Did flies arrive from England?
Waste ‘may have come from site of another fly infestation’
A PLAGUE of flies which caused misery in Llanelli may have originated in England, it has emerged.
Welsh environment body Natural Resources Wales is still investigating the cause of the infestation which blighted the town.
NRW said it was working with a scrap metal business in Llanelli to reduce the chance of the flies returning en masse and confirmed it was also liaising with the Environment Agency to ascertain if the waste had come to Llanelli from a site in England which also had a fly infestation.
A PLAGUE of flies which caused misery in Llanelli may have originated in England, it has emerged.
Wales environment body Natural Resources Wales is still investigating the cause of the infestation which blighted the town three months ago.
NRW said it was working with a scrap metal business in Llanelli, AMG Resources Ltd, to reduce the chance of the flies returning en masse.
An NRW spokesman said it was also liaising with its counterpart in England - the Environment Agency - to ascertain if the waste had come to Llanelli from a site in England which had also had a fly infestation.
Llanelli residents said the insects had made their lives a misery, preventing them from cooking at home or even enjoying a cup of tea. Fly strips, they said, turned black after 24 hours.
The flies spread from Morfa and Tyisha as far as Burry Port and Bigyn.
One woman brought a bag of them to a public meeting held to address the situation.
Carmarthenshire Council took up the investigation at the end of May and said it was confident it had found the source of the problem - a recycling plant - around a week later.
The probe was then taken up by NRW, which is responsible for permits and enforcement at recycling facilities.
In June NRW removed unwashed plastic and scrap metal, which it said could be linked to the fly infestation, from AMG Resources. It said its officers would be checking that the company took action to minimise the risk of further problems occurring.
Asked yesterday if the investigation had concluded, and whether any permit breaches had been identified, NRW operations manager Gavin Brown said: “The investigation into the root cause of the incident is still ongoing, and we are making sure all investigation avenues are being covered.
“AMG Resources Ltd has submitted a variation to its environmental permit which includes conditions to reduce the likelihood of the pest issue reoccurring. We will be consulting with Carmarthenshire Council on the variation before making our decision.”
AMG Resources declined to comment. The infestation is also being looked into by the council’s environmental and public protection scrutiny committee.
The move has been welcomed by Llanelli town councillor Sean Rees.
“This infestation caused misery, frustration, expense and stress for everyone who has had to cope with such disgusting conditions,” he said. “There are lessons that need to be learnt. Residents’ views must be heard.”
He said the town council had written to the county council requesting action from the scrutiny committee.
“The creation of a report is a welcome step in the right direction,” said Mr Rees. “We all hope that such a report will now ensure control measures are reviewed in order to tackle any future problems should they arise.”
He has also urged the county council to reinstate its pest control division.
Committee chairman councillor John James said members did not need persuading on this matter.
“This is not something we were pressurised into doing, rather it was something that members of the scrutiny committee felt strongly about,” he said.
Residents said they were also bothered by large numbers of flies in summer 2017, and don’t want a repeat next year.
There are some lessons that need to be learnt. Residents’ views must be heard
Councillor Sean Rees