Sovereign Ward Councillor Kshama Shore is calling on Eastbourne Borough Council to use its legal powers to tackle the appalling smells coming from Southern Water’s Eastbourne Wastewater Treatment Works at Langney Point, known locally as "Poo Castle."
Cllr Shore is urging the Lib Dem run council to classify the ongoing odour problem as a statutory nuisance and issue an enforcement notice requiring Southern Water to act.
Local authorities have the power under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 to take such action where odours amount to a nuisance causing material interference with people’s comfort or quality of life.
Residents across Sovereign Harbour, Langney Point and surrounding neighbourhoods say the smell continues to blight daily life, preventing them from using gardens, drying clothes outside, or even opening windows on warm evenings. Some have also expressed concerns about health impacts, with respiratory problems reportedly worsening during periods of heavy odour.
A recent fire at the treatment works and repeated failures in the site’s "scrubber" filters, intended to control odour, have increased concerns about whether Southern Water is doing enough to resolve the problems.
Cllr Shore said: "Southern Water has admitted its failures, but apologies are no longer enough. Residents feel ignored and forced to endure disgusting smells that are making life miserable and may even be harming health.
Eastbourne Borough Council has the power to declare this a statutory nuisance and it must use those powers. Residents deserve a Council that fights for them, not one that looks the other way. A formal notice would force Southern Water to finally clean up its act and invest properly in fixing this site.
The current situation is unacceptable, and I will continue to press every day until real action is taken"
