CALLS have been made for changes to the law after it emerged that a 12-week battle to put out a woodpile blaze has cost almost £500,000.

A pile of waste wood on an industrial estate in Thoby Lane, Mountnessing, caught fire on Monday, August 18, but the scene was only safe enough for fire crews to leave two weeks ago.

They are no longer on site permanently, but are keeping a close eye on the smouldering pile of scrap timber.

The Essex Fire Authority has already spent more than £476,000 battling the fire and there have also been additional costs incurred by Brentwood Borough Council and the Environment Agency.

Barry Aspinell, leader of Brentwood Borough Council, who chaired a meeting about the problem last week, said that currently the law enabled anyone to recycle up to 500 tonnes of wood on wasteland.

They needed only to obtain a temporary licence on the Environment Agency’s website, without having to be vetted.

The Thoby Lane leaseholder had a temporary licence, but it is thought about 8,000 tonnes of wood was in the pile.

Mr Aspinell said: “There are about 250 sites like the one in Mountnessing in Essex alone.

“We want to see a change in the legislation so that people wanting to recycle material like this should have to apply to the local authority, so that we know about it and can enforce against it.”

He added: “We’re going to ask Eric Pickles (Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government) if the law can be changed.”

Essex Fire and Rescue Service moved quickly to quash the fire risks posed by a similar site in Colchester, just days after the Thoby Lane fire started.

Adam Eckley, Acting Chief Fire Officer, said: “There are 264 sites across Essex which are registered and licensed to carry up to 500 tonnes of waste material.

“Each of these has the potential to become like Thoby Lane, which also held one of these licences, so we have launched a proactive programme of inspections which will see officers going to every one of these sites and making sure that they do not pose a risk.”

Eric Pickles, who is also the MP for Brentwood and Ongar, said: “My worries about the site predate the fire.

“Following a tip-off from the parish council, I contacted the Environment Agency over concerns about the running of the enterprise.

“The agency took enforcement action, which ironically came into force on the day of the fire.

“There are legitimate questions on the issuing of licences which must be answered. This is something I have raised with the Environment Secretary.”

The Environment Agency said it was unable to comment on its licensing procedure or the Thoby Lane fire as an investigation was ongoing.

The Weekly News was unable to contact the site bosses.