CONCERNS have been raised after it was revealed air pollution from a Wrexham landfill fire hit 14 times the standard level more than a day after it started.

The blaze broke out at the Hafod Landfill Site in Ruabon on the evening of Wednesday, May 27.

However, it wasn’t until the following day that Natural Resources Wales (NRW) was able to get monitoring equipment to the area as it had to be brought in from Swansea.

Within about an hour of pollution being measured, fine particles found in dust and smoke, known as PM10,  were recorded at 702 micrograms per cubic metre.

Welsh Government guidelines state that any emissions more than 50 micrograms are only allowed to occur 35 times a year and the annual average should not exceed 40.

The fire burned for several days after it first broke out before it was fully extinguished

The air quality data was shared in a letter sent to North Wales Senedd Member (MS) Llyr Gruffydd, who said he was worried about the impact on the health of local residents.

He also criticised the length of time it took for monitoring equipment to be deployed.

The Plaid Cymru politician said: “There has been a complete disregard for local people’s safety.

“Because we don’t have local testing equipment in the area, we don’t know how high the initial smoke pollution was on the first day of the fire.

“However, it’s fair to expect that the first day of intense smoke would also have breached that standard.

“Having a sustained period of pollution over a number of days deserved further investigation into the health effects on residents.

“This all happened during a heatwave, when it would have been very difficult to keep people indoors and with windows closed for days on end.

“It confirms a widely held view in the local area that this landfill site should never have been placed so close to populated areas and that it is a hazard for local people.”

During the fire, residents were advised to stay indoors and keep their doors and windows closed.

A multi-agency group, chaired by NRW, and including Wrexham Council and Public Health Wales, was established on the second day of the blaze when air quality monitoring equipment was sent out.

The highest concentration of particles was recorded between 9.30pm and 11pm on Thursday, May 27.

In the letter, NRW said it was possible that during this period, residents who were exposed to the smoke may have experienced irritation to their eyes, nose and throat.

However, it said the timeframe was “very short lived” and levels later dropped below the standard amount.

Despite this, Mr Gruffydd has questioned why the site was allowed to reopen so soon after the fire, with the cause yet to be established.

He said: “The company that runs the site, Enovert, has confirmed to me that it doesn’t know what caused the fire.

“NRW doesn’t know what caused the fire and is investigating any breach of the permit.

“With that in mind, it seems strange that dumping has been restarted at the site without working out what the problem was – it’s irresponsible.”

Enovert has previously apologised and said it had been unable to identify what started the fire.

Meanwhile, NRW is checking whether the site’s environmental permit has been breached as North Wales Fire and Rescue Service continues to probe the cause of the blaze.

NRW confirmed in its letter that it was working with the Welsh Government to respond quicker to incidents in north Wales

Addressing the concerns Mr Gruffydd raised regarding the permit, a spokesman said extra checks were put in place before the landfill was allowed to reopen.

David Powell, operations manager in North East Wales said: “We received reports of the fire at the Hafod Landfill site on 27 May 2020. Air quality monitoring commenced on 28 May.

“Specialists from Public Health Wales, Wrexham County Borough Council and Natural Resources Wales advised that the air quality should be monitored.

“Generally, throughout the incident, air pollution concentrations were below health based air quality standards, but there were short intervals where particulate matter concentrations were elevated due to the smoke.

“Following the fire, the operator supplied NRW with a plan which detailed additional checks, reviews and repairs that needed to be implemented before full operations could resume.

“Site inspections at the Hafod Quarry Landfill site are continuing and Enovert is still working to address the actions outlined in this plan.

“Our investigation into the fire is ongoing.”

A petition launched by Plaid Cymru calling for the landfill to be closed has been signed by more than 800 people.

It can be found at https://www.wrexhamplaid.cymru/close_hafod_tip