Letter: Stoney Castle Dump – My Questions to Guildford Councillors

Published on: 29 Jul, 2021
Updated on: 29 Jul, 2021

From: Paul Hardcastle

In response to: Council Leader ‘Understands Frustration’ Over Stoney Castle Secrecy

The letter from Cllr Joss Bigmore and Cllr James Steel seems to be full of spin with no substance. There have been so many contradictions and so much misleading information around this issue.

From what I’ve read recently perhaps the legal issues they are talking about maybe to do with their own actions rather than anyone else’s. The quote below from Gareth Simkins, makes it clear as to how straightforward it should have been.

“Environmental expert Gareth Simkins said: “But it is right to say that there had been a dereliction of duty: though the overlap has “muddied the waters, Guildford Borough Council ultimately should have taken action to stop the dumping, and Surrey County Council to remove the waste”

I would like to ask Cllr Joss Bigmore and Cllr James Steel (who apparently blocked those who have asked questions regarding the issue of the waste site at Pribright):

Why did it take GBC so long to take action, when Enforcement Notices according to their letter, were issued in 2013? If they had acted eight years ago it would have prevented the problem from becoming the monumental disaster it was allowed to grow into and saved GBC and taxpayers a considerable amount of money.
To gain more understanding of how this situation was allowed to develop and escalate over eight years. I refer to Daniel Hill’s letter and ask did the landowner or his son ever make any offers to assist GBC in remedying the situation to help solve this problem or were they, as Cllr Keith Whitham has suggested, uncooperative and fully to blame?

I can’t see that the answers to these question should pose problems or any legal issues.