Council back call for firms to stop using creosote
ONE MAN ‘COULDN’T SIT IN GARDEN’
A COTTINGHAM man was unable to sit in his garden last summer after a broadband pole coated in a harmful chemical was put up, a councillor has claimed.
Cottingham North’s Cllr Phil Redshaw said creosote-coated poles had been put up near schools and on residential streets despite it being banned for sale to the general public last year because of its potentially harmful effects on health.
It is still permitted for professional and industrial use. East Riding councillors heard a man, who has asthma, could not sit in his back garden after a pole coated in creosote was put up close to his Cottingham home.
MS3 chief executive Guy Miller said the company was phasing out creosote poles, while Connexin said it would not use them in areas of high footfall where possible.
It comes as councillors backed a call for broadband companies to stop using poles coated in creosote at East Riding Council’s full meeting on Wednesday, February 21.
The motion also included a call lodged by South West Holderness Conservative Cllr Sue Steel for the Government to ban its use by broadband companies.
Creosote is made from tars and other material from plants.
It is commonly used in wood preservation but it was banned for sale to the public in the UK in 2023 because of its health and environmental effects which can range from rashes to potentially harming unborn babies.
Cllr Redshaw said, despite the ban, companies were still able to put up poles with creosote on them.
The councillor said: “Creosote is a seriously harmful substance, it’s carcinogenic and people with asthma and eczema are advised to avoid it.
“One Cottingham resident is an asthma sufferer and he had a pole installed by his hedge.
“He couldn’t sit in his back garden all summer last summer because of that.
“During the summer, creosote bleeds out of the wood and there’s examples of children brushing against it and getting rashes and burns. The law was updated in 2023 so the Government is waking up to these issues but not as far as poles are concerned.”
Cllr Steel said they also needed to send the message that they wanted the Government to prevent companies from using creosote.
She said: “This is something that’s not available for public consumption, blighting our streets is only made worse by the toxic substances used to coat telecom poles.”
MS3’S Mr Miller said the company’s use of creosote poles would stop once their current stock has been used up.
The chief executive said: “Creosote poles are used as standard across the UK for the provisioning of telecommunications services, and legislatively there are no limitations on their usage.
“However, in order to make MS3’S build more sustainable and further positively impact local communities, MS3 has voluntarily made the decision to switch to eco-poles that contain no creosote.”
A Connexin spokesperson said: “We are committed to working with the local community, wherever possible, to ensure that poles placed in high footfall areas close to nurseries and schools use treatments not based on creosote.”
We are committed to working with the local community, wherever possible, to ensure that poles placed in high footfall areas close to nurseries and schools use treatments not based on creosote Connexin spokesperson