Destruction of the Diggle Valley: using our village Green Belt & Main River Floodplain as an unlicensed LANDFILL for toxic waste!

Shockingly & despite many years of the local community trying to prevent it, the Department for Education (the developer) & Oldham Council (landowner) are finally carrying out their plans to use our village Green Belt & Main River Floodplain as an unlicensed LANDFILL for toxic waste – under the smokescreen of ‘building up levels by 3 metres for school sport pitches’.

It is truly shocking how LPA’s & developers are able to break the law – not only to develop on Green Belt & Floodplain – but to use a beautiful river valley such as this – as a TOXIC WASTE DUMP!   Please take the time to watch the 10 minute video below which illustrates the way planning laws, procedure & regulation can be easily disregarded & a blind-eye turned to unlawful & fraudulent actions – by a local authority who feel accountable to NO-ONE!

If ever there was a case study that underlines the NEED for a change in law so that local communities can obtain a Planning Inquiry Hearing in which the veracity of planning documents can be scrutinised (which a Judicial Review does not allow) – this is it! 

Furthermore – it seems that the Environment Agency (who objected 3 times) may have been ‘lent-on’ to drop their objections & have so far done nothing about the dumping of waste.  Therefore, we also need a proper Environmental Watchdog (not a ‘lapdog’) who will hold landowners & developers to account when they break the law.

TAKE ACTION

  • Write to the Secretary of State for Education & the Secretary of State for Communities to complain about the conduct of the Education Funding Agency & Interserve (who are responsible for the development) & Oldham Council (who own the land).  You will need to write to Debbie Abrahams MP first & ask her to pass your concerns onto the two Secretaries of State: