The Planning Officer’s recommendation that South Kesteven District Council (SKDC) Planning Committee authorise the application for an industrial scale biogas between Sewstern, a small village in Melton District Council and Gunby, a tiny hamlet in SKDC, has caused outrage, dismay and disbelief.
A spokesperson for BLOCK, an action group that vociferously opposes the application, said, “This is indisputably an anti-democratic recommendation.
“There are over 500 objections to this monstrous plan with SKDC and an on-line Change petition with over 1,000 objections on it. There is no local support, except from the landowner, The Buckminster Estate, and Future Biogas, a limited company based in Guilford, trading under the name of Ironstone Energy, who will benefit to the value of tens of millions of pounds.
“The Planning Officer’s decision is incredible, not least because there are no discernable benefits to local people. Instead we will be ‘gifted’ an industrial plant that operates at least 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. The site of the plant will be 10 hectares, which is already too big, but, because it will have silage clamps and other storage and buildings elsewhere, it will extend across hundreds of hectares, with local lanes becoming de facto part of the industrial complex.
“Luckily, the final decision does not lie with that officer; it lies with elected councilors on the Planning Committee to decide whether to allow or reject the application.
“We have already been in contact with committee members and will be again but an additional show of local opposition at the Planning Committee Meeting could influence the decision in our favour.”
Consequently, BLOCK is asking local people to attend SKDC’s Planning Committee Meeting in Grantham at 1pm on Thursday 9th January. (
Full details at https://moderngov.southkesteven.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=165&MId=4620 ).
Free lifts to the meeting are also being offered; see https://www.facebook.com/groups/1088718779116728/
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.