Ian Grey, Environmental Health Officer at City of York Council, confirmed that the license is currently due to expire 18 September 2025.
If it is made permanent, the resident believes this may cement a long term problem for the village.
“It makes me think, is this the future of our village? You really need to be here to experience the odour, it’s even worse if you’re walking on Sim Balk Lane when the lorries are full of said fertiliser,” she told YorkMix
Ian Grey added, “The airfield is also connected with Batrudding Farm, which a couple of months ago had been spreading some of the waste onto fields in the vicinity which I received odour complaints about.”
Health and safety concerns
The resident also raised concerns over the potential health risks of using human waste as fertiliser, especially the risk of medication contamination.
“The excrement used is likely contaminated with antibiotics and other such drugs, will this eventually filter into the soil and consequently into our food chain? What will be the effect of contaminated human waste?” Louise questioned.
She said any permanent licensing should be delayed, “until the odours and waste are better controlled and that the human waste is certified as safe to be used in our soil.”
Councillor’s responses
Bishopthorpe Ward Councillor Michael Nicholls, also a village resident, acknowledged the concerns. He however maintains the likely source is Naburn Sewage Works.
“I’m aware of how bad the smell is. Hopefully we can get to the bottom of it soon, before summer is ruined,” he told YorkMix.
He confirmed that, as far as he’s aware, the waste stored at the Acaster Airfield plant is licensed and safe to use.
Bishopthorpe Ward. Photograph: Supplied
Cllr Nicholls has been gathering evidence over the last few months, tracking the timing and frequency of the smell.
He’s currently working alongside the council’s environmental health agency to get a meeting in place with Yorkshire Water, to further his enquiries.
He told YorkMix, “Yorkshire Water do have sludge cake to remove from the Naburn site, which could be the source.
“I will be asking both Environmental Health and the Environment Agency to ensure they continue to closely monitor the use of sewage sludge and that both work closely to establish the source of the awful smell.”
Action from Yorkshire Water
On 27 June, Yorkshire Water announced that it will be arranging to get site stocks of sewage cake removed from Naburn Sewage Works by paying an external company, “which should result in a corresponding reduction in odour from the Naburn site.”
On Tuesday (1 July), a resident posted an update from Yorkshire Water to the Bishopthorpe Community Facebook page, informing locals on the progress.
“As discussed we’ve got a noise survey taking place this week and we should be able to share an update with you regarding this within the next week. We’re also looking to get the sludge exported from the site and have multiple wagons taking this away, so we should see an improvement with the odour in next week as stocks decrease.”
One commenter noted that if this action eliminates the smell, it will successfully rule out Acaster Airfield.
York Outer MP response
The issue has also been raised with York Outer MP Luke Charters, who said he had flagged the matter with Yorkshire Water back in May.
He told YorkMix: “I know that residents had already raised this with Yorkshire Water and faced lengthy delays in replies to the emails and complaints, this simply isn’t good enough for an issue that is affecting residents 24/7.
“I have been in constant contact from constituents in Bishopthorpe whose daily lives have been blighted by this awful smell. No one should have to put up with this, especially after it is continually raised.
“Going forward, I will continue to seek clarification from Yorkshire Water about the storage of sewage, reiterating that the presence of the Sewage Works should not ruin people’s day-to-day lives.
“I’d encourage constituents to continue to get in contact with me and share their experiences so that we can continue to hold them to account.”
Environmental Health and 4Recycling Limited have been contacted for further comment.