A planning committee has heard that a controversial planning application for a pond that had already been created without permission could lead to a “disaster” and have “catastrophic consequences”. Its development and subsequent application have been opposed by thousands of people.
Art dealer Barnes Thomas, who featured in Bear Grylls’ show The Island, has applied to preserve an 80 by 30 meter pond he built on his land. He said he didn’t realize he needed a building permit. However, residents living in the Cot Valley, near St Just in west Cornwall, started a petition to have the landscape protected and the pond removed. It has been signed by more than 4,500 people.
The proposal has been presented to Cornwall Council’s western area planning committee today (Tuesday, May 28). Key issues as outlined by planner Diane Boardman included the visual impact of the pond in relation to the National Landscape (formerly known as the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), flood risk and the impact on the bird strike hazard at nearby Land’s End Airport.
Read next: Decision recommended on illegal pond, which has angered thousands
Read next: Hundreds oppose unlawful construction of ‘lake’ beauty spot
However, she stated that the application was supported by sufficient information relating to flood risk, while the Environment Agency raised no objections, subject to conditions.
Land’s End Airport objected, but Ms Boardman said the application was supported by a bird strike management plan. The Cornwall National Landscape Team also objected because the pond – which some say looks more like a lake – partially fills part of the valley. “However, given the scale of the development in terms of visual impact, the planning department does not consider this to be substantial so its impact does not justify refusal,” the planning officer added.
Get the best stories and breaking news in your inbox every day. Choose what you want here.
Chris Pearson, airport manager and senior air traffic control officer at Land’s End, described as the “critical link” to the Isles of Scilly, told councilors the pond is adjacent to the centerline of the main runway. He said the airport has instructed Mr Thomas to carry out a bird strike risk assessment.
“This was implemented but not shared with the airport. Reading the report you wonder if it wasn’t shared as it is rightly quite damning about the proposal on aircraft safety grounds,” Mr Pearson said. This showed that there was a danger to species of waterfowl attracted to the pond, such as Canada geese and herons, and that this was in a crucial stretch of airspace: the final approach to the runway where planes fly low.
Mr Pearson added: “While the measures identified in the report may help manage the increased risks, they will not eliminate them and the increased risk remains.” He said unlike other ponds and lakes in the area, the pond was directly under the flight path of aircraft on their way to the runway.
He said it is “not wise” to have such a body of water near a main runway at a commercial airport. “No other airport would want or should support such a proposal. Surely it is the primary duty of all parties to ensure the continued safety of the public above all other matters? That is why I ask that permission be refused.”
St Just-in-Penwith councilor Martin Cavell said he was there to remind the committee of the council’s and residents’ concerns about the “new lake”.
“One of the major concerns is the ecology of the surrounding area and in particular the stream from which the lake is fed and discharged. The applicant has had its own ecology report prepared, but there is no report or overview of the effects on the environment.
“However, his commissioned report does recognize the likely impacts on the stream from the extraction of water and discharge of sediments from the lake. The National Trust was not consulted, but as a key stakeholder has felt it necessary to comment publicly on their concerns and they say that we are not currently satisfied that this development is appropriate and will deliver the necessary environmental mitigation and improvements.’
On the airport’s concerns, he said the conscience of St Just councilors would not allow them to support an application that “could one day contribute to a disaster”.
Join CornwallLive’s WhatsApp community to get the top stories and breaking news sent straight to your phone
CornwallLive is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join us. Once you sign up for our updates, we’ll send the day’s breaking news and top stories straight to your phone.
To join our community, you must already have WhatsApp. All you have to do is click this link and select ‘Join the Community’.
No one can see who has signed in and no one can send messages except the CornwallLive team.
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can take a look at any time.
To leave our community, click on the name at the top of your screen and choose ‘Exit group’. If you are curious, you can read our Privacy Statement.
Click here to join our WhatsApp community.
Chris Tofts, head of the planning team at Stephens Scown solicitors, said on behalf of the applicant that the pond was constructed to provide a nature reserve and water for livestock. He said the pond was currently empty and had been so for some time, following a planning enforcement application (although the planning officer later said there was no application to clear the pond).
He said Mr Thomas had taken the airport’s concerns seriously and carried out a bird strike risk assessment. The mitigation included dense vegetation or fencing around the pond and the absence of islands in the pond, which was suggested as a condition by the planning officer. Mr Tofts said the airport had not disputed the assessment’s findings or recommendations, and that the company that carried out the assessment was recommended by the airport operator. “The report does not say that there will be a net increase in risk with the proposed restriction.”
He added that an ecological report had been carried out by the commercial arm of Cornwall Wildlife Trust, which found that the pond had been created on land that previously had low ecological value, and concluded that it was a valuable addition to the biodiversity of the environment.
Cllr Loveday Jenkin asked what the wildlife and agricultural benefits were of the pond with a platform, stone posts, an entrance and a path leading to it. Mr Tofts replied that they were there to make it look attractive.
The committee’s vice-chairman, Cllr Guy Foreman, pointed out that one of the measures was fencing off the pond, but asked if that happened, how cattle would drink from it – one of the reasons given for its creation. Mr Tofts said a management plan would allow livestock to move in, but not geese.
Cllr Foreman, who has an aviation background, said an airport representative would not have spoken lightly at the meeting and believed such a body of water near the main runway was “terrible”. Cllr Loic Rich said he was pleased with the bird risk plan and argued that all airports had lakes around them, including Heathrow, “the largest airport in the country, if not the world”.
Cllr John Keeling, who had also worked in the aviation industry, said he had seen the damage caused by bird strikes, adding that the reasons for the lake were “pretty weak… why bring an unnecessary danger bring over?”
Cllr Jenkin said: “I see no reason at all to support this proposal. It was done without any consent. We are talking about something that creates a hazard in an area where that hazard could have catastrophic consequences. Its impact on the landscape is not in keeping with the character of the area – the Cot Valley is a small valley with lots of vegetation, not a deep lake. The structures around it do not fit into the open landscape.”
The retrospective application was rejected as an “incongruous and conspicuous addition to the landscape”, with nine councilors voting in favor of refusal and one against.