Latest update concerning landfill site fire
East Lothian Council is working in partnership with a number of public agencies dealing with the ongoing fire at a landfill site outside Dunbar.
The change of wind direction has pushed the resulting smoke plume over more populated areas of Dunbar resulting in some public concerns about the smoke composition and health risks.
SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency) is the public agency tasked with the regulation of waste sites. SEPA Officers have been on site since the fire was first reported and have carried out, and continue to, monitoring of the site operator’s implementation of mitigation measures. SEPA have confirmed that the site is authorised to dispose of non-hazardous waste.
In addition Scottish Fire and Rescue Service have been in attendance at the site a number of times and have advised that the fire is ‘under control and being managed by the site operator’. Current actions by the site operator are to cap or cover the fire with quantities of soil which will smother and so stop oxygen continuing to fuel the fire.
The resulting plumes of smoke are both visible and with an odour and advice remains to keep windows and doors closed and avoid being outside for long periods of time if the smoke is particularly bad. Schools within Dunbar and surrounding area have been advised to keep pupils in at breaks and lunchtimes.
Public health advice provided by NHS Lothian Public Health team is that anyone with a respiratory complaint who has concerns about a change in symptoms and they live locally, should look on NHS Inform https://www.nhsinform.scot/ for advice or contact NHS24 on 111.