A FARMER'S wife has defended her husband's use of human excrement to fertilize their land after residents kicked up a stink.

Earlier this year Tony Elsdon, of Ingram Grand Farm, Appleton Wiske, near Northallerton, agreed to take treated human sewage from Lancashire to spread on his fields.

Mr Elsdon was approached as he has a large farm and sewage can no longer be dumped in landfill sites or the sea.

He and his wife, Lynda, agreed to take the waste after ensuring it was disease free and there was no risk to health.

However, neighbours were unhappy with the decision and complained to environmental health and the parish council - claiming the smell would affect property prices in the area.

A resident from nearby Welbury, who asked not to be named, said: "I have lived in the countryside for almost 30 years and never before in my life have I smelled muck spreading like this.

"My neighbour rang me later to warn me my bedroom window was open as she had almost been sick from the effect of the odour in her house.

"I consider, as do my neighbours, that being unable to sit in our gardens or have our windows open for fresh air or being unable to keep a smell out of our houses is most certainly a nuisance and is outrageous.

"This is a new version of the War of the Roses that Yorkshire has most definitely lost."

But Mrs Elsdon said: "We are farmers and we have an awful lot of land and we have to spread muck.

"We were approached to take this manure and we have got a contract and we have to honour the contract."

She said she was disappointed the neighbours had not approached them with their concerns but conceded that the smell was worse than they had anticipated.

For the sake of continuing good relations with the neighbours Mr and Mrs Elsdon will not renew the sewage contract when it ends later this month.