Annoying neighbor that's not my neighbor! Newbie!

[som farmer]

once you start 'giving' in, it will never stop, keep going, my old man always said, 'you will be better to fall out 'nicely' in the beginning, as nastily in the end,' Advice I have always found to be correct ! We have 1 neighbour, whose driveway is ours, he has a ROW, every couple of years, he tries to include it, into his garden. I've asked nicely, had shouting matches, solicitors letters etc, just waits, and has another go ! He honestly thinks he can do what he likes, but, I will get the upper hand, when it goes on the market, the track, will look horrendous !

 

[teslacoils]

Make sure you know the rules to the letter.....

....then depending on future conduct, make sure you're spreading onto grass the day before their open house sales day.

 

[Recoil]

When was that posted . First I've heard of it last night!

About half past 8 last night.

 

[Smith31]

Incorrect. If it constitutes a statutory nuisance (it may not do of course) it makes no difference who was there first. I'm speaking a a former Environmental Health Office so know a little about the legislation.

With respect, why is it always the farmers fault?

The op is carrying out an agricultural activity on a agricultural site, which is completely acceptable. The fact that the activity is legal and has been carried out in the past, (before the neighbours even purchased the site) carries legal weight.

If the council try to bully him, my advice to him would be to take photographs of other farms who also have muck heaps (nearly all farms in the country) and then lodge a stage 1 official complaint against the Enviromental Health officer on the basis of abuse of power. All communication should be in email form, so written records can be produced.

We have done exactly the same in the past, you would be amazed how quick the councils back off when actually confronted, the pompous prats. Why did they allow planning approval for a residential building next to a muck heap?

Their incompetence has led to the problem not the farmers, he is simply trying to earn a honest living.

 

[Andrew]

No ‘location’ but mentions Devon / Somerset a few times in her profile.

If you didn’t know she was living there when you tipped the muck there she can’t really expect you to move it. Just say you’ll spread it as soon as you can but it won’t be till August / whenever you normally spread. You’ll consider moving the heap for next year, but bear in mind you aren’t supposed to have it in the same place every year.

 

[betweenthelines]

Smith31 is right, Council staff usually just react to whoever shouts loudest. So "shout" back by defending your position. Ask them to clarify what rules or regulations you have broken.

As for Facebook comments-a prime example of people who know feck all saying something that is then treated as gospel by other people

 

[Sid]

When a neighbour put in to convert a pole barn under section Q I wrote a letter of representation to state that we were putting up a new dairy opposite side of the road with robots, manure and silage storage. I did not object to the proposal. But quoted some previous notes from EH officers from same council about concerns with section Q developments near farms. Basically covered my a$$ in case I had a complaint in the future.

I would hope that anyone who has any development near their boundaries would do the same.

Interesting another neighbour ALWAYS spreads the field adjacent to my house when the wind is blowing towards me and NEVER towards him.

Starting to get a tad annoying now after multiple times and house reaking of slurry! I manage to spread my fields in the other 3 sides without making a smell in my house!
I also am careful when spreading near a landlord whom I rent a block off of so smell isn't in his house.

 

[teslacoils]

I thought the golden rule was be the first to complain. If she gets in first, everything you do will be "retaliatory" whereas you want to be first in with complaints about siting if caravan etc. It's all "anonymous" anyway due to data protection.

 

[nick...]

Ring the council and check wether the occupants can live there.if not the council will sort it at no cost to yourself
Nick...

 

[jondear]

No ‘location’ but mentions Devon / Somerset a few times in her profile.

If you didn’t know she was living there when you tipped the muck there she can’t really expect you to move it. Just say you’ll spread it as soon as you can but it won’t be till August / whenever you normally spread. You’ll consider moving the heap for next year, but bear in mind you aren’t supposed to have it in the same place every year.

View attachment 868190View attachment 868191View attachment 868192

Yep that's the one !
I've been tipping it there for 2 weeks !
Why wait till I tipped the last load before saying anything!

 

[som farmer]

you will have a chance of revenge, if you want it, when planning permission is sort. Rare bats, they are better than the common ones, any ditch, wet spot, great crested newts, dry areas, slow worms, barn owls, the list is quite long, and the required surveys are long winded, and very costly, even might be archeology there. Cousins l/lord had a big site passed for housing, the slow worm survey, took 18 months, with a £10,000 fine, if found to have killed one ! The re-homing of the badger sett, looked really expensive, luckily it dropped into a cull area.

 

[betweenthelines]

When a neighbour put in to convert a pole barn under section Q I wrote a letter of representation to state that we were putting up a new dairy opposite side of the road with robots, manure and silage storage. I did not object to the proposal. But quoted some previous notes from EH officers from same council about concerns with section Q developments near farms. Basically covered my a$$ in case I had a complaint in the future.

I would hope that anyone who has any development near their boundaries would do the same.

Interesting another neighbour ALWAYS spreads the field adjacent to my house when the wind is blowing towards me and NEVER towards him.

Starting to get a tad annoying now after multiple times and house reaking of slurry! I manage to spread my fields in the other 3 sides without making a smell in my house!
I also am careful when spreading near a landlord whom I rent a block off of so smell isn't in his house.

Perhaps you just live to the East of your neighbour?

 

[Sid]

Perhaps you just live to the East of your neighbour?

Perhaps I also live east of my landlord and I STILL manage to not spread when its blowing towards his house!

 

[HolzKopf]

The old adage of 'don't move next to a farm and then complain about the smell' is bang on here. Stick to what you are doing. As long as it doesn't run-off I don't see the problem. If questioned again, politely I'd say that it's part of farming life / livelihood / business. What's wrong with that smell anyway. Give me that or silage anyday over exhaust fumes or Underground armpit.

I'm amazed how many paddocks you see about have horse-sh*t piles that just grow - or burn - and that run-off everywhere. Let alone the string pile, pallets, blue alkathene, rotten bales and poaching. The neighbour should be grateful that you live and farm next door

 

[HolzKopf]

I looked up what @Farfrae said re 'statutory nuisance' - this is a peach "Councils can also ask people to keep smell diaries, recording their perception of the smell and the effect it has on them".
imho muck is only 'noticeable' in a shed, yard or mainly when being spread - not windblown off a heap? I doubt whether any human 'test sniffers' employed by the local authority would say it's ruining their quality of life. The planning aspect of their mobile home interests me.....

 

[honeyend]

I would go on the local planning portal and look if they have any permission and what it is for. For a house in open countryside they must have proof of a business case to get permission, if they have, now very rare. If they haven't got planning for the mobile, I would be over it like a rash. If they take they wheels off and block it up, prove no one objected but knew it was there and they were living in it,I think its about three years, they can get planning, my neighbour did it, he now has a very nice house on land he paid £10K an acre for, with no ag tie.
They can use FB posts as proof and google maps as proof. I would do some FB stalking.

 

[Kidds]

Scroll down her Fb page and there’s a long post about supporting British farmers.

 

[Farfrae]

With respect, why is it always the farmers fault?

I didn't say it was the Farmer's fault. If the local authority deem a Statutory Nuisance exists (note the word 'If') it then becomes an offence not to comply with any notice to reduce or eliminate the nuisance. The legislation also has provisions to appeal in it. Businesses also have a defence of 'best practicable means.'

In reality Councils do not go round seeking to close down businesses and I can only think of a handful of cases where I actually had to take people to court.

My point was it doesn't matter who was there first, A

 

[Lincsman]

I would check what the recent planning has to say on the site.
Then just sit tight and wait for the council man to come, in the meantime if asked tell then you will be taking it away to spread when regulations allow, (that will take them a while to research!)

 

[som farmer]

just shows how farming has drifted away from an awful lot of people, reckon thousands simply do not connect farming with food.