‘Landscape must be preserved’

Concerns have been raised over the impact that a new £350m sugar beet factory could have on the landscape surrounding Allerton Castle’s historic property. Campaigners say heritage must be preserved.

CONCERNS HAVE been raised over the impact that a new £350m sugar beet factory could have on the landscape surrounding Allerton Castle’s historic property.

Plans for the new plant – which would involve a supply chain of about 3,500 British farmers – are at an early stage and are due to be submitted in November.

But neighbours to the site, including the trust set up to preserve the nearby Grade 1 listed Allerton Castle, say further development should not be permitted.

“It is important England preserves it heritage because once lost it cannot be recovered,” said Dr Gerald Rolph on behalf of the foundation.

“Further commercial development on agricultural land within the environment of the castle should not be allowed. Of major concern is the effect the lorry and farm vehicle traffic will have on the A1M/A59 intersection and on the A168 will have on our major entry gate to the castle.

“We are already having difficulty renting the Gatehouse on the A168 due to anticipated traffic noise and blockage.”

Plans were revealed in May to build the processing plant on a site between York and Harrogate, close to the Allerton Park Waste Recycling Centre. Developers said it shows a “big vote of confidence” in the region’s rural economy, and would be a huge boost to the farming community.

No formal submissions have been made, but the plans would see Northern Sugar, backed by Al Khaleej Sugar of Dubai, create a “stable” supply of sugar to the UK and potentially for export.

Neighbouring residents have raised concerns over the impact on the community, amid plans for four 80m high silos.

Ray Allott, who lives next to the site, said: “I’m horrified by the scale of the proposal. You will be able to see it from all over.

“This is green-belt land – it’s the wrong development in the wrong location. It’s development on an industrial scale in a green belt area within the Vale of York.”

Northern Sugar has previously said it would use the land to shield the site as much as possible, with the silos potentially to be built in a dip in the landscape.

A spokesman said it did understand the concerns of local stakeholders and is looking to address objections. Traffic modelling assessments are currently being carried out, he said, with the results to be available in October.

“The objective is to mitigate as much as possible the impact of the proposed new facility on the local road networks,” he added. “To put it in context, initial numbers indicate that we would represent one per cent of the traffic volume on the A59 to York.”

But Dr Rolph, who bought the castle in the 1980s and gifted it the public last year when he handed over the freehold ownership to the Gerald Arthur Rolph Foundation for Historic Preservation and Education, says the nearby landscape is too important. He had long argued against the siting of the incinerator on land nearby, fighting to protect and preserve listed structures such as the castle’s Temple of Victory.

“The landscape surrounding historic properties is considered an important part of the property and is usually protected by legislation,” he said.

“The incinerator plant should not have been placed within the historic landscape and sight of the castle, and on part of the 2,500 acres of land owned by Lord Mowbray, Segrave and Stourton, the previous owners and of the family that built Allerton Castle, who in order to originally bring the land from agricultural restrictions to extract gavel, promised to return it to agriculture within 25 years.”

England must preserve its heritage – once lost it cannot be recovered. Dr Gerald Rolph, of Allerton Castle’s Foundation Trust.