"We're Neighbors to the UK's Largest Illegal Dump: 25,000 Tonnes of Toxic Waste and the Smell of Rotting Sewage"

FURIOUS residents living next to a huge illegal dump have said their property value has collapsed due to the foul stench and vermin.

Locals are calling on authorities to do more to tackle the toxic tip which has made their lives “hell”.

Furious locals have been living with a massive illegal tip for more than a yearCredit: SWNS There are mountains of rubbish up to 20 metres high on the site at Bickershaw in WiganCredit: SWNS

More than 25,000 tonnes of rubbish has been dumped at the two acre site in , including black bin bags full of household waste like nappies as well as harmful chemicals and plastics.

Homeowners said the festering pile has caused a “rotting sewage smell” which has stunk out their homes for the past year.

They also blamed vermin that nests in their houses and cars for the shocking drop in property value.

One attested their property had gone from being worth £170,000 to now just £88,000.

Chloe Humphreys, 29, who lives just yards from the dump, said her life has become a “living hell”.

The nurse said: “We have multiple air fresheners in every room, but they do nothing, the horrid smell is always there.

Local homeowners complained their house prices have halvedCredit: SWNS Local Chloe Humphreys, 29, demanded prosecutions over the huge dumpCredit: SWNS

“We are also scared of rats and maggots getting into the house, we hear and see them every night scuttling around.”

She added she now feels “embarrassed” to have guests over due to the overwhelming stench.

“The most frustrating thing is knowing that is that if the council and the Environment Agency (EA) had taken action early, for instance, when we first complained in October, there wouldn’t be such a mess,” she added.

“We demand prosecutions, someone needs to be held accountable, and so far their action hasn’t been acceptable.”

Last week it emerged that one-third of the site is on land owned by the Duchy of Lancaster, which is the King’s portfolio of land and buildings.

But the Duchy of Lancaster is exempt from regulations and duties to clean the site on account of an ancient feudal legal framework dating back 750 years.

A spokesperson for the Duchy of Lancaster said: “Approximately 30 per cent of the illegal tipping site was vested to the Duchy from its previous owner in July 2025 under a process known as escheat.

“At this point The Duchy contacted Wigan Council to seek a resolution, and we remain fully committed to working with Wigan Council and the Environment Agency to address this issue and to counter the impact of illegal waste tipping.”

Disgruntled locals said a procession of up to 30 lorries a day carrying refuse to the site – which piled rubbish up to 20 metres high – began in October 2024.

They slammed the council and EA for their reluctance to intervene when they first complained.

Nicha Rowson, 34, who lives 20 metres from the illegal tip, said the eyesore has devastated house prices in the area.

The beauty technician said: “I know mine has been impacted and others more dramatically.”

A number of residents said their terraced house prices have halved in value.

Nicha called on to take action to help clean up the mess.

She said: “He needs to also take responsibility like all the other landowners to clean it up, regardless of how he got the land. It would make a world of difference.”

Due to the smell, Nicha also says her two autistic sons, aged eight and ten, cannot spend time at home.

She explained: “One of them has heightened smell and it makes him physically sick.

“It is torture being a mum and knowing your children don’t feel safe at home. I feel like a failure.

“He now mainly lives with his grandparents, but I still have to look after him, which puts extra stress on me.”

Wigan Council took action to impose two closure orders in July and October 2025 following a fire, declared a major incident, that broke out at the dump last summer.

Locals said it was too little too late, claiming the dump had already “reached its maximum capacity” as early as February 2025.

The order means that currently the only people permitted onto the site are one of the landowners and representatives of organisations such as the EA.

Following the blaze, the EA opened “significant and complex criminal investigation” into the dump.

A spokesperson for the Environment Agency, said: “Waste crime scars our communities, and we’re committed to tackling it in Wigan with the local council and the police, as well as across the country.

“We are doing everything in our powers to manage the site in Bickershaw and identify the perpetrators, including by launching a major criminal investigation and interviewing individuals under caution.”

Wigan Council said it has committed to and is actively working towards removing the waste that has been put on local authority owned land.

This will come at a cost to the council, with a tender to clear the illegally deposited waste put out last month.

A spokesperson said:

“The council recognises the impact that the illegal waste site at Bolton House Road has had, and continues to have, on residents who live nearby and on the bordering primary school.

“Following the emergency response to the breakout of the fire in July 2025, Wigan Council has continued to work with partners as part of the multi-agency recovery group to protect the public and the environment.

“Wigan Council believes that those who have dumped the waste should be responsible for its clean up, and failing that the landowners. Acting as a responsible party and affected landowner within the multi-agency recovery group, the council has committed to and is actively working towards removing waste that has been put on local authority owned land.

“We continue to implore all landowners to take the necessary steps to fulfil their own obligations, and we call on the government to make funding available – via the Environment Agency or other department – to help remove the waste, as has been done for other sites.”

“Wigan Council fully understands the impact the illegal waste site at Bolton House Road has had, and continues to have, on local residents and on the bordering primary school.

“Wigan Council believes that those who have dumped the waste should be responsible for its clean up, and failing that the landowners.”

“We continue to implore all landowners to take the necessary steps to fulfil their own obligations, and we call on the government to make funding available – via the Environment Agency or other department – to help remove the waste, as has been done for other sites.”

Residents called on the King, as well as the council and Environment Agency, for further actionCredit: SWNS