A plan by Marwell Zoo to dispose of animal waste the green way has got up residents' noses.

The zoo wants to build a composting plant and worm farm on a field next to Hurst Farm in Thompson Lane.

But the scheme has caused a bit of a stink among people living opposite the site, who fear it may be smelly. Other concerns include an increase in traffic and loss of agricultural land.

Owslebury parish councillor, Jerry Tull, said: "I don't think anyone has got a problem with the composting. It is the location that is the issue, because it is such a sensitive site in a countryside location."

The parish council would prefer the composter and wormery were located within the perimeter of the zoo.

Marwell chief executive, Mike Edgerley, addressed the last meeting of the parish council in a bid to allay villagers' fears.

He said: "There was concern about the smell and how the waste would be transported. We were able to assure people it would all be moved in big covered bins, rather than open skips."

He said a well-run composting plant was not smelly. Nor should it attract rats, as no raw meat or other food stuffs would be composted. "In fact, it is actually illegal to put even a teabag in compost because of the risk of spreading animal diseases, in particular foot and mouth. As a zoo, we are very conscious of those things."

Every week, animals at the world-famous conservation zoo produce 20 tonnes of dung and old hay and straw bedding. The zoo's four hippos produce the most.

To prevent it piling up into a manure mountain, the waste is transported by lorry three-times a week to a landfill site in Ringwood. In the past, it was incinerated at the zoo, but the smoke was unpleasant for visitors and villagers.

Mr Edgerley said: "As an environmentally-conscious zoo, we are not in favour of using landfill to dispose of the waste and have been looking at alternatives."

This is now urgent as new European legislation means organic waste is to be banned from landfill sites by 2004 unless composted. This is to reduce methane gases.

Marwell Zoo has applied to Hampshire County Council for a minerals and waste licence for the composter and wormery.

Under the scheme, 80% of the zoo's animal waste would be pre-composted and then put through a wormery.

Worms break down the organic matter further to the rich nutrients necessary for a fertile soil. This fine compost would then be used to grow saplings to landscape Marwell Zoo and provide animal fodder.