Green Councillor puts on pressure for capping of Kilgarth Landfill Site

Cllr Martha Wardrop (Hillhead)

Over the last 18 months, Green Councillor for Hillhead, Martha Wardrop has put pressure on council officials to ensure that the capping of Kilgarth Landfill Site is completed by December 2010. This has been enforced by SEPA. The site is owned by Glasgow City Council and has remained uncapped since it closed in 2000.

Cllr Wardrop said; "It has come to light that Glasgow City Council could have capped the site at a cost of £192,000 in 2002 and at that time, councillors confirmation that 'no further financial burden in relation to the remediation' of the site was incurred. However, an original contract by the council with a developer agreed with the principal purpose of having the landfill site fully capped has fallen through.  Now, Glasgow taxpayers are faced with a huge additional financial burden to meet obligations for capping of Kilgarth Landfill site. A report presented to the Executive Committee on 7th October 2010 is seeking approval of £3.5 million for capping of the site.

This is extremely worrying scenario at a time when council services are being expected to make cuts. I believe the decision not to cap the Kilgarth Landfill Site in 2002 was an error of judgement by the Labour Administration. There is a requirement to ensure that the Council learns from this situation, seeks to minimise any further financial penalties related to this site and makes a commitment to work with communities and environmental groups to address any concerns about the council's landfill sites."