Given the number of stories on social media about odour last week, we thought it was important to clarify the source.
Independent odour monitoring for the week commencing 3 August 2026 confirms that odour levels in and around the Jameson Road site remained low throughout the week, and that sewage was the most frequently identified source of odour recorded.
Of 167 verified observations, 95.2% recorded no odour or an odour unrelated to the landfill. Monitoring identified 15 separate sewage type odour observations during the week, almost double the eight classified as landfill related. Eleven of those 15 sewage observations explicitly traced the source to the sewage works or United Utilities infrastructure nearby, with recorded incidents at the landfill’s own western boundary, near Fisherman’s Friend and at Flakefleet Avenue between 3 and 8 August. This provides a credible, evidenced explanation for much of the foul odour reported locally that week.
By comparison, the eight landfill related observations were all low intensity, rated 1 or 2 on the monitoring scale, with no readings of intensity 3 or higher recorded at any point in the week. These were largely confined to the landfill’s own western boundary, with isolated single detections at Flakefleet Avenue, Larkholme Lane and the Three Lights pub.
Jameson Road takes odour management, and residents’ concerns, seriously, and continues robust, independent, third party monitoring of the site. The verified evidence points clearly to sewage infrastructure, not the landfill, as the most prominent source of odour that week.
