RESIDENTS living along a private road in Petrockstowe near a mass burial site for animal carcasses will no longer be forced to leave their homes now an agreement has been reached to create an access road to the site through the local clayworks.

MAFF has successfully negotiated with clay company Imerys to secure access through the clay-pit site after its first proposal to use a private lane for up to eight vehicle movements an hour provoked outrage from local people.

The move has been described as a 'step forward' by residents but they claim fears over the potential health hazards from of the Ash Moor burial site, which will be used for the disposal of up to 450,000 animal carcasses, have not been addressed.

Homeowner Paddi Tomlinson, who lives at the entrance to the private lane, said she and her family would now be able to stay in their house but, like many other people, her main concern was the safety of the site.

'We want to see that it is built as safely as possible since nothing like this has ever been done before,' she said. 'A meeting with officials from MAFF and the Environment Agency last week gave us no reassurance so we are demanding they come back to us with answers before they start moving the carcasses in.'

Mrs Tomlinson said the site was 'an experiment' and she was worried about the effects on the health of her children and local residents.

'In the short-term I am concerned about airborne diseases such as e-coli which can be produced from carcasses rotting in the burial mounds and the longer term effects on the water table,' she said.

Resident Jon Pratt said the public meeting last week — where local people asked questions about the environmental impact of the site — was 'a shambles'.

'It is only when I spoke to the engineers on the site that I realised someone knew what they were doing,' he said. 'Progress is being made and the access road through the clayworks is a step in the right direction but at the end of the day MAFF has been totally incompetent.

'I appreciate the animals have to go somewhere but if they are going to dump them in our backyard than MAFF has to get it right.'

l A 24-hour police presence is being maintained following arson at the Ash Moor burial site where plant equipment, valued at £30,000, was destroyed on Friday night. Okehampton Police are appealing for witnesses and can be contacted on 0990 777444.