A JUDGE has said she is ready to order the Duchy of Lancaster’s lawyers to court in a bid to resolve a £4 million dilemma over a controversial site in Oswaldtwistle once plagued by flies.

One former waste company boss, Stephen Blakeley, has already been fined £22,500 over dumped waste, including potentially carcinogenic materials at the former Clarion Chemicals site in Nook Lane.

But company consultant Arthur Morgan has claimed to be bankrupt, limiting the powers of the courts following his prosecution over the Nook Lane land, and another site in Sandy Road.

Judge Beverley Lunt, while passing sentence on Blakeley at a previous hearing, expressed concern that the Nook Lane site was once ready to be sold to housing developers Redrow for around £4 million.

Defence counsel Mark Monaghan, for Morgan, has told the court that his client, who has admitted waste disposal offences, is bankrupt and would struggle to meet a financial penalty.

And David Bradley, prosecuting on behalf of the Environment Agency, said that it had been established after ‘complex’ enquiries that the land in question appeared to be owned by an Isle of Man company, To verify ownership of the land, lawyers for the Duchy of Lancaster, acting on behalf of the Crown, could be called. “It is not easy to get to the bottom of the defendant’s financial affairs. The Duchy of Lancaster’s solicitors have not responded to our enquiries to date,” he said.

The company responsible for the land may be dissolved but reconstituted at a later date and benefit from the asset, which would be relevant to the case, he told the court.

Judge Lunt said: “The Duchy’s solicitors can respond to your e-mails and they can respond to me. They can have a day out in Burnley Crown Court if they so wish.”

The court heard that Morgan may also have to sign a sworn affidavit, confirming his assets, which could confirm he had no interests at Nook Lane. Morgan, formerly of Chorley, but now said to be living on the Wirral, suggested the Nook Lane site to Blakeley – who ran a waste management firm – to take in tonnes of baled waste illegally. Neighbours in 2012 complained about fly infestations at the sites. Sentencing was adjourned to February 5.