The European Commission in Brussels has told Welsh Euro MP Jill Evans that it has serious concerns about whether the Nantygwyddon tip in the Rhondda failed to comply with EU rules on waste disposal.

The announcement came at the European Parliament’s Petitions Committee which was discussing a legal petition presented by the Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales MEP highlighting local concerns about the tip’s safety. The petition was presented three years ago when Ms Evans was a Rhondda Cynon Taff County Borough Councillor. It called for an investigation into whether the then Labour run council had jeopardised the environment and public health by breaching EU laws on waste disposal.

Ms Evans, who represents the whole of Wale in the European Parliament, lives in the shadow of the Nantygwyddon tip and has been a prominent campaigner against the landfill site for many years. Speaking from Brussels after the meeting she said:

"I welcome this statement by the European Commission which again underlines the terrible legacy left by Labour in the Rhondda. European rules clearly state that the waste should have been disposed of without effecting the environment and public health, and without causing a nuisance to local people. Labour councillors clearly had little regard for these rules when they sited the tip at Nantygwyddon."

Ms Evans’ petition also called for more research on the effects of landfill as a means of waste disposal, and yesterday’s meeting agreed to ask STOA (the Parliament’s research body) to conduct further investigations into its effects on public health. She added,

"I also welcome the intention to undertake more research on landfill. Not only will this provide further evidence of the potential dangers of landfill but it will also help strengthen the case against irresponsible waste disposal in other parts of Wales."

Jill Evans MEP is the leader of Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales in the European Parliament and is also a prominent member of the Parliament’s Committee on the Environment and Public Health.

The European Commission will now undertake further investigations and will make a decision in March on whether infringement action will be taken.

Diwedd/Ends.