Quarry comments growing nicely
My encouragement to local people living near Hints and Weeford to make their views known to the County around plans for a massive quarry expansion at Bucks Head Farm saw a huge number of submissions early on.
And latterly Tarmac have issued proposals for 5.5million tonnes of aggregate extraction between Fisherwick and Comberford. Bad as the actual quarrying would be it is 
also the transportation by road which is the real killer blow for Comberford, Elford and the Rawlett School area which could see 700 plus twenty tonners thundering around the place every week.
Comments on the Fisherwick started off pretty few and far between but following a couple of public meetings and the usual media interest I’m pleased to say that numbers of people writing to the County with their views are increasing dramatically.
These two proposals together would see 2500 plus HGVs every week full to the brim with sand and gravel on local roads. Surely its worth you telling Staffordshire County Council what you think of that idea… isn’t it?
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Of all the points raised in objection, one of Phil Bennion’s should be viewed as of the highest priority. He says: “The farmland to be lost is of the highest grade, and we should be more concerned about long-term food security”.
It’s hard to imagine that this should be important, because shops are brimming with food, of which much is wasted. But if those who claim to plan for the future are sincerely interested in that future (a big ‘if’, it seems), they should consider the following.
*The UK, according to DEFRA, is only about 60% self-sufficient in all food types; this is to feed 60 million+ citizens.
*As fossil fuels become scarcer and dearer to a point of actual dearth by mid-century, the ability of farmers to grow food will be compromised, because there will be shortages in fuel at all stages of production, from planting at the beginning to processing and delivering at the end.
*Food production will be further compromised by fossil fuel shortages, because these are required in the production of fertilisers.
*Renewables will not even begin to make up for the fossil fuel shortages. Food production will be further compromised if valuable land is used to produce biofuels –or even fodder for draught horses.
*The population has not yet reached a plateau: projections for mid-century suggests numbers perhaps in excess of 80 million. Thus per capita food availability will be much smaller in terms of self sufficiency than at present.
*Self-sufficiency, although long the butt of political jokes, will become an increasingly serious subject as the century progresses. This is because the food we import from beyond the EU will be fiercely competed for by emerging powers such as China & Korea, who are already buying large tracts of land in developing countries to grow food for shipping to their homelands. Any remaining surpluses will be required by the citizens of the developing countries who grow them. The scramble for global food supplies will thus be intense.
*Although Europe as a whole is currently able to be self-sufficient at a pinch, and although its population is stable relative to the burgeoning numbers in the developing world, we should expect to host millions of environmental refugees as climate change exacerbates crop failures, or as rising sea levels force people from their homes. An example of the latter would be the 100 million+ Bangladeshis who may simply not have a country at all towards the end of the century. Already much of their good land is failing because of salt-water saturation, which precedes actual inundation.
I suggest that, if the planners are unaware of these long-term trends they should swiftly study them, and incorporate them into their thinking. I cannot imagine that they would go ahead and succumb to short-term commercial activities if they were fully aware of the situation, for to do so would call into serious question their ethical standards.
Edmund Davey.
The point Mr Davey makes about farmland is well made and forms a key aspect of the ‘formal’ objections I’m making to both the individual quarry proposals at Bucks Head Farm and Fisherwick and the overall level of aggregate extraction being lobbied for by the industry in Staffordshire.
The need to utilise good agricultural land much more in the future to support more locally grown produce was the main thrust we used to make the Labour County Council u-turn on their plans to sell off dozens of publicly owned starter farms throughout Staffordshire last year.
Mr Davey also makes the point about renewable energy. Yes, it’s common sense environmentally but their is a balance as far as local people and their environment are concernend. Phil Bennion’s proposals for several wind turbines on land he owns near Clifton Campville would undoubtedly contribute towards the use of renewable energy but would also have a massive visual impact on the countryside… particularly as they would be far, far taller than the beautiful ‘flying butressed’ church spire which currently dominates and complements the views around Clifton.
So, it’s a balance and it should be down to local people to assess that balance. The 250ft wind measuring mast which has recently been erected on Cllr. Bennion’s land has been contraversial and the consultation undertaken by the local district council was limited, to say the least.
Yes, support renewable energy wherever possible but local impact, be it visual, environmental or health orientated, must be down to local people who have to live with this type of ‘green’ technology.
On quarrying it is essential that we maintain the pressure in order to minimise the level of quarrying in an area which has given far more than its fair share over many many years.
We’ve attended two public meetings on this quarry issue and whilst I agree to some extent on the agricultural stuff it is the haulge of the sand and gravel on local roads which worries us greatly.
Although we are not within sight of the workings our small community would be subjected to the relentless HGV traffic in numbers which are frankly unsustainable.
Mr Ellis has been sensible in concentrating on an aspect which affects so many people directly which is the traffic, pollution and inconvenience and the guidance he has given regarding comments to the County Council appears to cover most of the issues which people will understand and therefore respond too.
Staffordshire is providing far more quarrying than seems reasonable and it is right that it should be reduced regardless of the issues around specific sites. We moved to Staffordshire 30 years ago and have seen the level of quarrying increase significantly whilst issues of aggregate companies not sticking to their responsibilities appears to be increasing at an even faster rate.
Thank you for printing my letter. A further point re global food supplies: the well documented, and accelerating, shrinkage of the Himalayan glaciers will have a serious knock-on effect. Less water from the glaciers will mean strongly diminished flow of the Ganges, causing, possibly serious, losses to the heavily irrigated Indian farmlands. This will in turn throw India into the ever-tightening global grain markets, further exacebating future food competition. So add India (and its ever-growing population) to Korea & China in the struggle for food. Another reason for making the salvation of our agricultural land a top priority.
For a full video on the subject, google PeopleandPlanet Newsletter no. 14, follow link at the bottom.
(Pete Wright:My wife and I sympathise entirely with your problem. We live in relatively calm Edingale, but in your situation we’d be equally worried.)
Edmund Davey
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