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An environmental campaigner who has been working with the community on the issue of Ty Llwyd quarry has been threatened with legal action to stay away from the site.

Reverend Paul Cawthorne, who is based in Shrewsbury but travels the UK raising awareness on the matter of dumped toxic chemicals, received a letter from Caerphilly County Borough Council’s legal services department telling him to stay away.

The letter states the site is secured and that Rev Cawthorne was seen on CCTV on the land near Ynysddu.

It reads: “For the avoidance of doubt, we wish to make it clear that you do not have permission to enter the site.

“If there are further incidents of you entering or attempting to enter, then the local authority will have no option but to take further steps to prevent access. This is likely to include a claim for injunctive relief and costs. In addition, the local authority will also lodge a formal complaint about your conduct with the Diocese of Lichfield.”

In June 2023, the council was issued a warning letter and a statutory notice regarding the discharge of leachate from the quarry and Rev Cawthorne insists his only intention is to stop a continuing alleged environmental offence by Caerphilly County Borough Council.

His argument is that he is conducting work to prevent this alleged ongoing work and is protected by the legal precedent of ‘pro bono publico action’, where individuals (and not necessarily lawyers) are working for the public good.

He told Caerphilly Observer: “I was gobsmacked to receive the letter.

“It felt like they were trying to intimidate me.

“They also threatened they were going to tell my employer – are they allowed to do that?”

Rev Cawthorne is now thinking of raising the matter with the UK Government.

Toxic waste dumped decades ago at Ty Llwyd, near Ynysddu, includes harmful PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), which have since been found to be highly carcinogenic and a “persistent” organic pollutant.

Heavy periods of rainfall have driven concerns among campaigners that contaminated water is flowing into the nearby Pantyffynnon community woodland and towards homes.

Caerphilly County Borough Council, which now owns the land at the former quarry, will receive up to £775,000 in the next financial year to make the site safer and tackle the risk of leachate.

A spokesperson for Caerphilly County Borough Council said: “The Ty Llwyd site is wholly owned by Caerphilly County Borough Council. The site is enclosed by 6ft palisade fencing and a coded lock at the entrance. There is clear signage to demonstrate that the site is not open to the public.

“No member of the public has authority to enter the site without the express permission of the Council, and we had clear evidence that on February 6 Rev Cawthorne entered the site without seeking or being granted permission. We therefore wrote to him requesting that he refrain from trespassing in future and that further incidents of trespass would result in action being taken against him.

“Following any such trespass incident costs are incurred in inspecting the site for damage and reviewing security arrangements, costs which ultimately fall on local residents.

“The public can be assured that the authority continues to monitor the site in full co-operation with National Resources Wales.”