Landfill drives away golfers

IF MEMBERS of the Palleg Golf Club, in West Wales, are playing a little over-par, they may have good reason: the course is under siege from the stench of a nearby landfill site.

"We get coachloads of people coming up here to play but when they get off the bus they get straight back on again because the smell is so terrible," said Sharon Roberts, the club's professional. The club, at Lower Cwmtwrch, is considering legal action against the operator of the landfill site, which is licensed and regulated by the Environment Agency.

This week there was a crisis meeting of residents, club members and councillors but the Environment Agency was absent.

"The point is that I am losing money," said Ms Roberts. "We had to cancel a dinner and dance the other week. I also teach youngsters from the local school but I cannot bring them to the course because of the smell." Takings for the year are down by pounds 10,000 - a lot of money for a club that charges members pounds 255 a year.

A spokesman for the Environment Agency Wales said it was in discussion with the owner of the site and the club to try to locate the precise source of the smell. "It is a situation that is ongoing," said a spokesman.

A spokesman for Powys County Council said it had also launched an investigation.