RESIDENTS who kicked up a stink over raw sewage contaminating a local river were today told: "It's your fault."

Council bosses say careless residents who flush dirty nappies down the toilet or pour fat down the sink are largely to blame for problems affecting folk in Waterfoot.

A dispute between local residents, Rossendale Borough Council and United Utilities over polluted water at Hareholme Lane, Waterfoot, has been rumbling on for nearly 10 years.

Residents have claimed raw sewage is being pumped into the River Irwell, which runs beside their homes, and have called on the relevant authorities to act. But they in turn have called on residents of a nearby estate to do their bit to stop the pollution.

Rod Young, 46, of Hareholme Lane, Waterfoot, said the long-running dispute has been brought to the surface again after recent bad weather led to a culvert in Hareholme Lane bursting and polluted water gushing through several properties in the area

Rod, a freelance photographer, said: "It was absolutely awful. Sewage including sanitary towels and condoms were floating through residents' living rooms. This latest incident has made me more determined to something about it.

"The smell on a warm day is just unbearable. We don't want to go outside when we have nice weather because of the stench.

"The problem seems to lie with the Staghills estate, which was built in the late 50s. They tried to put in a support system of drainage but that wasn't very good and couldn't cope with the volume as it increased over the decades. I am not a Victor Meldrew - I just want to be able to get on with my life in peace."

But Ian O'Brien, environmental health manager at Rossendale Council, said: "We accept that there is a problem but it's not just our responsibility. Residents also have to do their bit by not pouring fat down the sink or flushing dirty nappies and sanitary wear down the toilet. Expectations are higher now than they were years ago and we are doing all we can to make the rivers cleaner. A survey has been carried out at the dual inspection chambers where surface water and sewage flows to because sometimes if they get blocked it can cause contamination. We have done work to 10 inspection chambers to help reduce any more contamination."

A spokesman for United Utilities said: "If the sewers overflow excess water does discharge into rivers and streams. That's the point in having the overflow facility in periods of high rainfall."