By Hayley Robinson

A nasty pong has once again being looming over the town and was so bad on Wednesday one woman was sick on her way to work.

Residents living in Iwade and Kemsley contacted the Sittingbourne Messenger to complain about the foul stench which has been a problem on and off since the middle of last week.

One resident living on the Kemsley Fields estate said his 19-year-old daughter was physically sick as he drove her to work.

The man, who doesn’t want to be named, said: "It was that bad I had to pull over on Grovehurst Road so she could be sick.

"We moved from Broadstairs two years ago and bought a £300,000 house and now we don’t want to live there. It’s ruining our quality of life. It’s not acceptable and if you’re thinking of alfresco dining in the summer you can forget it."

Iwade resident Amanda Hurrell said: "I saw the farmer spreading something [on the field] when I came off the A249 at Iwade at 6pm on Tuesday, it smelled disgusting.

"For a moment I thought there was something wrong with my car because the smell was a bit like burning rubber!

"We could still smell it in Iwade the following morning."

The town has been dogged by foul smells for more than a year and a half as nearby farmers spread materials such as paper and sewage sludge on their fields.

Swale council confirmed it had received complaints regarding the recent odours.

A spokesman for Swale council said: "We have received two complaints regarding odours from the spreading of compost, which has now been completed in Grovehurst, so this is what the residents of Iwade have been smelling. This has been ploughed in immediately by the farmer to minimise the smell.

"We are very much aware of the situation, our environmental officers have been out to monitor the activity being conducted but this is in accordance with the code of good agricultural practice. We are very much aware of the situation. The odours should subside in the next day or so."

Sittingbourne and Sheppey MP Gordon Henderson said he was aware of the problem and would be taking it up to ensure it is dealt with.

He said: "I don’t want people to think we can solve it completely though, the smells will always be there as it’s a farming area.

"What I am trying to do is ensure that residents are not affected by long term smells like in the summer when it lasted for about two weeks."