Latest News - September 2010
Jump to: Object to Thorpe... , New houses threaten...
Sep 22nd 2010 Object to Thorpe Marsh!
Join us in objecting to plans for a new gas-fired power station at Thorpe Marsh, near Barnby Dun, Doncaster.
The original coal-fired power station closed in 1994. The cooling towers should have been removed then, but were left standing. The developers claim that the new station will provide greener electricity and improve the currently derelict site.
We disagree because although a modern power station will be more efficient than the current generation of power stations - it would still waste a huge amount of energy when the (hot) cooling water is dumped into the River Don. If we build new fossil fuel power stations, we must use as much of the energy as possible, ideally via "combined heat and power." We also think that all new forms of generation must be as low carbon as possible: preferably renewable energy.
And although demolition of the towers is welcome, it can't be counted as a planning gain this time - as they should have been removed before! The new power station will have chimneys up to 200 feet high, so it will be another inappropriate major structure in a pleasant, greenfield locatoin.
The planning application is now with both Doncaster Council and the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Doncaster Council can only give a recommendation to DECC.
Please write a letter of objection to both Doncaster's Planning Department and the DECC. You could object on several grounds. New short-term energy supplies must be renewable - rather than using gas, a fossil-fuel - to meet government targets. Also, the development of a power station will have significant impact on a tranquil area of Doncaster.
The reference number is 10/00442/CON.
Sep 8th 2010 New houses threaten Wharncliffe Woods
We're urging Sheffield City Council to reject plans for over 400 new “catalogue” houses at Deepcar, near Stocksbridge – right next door to valuable local woods and wildlife habitats. Wharncliffe Woods is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and includes an area of heath and woodland which is important as a habitat for wildlife, including the nightjar.
The site is in within the Upper Don Valley, which has been identified as part of the Green Network in Sheffield Council’s own plans. Local people and visitors value the area for walking and recreation. What’s more, nightjars nest here. Nightjars are a rare and protected species, and research has shown that they are disturbed by the presence of urban development. Hundreds of new houses will have a very bad impact on their habitat and these valuable woodlands.
We also have serious concerns about the design of the new houses. We think the houses look as though they’ve been picked from a catalogue! Design types such as “Oxbridge, Hanbury and Kingsbury” are found all over the country, and reflect a worrying homogenisation of housing styles. They don’t include local materials and certainly don’t reflect the character of the area.
We are also criticizing the lack of sustainable design in the new houses. From our assessment, there’s no commitment from the developers to include environmentally sustainable design or renewable energy features such as solar panels, passive heating and cooling. These new houses should be altogether greener.
The proposed site is a disused sewage works and former factory. This may be a brownfield site, but that doesn’t mean that we should settle for bad design.
