Derek Deedman

County planning officers are making this recommendation in the teeth of the protests and objections from the Small Dole Action Group (representing the vast majority of the some 700 Small Dole residents on this matter), over 250 individual local objections on an e-petition and by letter, and official objections from Upper Beeding and Henfield Parish Councils, Horsham District Council and from the South Downs  Joint Committee (the committee representing all the local authorities within the proposed South Downs National Park).

The only supporters of the planning application appear to be officers who work for unelected bodies such as the Environment Agency, the Health & Safety Executive and the West Sussex Primary Care Trust, all of whom probably live nowhere near Small Dole! Many of their comments are on the lines of the phrase: - “Should the County Council be minded to grant planning permission imposition of appropriate conditions to control noise and odour is essential.” (Horsham planning officers.)  But this is already being done at Small Dole, and life remains intolerable from smells alone for the well over 700 people who live in the Village. It has to be accepted that no conditions or controls will ever stop this situation near any waste landfill site and so such comments from officers are meaningless.

Whilst it is accepted that the present unfinished part of the site has to be filled, capped and the the necessary restoration and aftercare carried out (and even the Small Dole Action Group accept this), there is no case to raise the final restored levels as proposed to allow more waste to be tipped than currently approved.  Planning approval for this would be at the continued detriment to the health and life of Small Dole villagers as well as to the environment of those who live on the routes for heavy lorry traffic to the Site through Upper Beeding, Steyning, Woodmancote and Henfield.

The County Planning Committee members will visit the Small Dole site on Thursday 3 April, and then will meet again to discuss and decide on the officers recommendations on Tuesday, 8 April. The committee meeting is open to the public and will start at 10.30 am at County Hall. This planning application is the only major item on the agenda. Representatives of the Small Dole Action Group are expected to present their reasoned objections to the Committee, and Derek Deedman, as the local County Councillor, will also ask permission from the Committee Chairman to address the meeting.

People in this area have had more than enough of this landfill site; hopefully democracy will prevail and the Committee will listen to their views and reject the officers recommendations on 8 April.