Veolia schedule more improvements at High Moor

An aerial view of the High Moor site

The giant waste management company who control the fortunes of a former controversial Oldham landfill site have pledged to make further improvements to benefit the community and the long-term aftercare of the site.

The surface improvement will deliver environmental benefits to the High Moor landscape at Scouthead, with the additional commitment aimed at improving the countryside.

Veolia say, following the careful restoration of the closed landfill site back in 2014, they have continued to undertake the environmental monitoring and aftercare along with working with the local communities to manage the area, and enable nature to repopulate the newly-created pasture.

And, as part of the aftercare process, the site has also made a valuable contribution to renewable energy by using landfill gas to generate electricity for the local grid.

Now, to further enhance this aftercare, Veolia is improving the general site drainage on discrete areas, reducing the size of the site's access road, and reclaiming redundant parts of the site infrastructure back to nature.

This will be achieved by adding additional clean restoration soils and installing land drains, which will involve short periods of vehicle deliveries over the next six to 12 months.

The period will be determined by the availability of suitable clean soils in the local area.

Mr John Molyneux, Veolia’s Northern Aftercare Manager, said: “Deliveries will be intermittent depending on when clean suitable soil is available and to limit any congestion these deliveries will be routed directly from the A62 along the former quarry access road removing any need to use Doctor Lane.

“Veolia will work closely with the local community, Environment Agency  and the council to manage the continued transformation and rewilding, and to maintain the positive relationship we have established locally over the last 10 years.”

He added: “In terms of our works, this will be on discrete areas covering remediation to settlement on the landfill  that has occured since the site closed.

"This we will use imported suitable soil to regrade these areas to promote surface water (rain water) drainage off the site to stop ponding.

“And off the landfill area itself, areas of the site that would benefit from restoring that include the old weighbridge office area, reduction of the onsite tarmac access road, some local safety bunding along a small section of quarry face, and filling in a small low spot area, all located off the landfill.”

Works are planned to commence this month and residents will have an opportunity to visit the site to see the improvements by contacting Mr Molyneux via email: john.molyneux@veolia.com, or by mobile: 07885 333975.

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