Burial pit cost could reach £22m

Monitoring at the burial site is to continue for 20 years

The cost of the biggest foot-and-mouth burial site in the Midlands will reach £22m, the government has revealed.

Campaigners against the site, at Throckmorton in Worcestershire, claim the high costs indicate a continued blight on the area.

A total of 133,000 animal carcasses were buried at nine pits dug at the old airfield site during last year's foot-and-mouth outbreak.

Experts have already predicted that the burial ground will need to be monitored for up to 20 years to check for leakage.

House sales

The government revealed the costs after being asked by the Conservative MP for Mid Worcestershire Peter Luff.

The government announced last month that the former airbase would be used as a centre for asylum seekers.

Mr Luff said: "There are dangers of environmental pollution, which are more real than perhaps we were led to believe.

"It does put into account the demands of residents who can't sell their houses because of the existence of the burial site and the proposed asylum accommodation centre."

The Minister for Animal Health, Elliot Morley, revealed that £15.3m had been spent buying the site and establishing the burial facility.

A further £3.3m was budgeted to pay for work on the site.

Management and monitoring over the next 10 to 15 years will cost £4m, the minister said.