RESIDENTS living near a building site on Coldbrook Road East in Cadoxton have described the impact the construction is having on their physical and mental health.
Earlier this year, Pegasus Developments (Glamorgan) Ltd began work to build 20 energy-efficient apartments on the site after the Vale Council gave the go-ahead.
However, local residents say that constant rock-breaking on the site and noise from machinery is making their lives a misery.
‘Damage to our lungs and our respiratory systems’
Jacqueline Fyfe, who lives in Church Road directly opposite the site, said: “We’ve had months of noise from early in the morning until late afternoon.
“There’s a huge amount of dust coming from the rock-breaking that’s taking place on the site and I’m very worried about what it’s doing to people’s health. You can feel it in the air and my windows are filthy. Some of my neighbours have had offers from the building firm to come and clean their windows.
“The damage to our windows is easy to clean, but the damage to our lungs and our respiratory systems is altogether more serious. This is about our quality of life as well. With the filthy air and the constant noise, it’s not possible to enjoy our gardens, and people who need to sleep during the day such as shift workers will find it very difficult to do so.”
In 2017, builders began work to prepare the land for the building of a nursing home, but construction was halted when the late Barry historian and community activist Tom Clemett uncovered evidence of commercial quarrying on the site.
‘They’ve taken tonnes and tonnes of stone’
Steve Turner, a resident of nearby Cowbridge Street who works in the construction industry said: “Every day, my car is dirty and my patio tables in the back garden are covered in dust.
“I sent the company an email to say I work in construction. I told them I know about the regulations for dust suppression on sites, particularly in hot weather, and that I didn’t think they’d done enough.
“In this day and age, we don’t go around with forklift trucks and bowsers – I haven’t seen that for 16 years.
“Nowadays we’re supposed to have professional demisters that constantly spray a fine mist wherever they’re digging and it brings the dust back down, but there’s nothing like that on the site. I spoke to one resident whose property directly overlooks the site and he said all they had were ordinary garden sprinklers, which is nowhere near good enough,” he said.
Mr Turner also questioned whether commercial quarrying was once again taking place on the site: “Every month those of us living close to the construction site receive a flyer leaflet through our letterboxes giving an update on how things are going. Last month or the month before, the leaflet said that they were doing excavations with rock crushers which would be recycled for use within the site.
“Well, they’ve taken tonnes and tonnes of stone from that mountain, and there’s no way it’s been used on that site,” he said.
‘I’ve started seeing cracks in the bathroom that weren’t there previously’
The construction work has had a particularly bad effect on Church Terrace resident Curtis Shier, 46, who said: “I suffer from asthma, and while it’s usually controlled, since the development started, things have got much worse.
“Two Saturdays ago, I was taken into hospital, and my partner Kirsty has had a bad reaction on her skin because of an allergy to the dust. It really has been horrendous and it’s making our lives miserable.”
Mr Shier also said the construction work has caused damage to his house: “I’ve started seeing cracks in the bathroom that weren’t there previously, and my neighbours have been saying similar things about their houses.
“Our young children are all snotty and have been back and forth to the doctors with sore throats. The impact on all our lives has been horrible,” he said.
Mr Shier says he has contacted the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), particularly in relation to the risk of silicosis, a lung disease caused by breathing in tiny bits of silica, a common mineral found in many types of rock: “There are masses of regulations around rock crushing on construction sites now, and I can see right into the site from my house, but instead of modern demisters, all I’ve seen is a guy with a hosepipe,” he said.
Mr Shier also added weight to suspicions that commercial quarrying was taking place on the site. He said: “There’s no doubt about it in my mind. The machinery is huge, they’ve got all the flails and the trommels for quarrying, they’re breaking it up and they’re separating it into different piles.”
‘Contractor has taken measures to reduce noise and dust’
A spokesperson for Vale Council said: “The contractor, on behalf of the council, is helping to construct 20 much needed affordable homes.
“Planning consent was granted in April and the works being carried out are in accordance with the planning conditions.
“The layout of the new apartments does not match the footprint of the prior care home and therefore new foundations need to be formed. In order to meet the required design standards, additional groundworks, including the breaking and removal of rock has been necessary.
“The contractor has taken measures to reduce noise and dust and in addition have paid for nearby residents’ windows and cars to be cleaned. Regular noise readings are taken from directly opposite the site and recorded average readings are between that of ordinary traffic noise and the equivalent of a motorbike noise during rock breaking, which does not occur before 9am.
“A recent inspection by the health and safety executive found that operations were being conducted in an exemplary manner.”
Adrian Hancock, director at Pegasus Developments, did not respond to an email inviting him to respond to the claims and concerns of residents.
Read next:
- Pensioners call for diesel generator to be moved
- Two venues benefit from Arts Council cash
- Welsh Government puts Rhoose housing on hold
- New pet crematorium planned for Cardiff
- Planning decision will change the face of Rhoose
⭐ All of our social media in one handy place – here
Pencoed tangled up by ‘Seaweeds’
Primary school’s former deputy head is banned from teaching
I make no apologies for calling Plaid Cymru ‘separatists’
‘The importance of participation and continued learning’
Opposition leaders clash with First Minister over independence rally
How Kevin saved a stranger’s life
