THE slaughter of cattle due to the mad cow disease panic could cause more smells over Lancaster this summer according to councillors in the city. As more cattle are disposed of under the government's BSE culling programme, councillors are worried that the controversial Nightingale Hall Farm reprocessing plant on Quernmore Road will be forced to work overtime. Cllr Jerry Sutton, chairman of the council's environmental services committee, said: "The city council has been trying to find out for weeks now how many culled cattle will be processed at Nightingale Hall Farm. So far we have been told very little."

The councillors want the Government to release figures about the possible increase in the plant's workload, a factor, they say, that will only add to the already smelly problem.

Cllr Ian Barker, deputy leader of the council, added: "The culling programme could mean yet another summer of smells for the people who live on the east side of Lancaster.

"We need to know whether it is intended to increase production and whether there will be a lot more traffic bringing the carcasses to the plant. So far the Government is unwilling to release details.

"The city council has successfully persuaded the owners to introduce further measures to reduce the smell over the winter. If production is increased, we need assurances that the plant has the capacity to cope and that environmental controls will not be relaxed."

A spokesman from Nightingale Hall Farm was unavailable for comment.

THE smell from Nightingale Hall Farm has just got too much for members of the local Labour Party. They are taking things a step further and calling for the plant to Just Go.

A petition has been drawn up by the Lancaster and Wyre Constituency Labour Party calls for the removal of the plant. It states: "All attempts to reduce the foul smell have failed to improve the situation to a point where the continued presence of this establishment could never be acceptable.

"Nightingale Hall Farm is grossly detrimental to the quality of life in Lancaster. The only solution is that it should Just Go."

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