Danone HSW plans result in a loss of landscape character. Rotary Wood is a public amenity and key characteristics should be recognised and be protected by its special statuses. Consideration must be given to the statuses that Rotary Wood has been assigned by local government and national government/loss of landscape character. Consideration should include the protections/formalites that these statuses afford them. These statuses are:
Deciduous Woodland Priority Habitat (DEFRA)
Asset of Community Value (North Yorkshire Council)
Special Landscape Area (North Yorkshire Council)
Environmental and Social Amenity Loss: This space is valued not only for its biodiversity but also for its contributions to the community’s environmental and social amenity. The development’s potential to harm mature trees, biodiversity, and wet woodland further undermines the space’s ecological integrity, which the community values and relies upon for environmental education, nature appreciation, and personal wellbeing.
Lack of Alternative Spaces for Community Use: If this land is developed, the community may lose access to an irreplaceable green space, with few or no alternative sites available nearby. This unique space’s accessibility and environmental qualities are difficult to replicate elsewhere, amplifying the community impact of its potential loss.
Impact on Local Heritage and Community Identity: The designation of this land as an ACV reflects its role in local heritage and identity. Removing or altering this space risks diminishing its cultural value and the sense of place it provides to the local community. This development could negatively impact community cohesion and erode local heritage by replacing a cherished community space with industrial use.
Deciduous Woodland Priority Habitat
DEFRA lists Rotary Wood as Deciduous Woodland Priority Habitat
Source: https://magic.defra.gov.uk/home.htm
Deciduous woodland is a priority habitat in England as defined by the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006.
The Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 states:
“The Secretary of State must, as respects England, publish a list of the living organisms and types of habitat which in the Secretary of State's opinion are of principal importance for the purpose of conserving [F1or enhancing] biodiversity.”
Special Landscape Area
The Harrogate Local Plan 2014-2035 Policy GS2 Growth Strategy designates Pinewoods, which Rotary Wood is part of, as a Special Landscape Area (SLA). The document clearly states that we must avoid significant loss of key characteristics that contribute to the quality of the special landscape area and the setting of Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon. This would happen if Danone Harrogate Spring Water is granted planning permission.
The plan states:
“The special landscape areas are valued locally for their high quality landscape and their importance to the settings of Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon. The designation reinforces the importance of these landscapes and their high sensitivity to inappropriate development which would adversely impact on the quality of the area designated. Development proposals within these areas are required to meet the following criteria:
Avoid significant loss of key characteristics that contribute to the quality of the special landscape area and the setting of Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon.
Ensure that development proposals that are not subject to policies HS6, HS7 and HS9 are linked to existing settlements and are designed to integrate the urban edge with the countryside and to enhance the appearance of the urban fringe.”
Assets of Community Value (ACV)
The Pinewoods has been an ACV since 4th March 2015. It is registered as such on North Yorkshire Council’s Register of Assets of Community Value.
An ‘asset of community value’ is an asset that furthers the social wellbeing or social interests of the local community (or has done in the recent past).