A row has broken out in a North-East village over plans to build a bigger incinerator for burning animal carcasses.

Some residents claim the furnace would create excessive noise, smell and traffic in the tiny village of Charltons, near Guisborough.

But Ted and Jean Noddings, who run the horse and cattle slaughterers J E Noddings & Son, say that because of stringent new regulations following the foot and mouth crisis they have no choice if their business, which has been in the village since the 1920s, is to survive.

Their application for the eight square metre incinerator - twice as big as the one already there - is due to go before the planning committee of the North Yorks National Park Authority on July 11.

Objectors have already collected more than hundred signatures opposing the scheme.

In a letter to the authority, resident Patricia Lucas says people are worried about truckloads of carcasses coming into the village at all hours of day and night.

"The large number of carcasses arriving on the site resulting from the increase in business will certainly give rise to highly unpleasant smells and clouds of flies."

The letter claims the taller chimney would be "a veritable blot on the National Park landscape, impossible to screen".

MP Ashok Kumar has also voiced concern. "There are probably far better places for a plant of this kind in an existing industrial area rather than smack bang next to a small village," he said. But not all villagers are against it.

Alfred Edwards said: "I'm not bothered at all. I wouldn't have thought it would make any difference."

Another villager said Charltons was split between those who supported the Noddings and those who objected to the furnace.

"Many of us have not signed the petition," she said. "It's his livelihood when it comes to it. I don't think it will be that bad."

Mr Noddings said the new EU legislation meant he was no longer able to dissect animals before burning them so a bigger incinerator which could take whole carcasses was necessary.

"It's going to make no difference to the number of carcasses coming to the site. We are not entrepreneurs and we are not trying to make our business any bigger."

His wife added: "We are doing no harm, we are just trying to survive in our business."