RESIDENTS of a Suffolk village plagued by a foul odour for years have bombarded a district council with complaints.The infamous Woolpit Whiff seems to have returned as residents face fresh misery which they claim is caused by a rendering plant at Rookery Farm in Drinkstone.

RESIDENTS of a Suffolk village plagued by a foul odour for years have bombarded a district council with complaints.

The infamous Woolpit Whiff seems to have returned as residents face fresh misery which they claim is caused by a rendering plant at Rookery Farm in Drinkstone.

Now they want Mid Suffolk District Council to act and close down the farm owned by John Clarke and end the smell, which they claim also blights the lives of people living in neighbouring Drinkstone, Tostock and Beyton.

John Guyler, chairman of Woolpit Parish Council, said residents have finally had enough.

He said: "We want to see the site shut down, I would like to think that would be the end of the misery for residents.

"Things are very bad at the moment – they have been for the last few weeks. The parish council sympathise with residents and we will be pushing Mid Suffolk District Council as much as we can."

Gerald Wallace, who lives just 400 metres from the farm, said: "Residents are up in arms, last week was terrible and I think it was as bad as it has ever been.

"It has just got worse and worse especially with the hot weather we have had lately. We couldn't open the door or the windows.

"This smell has been around for a long while and Mid Suffolk District Council don't seem to be doing anything about it. It has got to the stage where I am absolutely sick to death of it."

The man at the centre of the controversy is still hopeful of overturning a council decision banning a rendering operation to create fertiliser at his farm.

After losing his case at a public inquiry earlier this year, Mr Clarke now hopes he will enjoy greater success when it is heard in the High Court in October.

Mr Clarke said: "The smell has been bad over the last couple of weeks because I have been ploughing in muck and we have been very busy in the rendering plant, what with all the hot weather.

"There has been an odour because there has been a lot of material about but it should get better in the next couple of days."

A spokeswoman for the district council said: "The council have received a large number of complaints in recent weeks about a strong odour from Rookery Farm in Drinkstone.

"Our environmental health officers have witnessed the odour and are currently collecting evidence which will be passed on to our legal advisors."

The district council has also set up an odour complaint line and they can be contacted on 0800 317 650 or out of hours 01449 675849.