VILLAGERS living on the outskirts of Lowestoft have made a formal complaint about a huge pile of waste soil which is being stored on a building site near their homes.

VILLAGERS living on the outskirts of Lowestoft have made a formal complaint about a huge pile of waste soil which is being stored on a building site near their homes.

Work started on the development off Ullswater in Carlton Colville, near Lowestoft, last summer but people living nearby have been growing increasingly concerned about waste soil from an old landfill area next to the building plots which is being piled up on site.

Following recent meetings between the developers Persimmon, Waveney District Council and the Environment Agency, a group of homeowners have now made a formal complaint because they believe the pile of waste soil breaches a condition of the planning permission, which stated that a waste disposal plan would be drawn up and agreed before the work started.

Nick Jack, who can see the building site from his home on Ullswater, said: 'A recent meeting concluded that the excavation and stockpiling of waste is something that would not have happened if Persimmon had acted in accordance with the planning condition.

'We have now submitted a formal complaint to Waveney about the failure to enforce the condition.'

Waveney MP Bob Blizzard, who recently had a meeting with Persimmon to discuss the concerns raised by people living near the building site, said: 'This has become a disaster area and the impact on the residents is totally unacceptable. It's making their lives a misery.'

A spokesman for Waveney District Council confirmed that its planning officers are working with Persimmon to make sure that the residents' concerns are addressed.

He said: 'The council is working closely across departments, with the developer and its advisors in an effort to resolve this issue and ease the understandable concern of residents.

'This is a matter of urgency and we expect to receive all the technical information to enable a full adherence to the planning condition very shortly.'

Andrew Fuller, managing director of Persimmon Homes Anglia, said that the developers have been working with the council while work has been going on.

He said: 'Matters are now close to resolution and should be fully resolved within the next two weeks.

'May we take this opportunity to reassure residents surrounding our Lark Rise development that we take our responsibility in the locations within which we build very seriously and will therefore continue to do our very best to keep disruption to the surrounding area to a minimum.'