Green protest at plans to dig up large peat area
ENVIRONMENTALISTS are protesting at plans to remove a huge amount of peat to make way for a housing development.
Developer Bellway wants to dig up 24,000 cubic metres at land off Chelford Road, in Henbury, to prepare for the building of 134 homes.
But peat is an excellent store of carbon - holding between 30 to 70kg per cubic metre - and green campaigners say this is important, particularly next to what an air quality management zone in Broken Cross.
Although Bellway will use 14,000 cubic metres elsewhere on the site, it concedes 10,000 cubic metres will be taken away.
In carbon terms that is anywhere between 300,000 and 700,000kg being released into an area of already high air pollution and traffic congestion rather than being stored out of harm’s way.
A decision on a planning application for the 134 homes was deferred earlier this year with concerns about the peat - and therefore a request for more information on what would be done with it - among the issues. A spokesman for Save Macclesfield Greenbelt said: “How can this be allowed in this day and age?
“Cheshire East Council has declared a climate emergency and talks about the importance of green issues, I hope they take the chance to live up to this talk.”
The long-running homes application was submitted in 2019 and a decision on it was deferred at a council meeting on January 27 with other issues including the design and mix of the houses as well as flooding potential. Since then Bellway has submitted documents to address these concerns, one being a report from environmental engineers E3P.
Director Martin Dyer says in it: “24,000m3 of peat will require excavation from beneath roads, private driveways, hard standing and service infrastructure due to the unacceptable potential for consolidation and settlement of this material. The materials management analysis suggests that 14,000m3 of this material can be recovered as a suitable soil material for use in the landscaping to the public open space area to achieve the agreed contour levels.
“This analysis suggests an excess of 10,000m3 which will require removal from the site to a suitable facility.”
Bellway says the peat removed from the site will remain within Cheshire East.
Its new submissions also state there is a ‘comprehensive drainage strategy’, the housing mix complies with planning policy and the design has been tweaked to take account of concerns.
An example given is that there is now less use of black and white gable ends.
Nevertheless environmentalists remain unconvinced and Cheshire Wildlife Trust has reiterated its opposition.
A spokesman said: “Our opinion is still that the loss of biodiversity as a result of the proposed scheme will be greater than 71 per cent.
”We therefore reiterate our objection to this development unless a voluntary contribution towards biodiversity net gain is secured or a condition is applied.”
The application is one of three for a total of around 400 homes across sites between Chelford Road and Whirley Road.
Bellway has been contacted for further comment.