IT HAS been more than two weeks since a pile of rubbish went up in flames on a building site in Hazlemere.

Buckinghamshire Council has said it is not investigating the air quality, despite concerns from residents, and the case has been referred to the Environment Agency who, at the time this newspaper went to press yesterday, had not responded to our requests for comment.

Such a wall of silence is simply not good enough. 

The government’s own safety advice insists that fires must be put out within four days. 

This limit was not plucked out of thin air but is based on science. Multiple studies show the harmful impact of long exposure to fire - and that’s without the added ‘potential asbestos containing material’ at the site, which was revealed in a document submitted to Bucks Council at the time plans were put forward for the Bellway homes site.

Residents are now questioning how dangerous and what contaminated materials are they breathing in. 

Whilst asbestos is one of the most heat resistant materials known to man, it can be highly toxic when asbestos containing materials are burnt or damaged. 

Tough questions are now being presented to Bellway Homes by residents over the smoke being produced at their site. The developers claim the fire was started by fly-tippers. 

Worried residents want to know when they notified the Environment Agency and Thames Valley Police. So far, the firm has not be obliging with answers.

On the subject of fly-tippers, residents are wondering how on earth they managed to get onto their site in the first place. Was there any security in place? If not, why not?

If such dangerous materials are held on the property, as the council report states, why was it so easily accessible for fly-tippers? And how did the fly-tippers manage to access, dump, ignite a fire, leave and re-secure the gates all in broad daylight and in front of Bellway staff? 

We await Bellway's response with interest.