VILLAGE LIAISON COMMITTEE MEETING

Minutes of the October Liaison Committee

Agriculture Division

Stoke Ferry Compound Feed Mill

VILLAGE LIAISON COMMITTEE MEETING

Wednesday 6th October 2004

Present: Ms Jacqueline Murfitt (Environmental Health Officer, King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council)

Mr Kevin Moore (Environmental Health Officer, King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council)

Mr Brian Harrison (Parish Council Representative)

Mrs Pat Holton (Village Representative)

Mr Alastair Inskip (Health and Safety Manager, Grampian Country Foods)

Mr Keith White (Production Manager, Grampian Country Foods)

1 Apologies

Apologies for absence were received from Mr Ray Thompson, Mr Gerard Rosser. Mr Mike Smith and Mr Andrew Murphy were unable to attend after being detained at another site.

2 Minutes of the previous meeting and matters arising

The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed to be an accurate record of the proceedings.

3 Complaints received since the last meeting

Mr Inskip reported on complaints and comments received by the company since the last meeting:

6th June Complaint of smell and whirring noise, large lorries using the High Street. Explained that mill lorries were not travelling the High Street, but use the Furlong Drove to access the bypass, there being a weight limit on the bridge over the river,

16th June Conveyor rattling and doors left open, 9.44pm Tues 15th..

15th June Driver banging side of vehicle, 7.45pm Mon 14th. Kevin Moore attended site afternoon of 15th..

21st June Silo elevators clanking and running empty for 2 hours at 9.30am Sat 19th June. Installation of inverters was partially completed and in the process of being finished. Also reported transient smell (15 minutes) at about mid-day..

22nd June Sound of diesel engine by top gate at 7.05am. A power cut had brought in the sprinkler jockey pump to maintain pressure in the sprinkler pipes. The diesel generator automatically starts if power to the electric pumps is lost..

Company to investigate noise abatement on this exhaust.

21st July Loud tanker discharging minerals between 6.45 and 9am. The limestone delivery was discharged at 7.20 and this was the earliest delivery that day. It is possible the driver used a higher pressure than usual, as this was his first delivery to the site. Same vehicle and driver delivered again the following day.

21st July Conveyor squeak reported directly to supervisor, noise stopped within an hour..

23rd July Squeak from mill, engineer identified and greased conveyor.

27th July Noise and smell from mill on Saturday 24th, noise from 6pm on Sunday 25th, smell on Monday 26th,

27th July Fishmeal smell on Saturday 24th not present on Sunday, sporadic smell on Monday and Tuesday..

28th July Loud metallic blows 7-8 followed again by 7-8 after a pause at 3.45am. Source not identified, no heavy maintenance logged on shift reports.

28th July Terrible smell on night of 27th, alarm ringing all night until 3am, lorry reversing alarm until 1am, humming and whistling noise from factory, gritty dust overnight.

30th July Yellow lorry pulled out in front of car, causing car driver to break hard. Occurred beside the chip shop. Haulier was identified from a partial registration number given by the complainant and driver was warned.

It was mentioned at the meeting that a resident had cause to speak with a driver following a similar incident, but no details were available. Residents are urged to report all such incidents so that the company may take appropriate action with the driver concerned.

9th August Black smoke from boiler chimney. High fire problem, rectified by service engineer.

13th August Fishmeal smell from mill..

6th August Strong smell from mill that day,

23rd August KLWNBC letter, no previous complaint relating to this matter.

30th August Strong smell on Monday in garden and throughout village, noise, foam on rain water in gutter,

31st August The tanker delivering limestone advised the mill that it was running late after a break-down and requested permission to deliver late in the evening. This was discussed with the resident that has previously complained when late/early deliveries were made and it was agreed that it was ok in this instance for the delivery to be made.

7th Sept Elevator squeak, possibly a dry bearing. Fitter tracing source..

13th Sept Brown wax deposits noticeable the last few days but now mostly washed away by rain.

16th Sept Heavy particulate "snow" for approximately 5 minutes. The clean air units were checked and no evidence of a discharge found. No problems found with grinder filters.

29th Sept Very noisy on Tuesday 28th, doors left open over silos and strong smell. Agreed that smell form Wissington was very strong, but mill smell also reported as present.

Ms Murffitt reported that his office had received five complaints since the last meeting:

15th Jun Lorry movements, after hours delivery due to operational requirements.

16th Jun Noise from mill on Sunday, mill not working, routine maintenance only. Log sheet sent to complainant but not returned.

19th Jul Elevator noise, resolved by 15th.

6th Jul Smell and noise from mill, log sheet given to complainant and returned, site visit to investigate, unable to substantiate. New log sheet issued.

10th Aug Small and noise from mill, log sheet issued and returned, visited complainant to discuss and issue another log sheet.

4 Noise

Mr Inskip reported that the new silo conveyors had now been installed. On the first day after installation there had been some noise until the tension of the chain was fully adjusted. There was a delay of approximately 1 week after installation until the inverter controllers were connected. This is the electronic control system that allows the conveyor to be stopped automatically when it runs empty and also reduces noise whilst the conveyor is running by maintaining constant tension on the chain.

Mr Harrison said there was still some squeaks from conveyors/elevators in this area.

5 Transport

Mr Inskip reported that the pot-holes at the top gate have bee repaired, Mr Harrison expressed his dismay at the time taken for this to be completed after it was first raised.

6 Odour, dust and particulates

Mr Inskip reported that the mill cleaning schedule has been specifically revised to include cleaning of the areas under the silos every Saturday.

7 Any other business

Mr Inskip reported that the Cobbles facade will be painted now that the window has been repaired.

There has been one response to the call for comments from readers of the Village Pump.

Mrs Holton and Mr Harrison both expressed concern that neither Mr Smith nor Mr Murphy had attended the meeting. This is now the third meeting where the attendance of Mr Murphy as a senior manager had been assured by the company and he was subsequently unable to attend.

8 Date of next meeting

The date of the meetings throughout the rest of the year are:

Wednesday 8th December at 2.30pm

Dates for 2005 will be set at the next meeting.

Items for inclusion in the agenda should be sent to Alastair at least two weeks in advance of meetings.

Alastair Inskip