Fury at plan to cut down pool trees
PLANS to cut down trees to carry out anti-flood safety work at Poynton Pool have now been officially submitted, and met with more than 70 objections in a week.
Cheshire East Council has reduced the number of trees that will be lost as part of the scheme and will plant others as mitigation - but in Stockport.
The authority has submitted an application to its own planning department asking permission to even up the pool’s dam embankment by filling in low points.
It also wants to create two 40m wide clearings for flood water to spill across, make a 2m clay buffer to reduce risk of tree root damage and widen and resurface the footpath.
As awareness of the plans spread the first objections were submitted to the council on November 24, six days later there were more than 70.
Many think the disruptive work at a beauty spot is unnecessary although the council says it has an obligation to do something and this is the best option.
One objector said: “The proposed works are unnecessary as the pool never floods, the impact on wildlife and wilderness is detrimental and totally wrong.
“The new plans are also unsightly. Cheshire East seem to be targeting Poynton for constant building houses, bypasses, closing (the) leisure centre and now a pool that never floods.”
Another added: “The site has never flooded. Removing countless trees to prevent flooding is quite literally an oxymoron. Idiotic proposal.”
The council says the scheme has changed from original suggestions following consultations, including six weeks for the public last autumn.
Originally 44 tees were set for the chop with another 37 losses possible depending on root structure.
Now 31 will definitely be removed with another 47 being given what the council says is remedial work with a view to retention ‘subject to post completion monitoring to assess their health’.
The council report submitted with the application admits this would ‘cause a biodiversity loss’.
So proposes that compensation for this would be to create woodland at
Walnut Tree Farm - a site owned by Cheshire East but in the borough of Stockport.
The report says: “Whilst the planned removal of a number of trees would result in reduced carbon sequestration the magnitude of this reduction will be negligible when compared to national carbon
budgets or any regional or local carbon reduction targets.
“As such, the impact of the removal of these trees on the global climate is considered to be not significant.”
According to the council tree planting is not possible at Poynton Pool for ‘engineering reasons’ and
because the area is protected as a Habitat of Principal Importance.
An online petition against the scheme, started by the Friends of Poynton Pool, currently has more than 4.600 signatures.
The friends group challenge the data used by the council to justify the planned scheme and want a less environmentally damaging solution, such as the use of a sluice gate.
Members say their valid concerns have not been listened to and the area is home to at least 15 redlisted species and at least 66 species with protections. The council says a compulsory inspection at the site found safety concerns over flooding and the trees themselves could be part of the problem.
It is argued should there be flooding the trees could fall, damaging the bank and causing additional flooding concerns.