THE landfill site behind a huge Fife blaze was found to be “major non‑compliant” at its last inspection by Scotland’s environment watchdog, The National can reveal.
Data from the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) released via FOI shows that the Lower Melville Wood site was found to have breached its pollution prevention and control (PPC) permit during a visit in October last year.
A PPC permit is the core environmental authorisation that allows higher‑risk sites – including landfills – to operate, but only under strict conditions designed to limit the pollution of air, land and water.
The agency clarified that these issues are related to the landfill’s operation and are “not directly associated” with the blaze in the separate waste transfer station, which has been sending smoke over nearby communities for over a week.
Site operator Cireco Scotland, meanwhile, has promised a full investigation into the fire.
The fire at the Lower Melville Wood site near Ladybank started last Tuesday, with firefighters still at the scene.
At the height of the incident, 12 appliances, 60 firefighters, and specialist resources were dealing with the inferno – which involved recycled material and waste spread across an area measuring approximately 200m by 300m.
It has reportedly led to £1 million in damages whilst residents are still being encouraged to limit time outdoors amid concerns about the risks to human health and the wider environmental impact.
Sepa have been on the ground every day too and told The National that the Lower Melville site was deemed “major non-compliant” due to exceedances of groundwater quality monitoring limits and the overdue submission of documentation relating to financial provision.
“The non-compliances have been identified through routine regulatory interactions and are not related to our response to the ongoing fire.
"Our last routine compliance visit was undertaken on 21 October 2025,” a Sepa spokesperson told The National.
“The next inspection, to be undertaken on 21 May, was already scheduled before this week’s fire. In response to the fire, Sepa officers have been on site every day since Tuesday.”
Robin Baird, the chief executive of Cireco, also said that the “major non-compliance” wasn’t connected to the current fire and claimed that “no formal action” is outstanding.
"It is important to point out that Sepa's investigation, listed in these FOI results, is not connected to the current fire at the Ladybank site but concerned simply with landfill monitoring,” he told The National.
“Sepa inspect the site regularly and have noted no concerns regarding the volumes of waste. They monitor all aspects of the site and provide a compliance verification report. Following one of these visits they noted actions for us to undertake further monitoring. No formal action is currently outstanding."
A Scottish Greens spokesperson, meanwhile, said: “When communities have been dealing with smoke and disruption for over a week, people will understandably want reassurance that proper environmental standards are being enforced and that lessons are being learned.
“It is vital that Sepa’s investigation is allowed to continue independently and that any failures identified are addressed fully and transparently.”
It comes after an investigation by The Sunday National last week found that most landfills in Scotland (29 out of 39) have recently been investigated by Sepa over regulations breaches – spanning council‑run tips, private waste dumps and even an ash lagoon linked to a major power company.
Reacting to this and the Lower Melville site's major non-compliance, Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Mark Ruskell said: “These figures are shocking. If almost three quarters of Scotland’s permitted landfill sites are failing to meet pollution rules, then it is clear that communities and our natural environment are being badly let down.
“Landfill is not just an eyesore. It can mean pollution, emissions and long-term damage to local areas. The bigger issue though, is that Scotland is still sending far too much waste to landfill in the first place."
The Greens MSP added: “We need to move much faster towards a circular economy where materials are reused, repaired and recycled rather than buried in the ground.
“That is why the Scottish Greens want stronger incentives to cut landfill, including increasing the standard and higher rates of Landfill Tax, implementing the recommendations of the climate change review into Scottish Landfill Tax, and ensuring Landfill and Aggregates Taxes work together to reduce construction waste."
