Planning Report- 20 February 2008 to 19 March 2008

PLANNING APPLICATIONS

East Staffordshire Borough Council
o Eight Wind Turbine Towers and Ancillary Works - Bagots Park, Abbots Bromley. The site lies west of Abbots Bromley amongst woodland on a prominent ridge line. It is in one of the highest landscape designations in the Countryside Character Planning Document, and highly sensitive. In common with other planning policies at regional, county and district level, the proposal would contradict all environmental policies, which we have quoted in summary.
CPRE points out that the tower/blade height at 363 feet exceeds Lichfield Cathedral spires, and the blades would sweep an area of 10 acres. We assert that there is no way of assimilating such structures visible from 9 miles distant - and more - and that they would overpower the countryside.
Arguments are put forward disputing the desirability of land-based wind farms and the availability of other technologies. Additionally we make points regarding noise, danger to birds, shadow flicker etc. A recommendation is made for refusal.

Lichfield District Council
o Agricultural Storage Building - Park Lane, Elmhurst. CPRE expresses concern at the building's size, its location away from the farm group and the possibility of attracting additional traffic along narrow lanes. We ask LDC to examine actual purpose envisaged.

South Staffordshire District Council
o 136 Dwellings etc - Land north of Penkridge. CPRE has basic concerns regarding prematurity in advance of regional and local plan preparation, especially in the light of global warming and reduced earth resource. In detail (it is a full application) there is a traffic conflict with the A449 and the development is of a form which conflicts drastically with space standards. We recommend refusal.
o Agricultural Building - Pillaton, Penkridge. CPRE sees several contradictions within the proposal, notably the size in relation to staffing levels and the possibility of extension into retail sales.
o Four Warehouses plus Open Storage - Cannock Road, Featherstone. This proposal conforms closely to an earlier submission which was rejected by the District Council, and CPRE re-affirms its earlier opposition which would be in a dominant position in the Green Belt.
o Re-development of Golf Course plus Import of Fill Material - Broad Lane, Springhill. CPRE has no objection in principle to this proposal as an existing golf course in the Green Belt, but see no justification for the tipping proposed on a site which is heavily screened. It seems to be a feature of such proposals that they are used to justify land fill which has an increased commercial value and we wish to avoid any proposal inappropriate to the local landscape character.
o Dwelling at Mill Lane, Great Saredon. Although the land lies within the Green Belt it could be claimed as infilling, CPRE asks for further justification of the proposal and its relationship to farming activities.