Dear All,
Here is the latest update of Powys Poultry Shed Planning Applications since 2015. (Our interactive map can be found here.)
I trust that you will agree that the number of units and the fact that it is still increasing is cause for the most serious concern.
You may have seen the publicity over Ceredigion’s welcome refusal of one broiler application at Ty Nant, Talybont. Powys County Council (CC) has twenty one applications awaiting decision.
Following the Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Planning Position Statement and Interim Planning Advice re protection of Special Areas of Conservation from excess phosphates, a number of Powys applicants have made submissions that Gamber (agricultural contractors near Hereford) will accept all manure for spreading elsewhere or feeding to Anaerobic Digesters. On 8/3/2021, NRW has approved one such plan for Dol y Dre (150,000 broilers added to existing 130,000 broilers) 20/1226/FUL.
One application has been approved (Pertheirin 19/1941/FUL).
One is at appeal (Forest View 18/0826/FUL).
One application was refused following the Planning Committee vote against the Officer’s recommendation to approve. Refused on landscape grounds (Frochass 19/0938/FUL).
SUMMARY OF POWYS SITUATION
There have been 167 applications since 1/7/2015.
1 was invalid (but applied for again and approved).
1 was withdrawn (but applied for again and approved).
6 were refused:
- 1 was reapplied for, refused again and refused at Appeal (2 refusals)
- 1 was reapplied for and approved
- 1 was reapplied for and is still active
- 1 is at Appeal
- 1 was very recent (Feb. 2021)
There are 21 live applications:
- 7 live applications in the Wye catchment
- 14 live applications in Montgomery, north of the Wye catchment.
There have been many objections to the environmental impacts of these projects but Powys CC does not publish these. There have been many appeals for help to the Council, NRW and the Welsh Government.
The major factor in approval has been NRW’s statutory planning responses declaring satisfaction with each of the 138 applications approved.
We try to stick to the facts in these updates but no-one could deny that this is an astonishingly permissive record which continues against a background of biodiversity collapse, climate change emergency and increased understanding of pandemics.
Stay safe and well – we only wish our countryside could do the same.
Best wishes,
Dr Christine Hugh-Jones
Secretary: Brecon & Radnor Branch
Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales