Lower house Recycling Centre

[Madhatter]

Warwickshire County Council, in partnership with Staffordshire County Council, have submitted a planning application to turn the existing Lower House Farm into a Household Waste Recycling Centre and Waste Transfer Centre.

Initially it was designed as a replacement for the Recycling ‘tip’ at Grendon Spon Lane, however the project has grown to include a Waste Transfer Centre.

What is a ‘Waste Transfer Centre’?

The facility will receive kerbside collection waste (Wheelie Bin Collection Waste) and sort it into recyclable and non-recyclable. It will then be reloaded onto bulk haulage vehicles and transported to either Recycling Facilities or the proposed Waste Centre at Four Ashes, Wolverhampton. This means in simple terms that up to 8 Council Bin Lorries an hour will bring their waste to the centre for it to be sorted then leave the site on 55 foot Bulk Waste Lorries. The site will also be available to Commercial Vehicles (8 wheel lorries are shown on the Planning Application drawing!) but they do not say how many of these may potentially visit the site each day! If this development went ahead it would see 20 Tonne vehicles travelling along a Country Lane!

The site has been designed to accept a large quantity of vehicles. All of these vehicles will be travelling along the Lane known as Lower House Lane/Boulters Lane/Gypsy Lane from either the Dordon A5 Island end or via the village of Wood End. Lower House Lane is a rural road, not a major road within an industrial estate!

Roy Burton (Warwickshire County Council) said at the Area Forum West Meeting on that up to 1,000 cars a day use similar site and this amount of traffic combined with up to 8 HGV movements an hour is going to create what can only be described as a TRAFFIC NIGHTMARE.

The plans do show that the entrance will be created to encourage vehicles to turn towards the A5 end of the Lane when leaving, but this can not be enforced so traffic will not doubt travel back along the Lane and through Wood End other villages such as Dordon, Hurley, Whateley, Kingsbury, Picadilly etc.

There is currently a weight restriction on the Lane from its entrance at the A5 Dordon Island, right along and through Wood End to the Trinity Road Junction. This development will allow HGV vehicles to travel along the Lane. The Lane is already poor in places, these vehicles will not help!

The development, which has grown from the 3 acres as shown at the Pre Planning Public Consultation Event held at Wood End School on to 6 acres. This development is going to have a major impact on the local community and we as a local community need to stand up and make our voices heard.

The site will be open from 7.00am till 10.00pm Mon to Fri and 7.00am till 6.00pm Sat & Sun. The site is situated on a hill and the noise that this development will undoubtedly create will affect the local villages, not to mention the smell of up to 7 day rotting waste wafting over the fields.

Further information can be found at www.notowastecentre.co.uk/
and at
www.warwickshire.gov.uk/Web/corporate/pages.nsf/Links/D3C586FB70D48D20802573FC005645DA

[Madhatter]

North Warwickshire Borough Council formally objected to the planning application, with the local Councillors stating their concerns - which were mainly traffic related.
although the application for the waste centre will be decided by Warwickshire County Council, item No 1 on the agenda was the Borough Council's response to the proposed Waste Centre as they are 'consulted' under the County Council's planning process.

Objection to application NW241/08CC024
Lower House Farm, Baddesley Ensor.

• 1. The existing site is an agricultural small holding of 11 acres and has been used for approximately 30 years for processing animal skins. This is an agricultural process. The business has for the past 7 years decreased to render the site back to its original use, a small holding. It is at present a family home with paddock and horses. There has been very little vehicle activity in these 7 years.
  The proposal will transform the appearance of the site as it will require industrial buildings, a significant change to the access arrangements, security fencing and floodlighting. In addition it will generate much increased traffic and will operate at weekends, bank holidays and in the evenings. In effect it will transform a farm/small holding into an industrial estate with potential expansion. This is in conflict with established planning policies. Lower house farm is NOT an industrial site.
  
  
• 2. Waste transfer stations and recycling centres are facilities which should be located on industrial estates, not in an isolated location on a country lane. The existing industrial estates located between or in Tamworth and Atherstone to accommodate this facility.
  
  
• 3. The options document shows several sites considered for the development. The method used for selection is deeply flawed as it has not been carried out using consistent comparable data. The tick box system used is inconsistent in most cases making alternative site less attractive.
  
  
• 4. The road designs for the site are severely criticized by a. TMS Consultancy in their report in the Traffic Assessment and b. by WCC Police Road Safety Unit RSU/N/Dor2008 who will oppose the application on safety grounds as it renders danger to the public and road users.
  
  
• 5. The potential traffic problems are great concern to all villages surrounding the proposed site. The access by private cars will create potential problems in the villages of Dordon and Wood End with further outlying villages such as Piccadilly and Hurley being affected by “rat run traffic”. The new traffic created by the proposal being HGV and light commercial will certainly affect all routes to and from the site, the 7.5 ton weight limits will not protect the village roads. Dordon Island will be accepting many thousand vehicle movements per day that will be “turning movements” into and out of Gipsy Lane onto the A5 truck road. The present “Arcady” reports show the waiting times on the island from Wood End and Dordon. These will be greatly lengthened by the proposal. Long St Dordon’s access to the A5 will be of extreme concern as waiting time will be extended and access by emergency service vehicles will be impossible as traffic blocks the road by parking and active queuing of waiting cars and HGV’s. I am also concerned that the Dordon Island is not designed to accept the turning circles of large HGV’s from the west into Gipsy Lane.
  
  
• 6. The application has not addressed the noise and environmental issues of smell that will be created. All waste transfer vehicles will be loaded in the new buildings. This operation will require thousands of forward and reversing movements per day by shovel loaders, all fitted with reversing bleepers. These sounds will resonate from the buildings which are proposed on top of a hill, to all areas. The loading operations will also be taking place up to 10pm each evening 7 days a week. This is unacceptable in a rural location.
  
  
• 7. There is no provision in the application to provide street lighting or footpaths to the site. Vehicles in winter months will leave the A5 trunk road which is well lit road onto a country lane where pedestrians, pony trekkers, cyclists and alike regularly use the lane through to Wood End this proposal will endanger their safety. Planned opening times are 7am to 10pm.
  
  
• 8. I would ask you to refer to Warwickshire County Council’s Mission Statement
  • “Planning policy seeks to promote a better quality of life for the people of Warwickshire and the region through the integration of land use and economic strategies into a single consistent, coherent and sustainable approach”.
    
    
  • “We are committed to working with partners at all levels, from local through to international, to develop strategies and policies that serve the public interest throughout the County”.
    
    
  • “Our aim is to balance current land use and economic pressures to ensure a higher standard of living for all without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”
    
    
  Please be consistent in you deliberations with regard to this Statement.
  

[Madhatter]

I've also spotted on the application documents that refuse from kerbside deliveries will be up to 7 days old, considering that nuneaton only collects once a fortnight this clearly isn't true and means refuse will be up to 14 days old before it's deposited at the site for compaction and 16 days before being sent off to four ashes.

There has been in the past clear concern that the site is unsuitable for industrial use, being in open country side and was added as a condition only to be removed when it was proven over considerable time that the skin farm caused no affect on the locality.

Two further conditions ensured that the premises should
not be used for any other purposes and that the use was limited to the person of Mr. R.W.G.
Daniels. The reason for the council’s decision was specified as follows; “in the interest of
the amenity of the area, and to prevent the further development and the permanent
establishment of the site for industrial purposes.”

This planning application should never have been given, the site has been polluting land and water courses with salt since this use was given planning permission. Now WCC are using NWBC incorrectly given planning approval to claim that the site is already an industrial site. They are choosing to ignore past concerns given by NWBC that the use of the land should change to industrial use.

I also feel it is a fine line between agricultural use and industrial use, fell mongering is processing of animal skins, it is still animal related. Many farms process different parts of animals and farms traditionally use to cook and smoke meats bacon and hams, make cheese etc. including salting bacon. Therefore I'd disagree that this farm is industrial use.

1. Traffic Congestion and queuing during busy periods; In the past major problems
have been experienced both on Spon Lane and the A5 due to congestion from traffic trying
to turn into the Grendon Site during busy periods.

This is mainly due to the site closing early in the week forcing people who work to go at the weekend. Extend the hours at the existing site and the weekend queues will drop

2. Insufficient space to provide sufficient recycling facilities; The space available at
the current site is not sufficient to provide a full range of easily accessible recycling
containers.

I see no extra public facilities at the new site that aren't at Grendon site.

4. Limited re-use facilities; Lack of space does not allow for the current site to provide a
reuse or recycling shop.

Strange this is, because I saw a collection of things for sale and even bought some of them.

It certainly doesn't comply with policy 6 of the Warwickshire waste local plan.

Policy Number 6 – Material Recycling Facilities sets out policy with regard to material
recycling facilities;
“Material Recycling Facilities will be permitted in the following circumstances:
- As an integral part of new and established waste disposal facilities
- On Industrial estates and;
- On other land which has been used for a commercial use and where the proposed use
would be compatible with adjacent land uses.
Where the proposal is associated with a landfill site the life of the material recycling site will
be limited to the life of the landfilling operation.”22
The proposed HWRC forms an integral part of the development proposal which is located
on a brownfield site.

It's certainly not an industrial estate and it's certainly not compatible with adjacent land uses.

[Madhatter]

Dear All

LATEST NEWS - PROPOSED WASTE CENTRE AT LOWER HOUSE FARM


Warwickshire County Council have submitted Revised Design and Access Statement and Revised Drawings. The amendments to the proposals at Lower House Farm include:-

1. They have reduced the yard area by 5 metres in width to bring the site footprint closer to what the current hardstanding footprint is now i.e. the area that has planning permission for fellmongering.

2. Removing the proposed overflow traffic queuing loop for peak time traffic to again reduce size of overall development.

3. Reduce height of Main Building from 16 metres high to 13 metres high.

4. Introduce 'some' road widening to Lower House Lane from Lower House Farm to the A5 Island. However no drawings indicate where this may take place.

5. Details of what and where signage will be located to advertise and enforce reduction in speed from 60mph to 40mph.

All of these amendments can be viewed either via www.notowastecentre.co.uk or Warwickshire Planning website. The revised Statement and drawing are at the bottom of the boxes on their site.

Although these amendments do on the face look like an attempt to show they are listening and that they are reducing impact of the site - the fact remains that it is a wholly unsuitable site and removing the queuing loop will increase accidents not remove them!!!!!
A reminder that Mr. Richard Forbes who was the Case Officer at Planning Dept., Warwickshire County Council has left and Sue Broomhead has now taken over from Richard. All queries, objections, comments etc need to be addressed to Sue Broomhead email: [e-mail] or tel: [phone].

The Planning Committee Meeting will decide in the application on 20th January 2009 - we can still send in comments on the application - so if you know family and friends who have still not commented please encourage them to visit the website www.notowastecentre.co.uk and get commenting!!

We still intend to attend the Planning Committee Meeting on 20th January and are still looking for numbers to organise transport if necessary - anyone interested please let me know.

As far as we are aware the Highways Report for the Proposed Project has still not been submitted!!!

As reader's of The Tamworth/Atherstone Herald will know, Merevale Estates have submitted a revised application for an 'Eco Dump' near Baxterley - although the revised application intends to reduce the number of HGV's to 70 per day, this combined with the additional HGV movements from the proposed Waste Centre at Dordon/Wood End is going to be a recipe for traffic chaos!! Please consider commenting on this application as it will have a further disastrous effect on the A5! www.warwickshire.gov.uk/web/corporate/pages.nsf/(DisplayLinks)/1956F864E520E1A5802574D6004A2E5F

Once again thank you to everyone for your continued support, it is very uplifting to drive around and see so many signs and posters!! Keep up the good work.


Hannah Cole
No To Waste Centre

For the latest information please visit:
www.notowastecentre.co.uk