'Thick, black tarry stuff flowed down our stream': how slurry spills affect the land

The Whittemores were hoping for an 'idylllic lifestyle' farming in Sussex. Instead, noxious byproducts from a biogas farm poisoned their land

Lynda and Richard Whittemore bought Quennells farm in the quiet Sussex countryside six years ago. They were hoping for what Lynda calls "an idyllic lifestyle", tending their flock of 400 pedigree sheep and 45 cattle on 180 acres of farmland.

"We have an undulating field at the back of the stream, winding to the other corner," Lynda says. "Usually it has lovely clear water, with a gentle slope down to the water supply. It's picturesque - the [livestock] don't need troughs, they can walk down to drink the water."