An internationally-renowned stud farm is breathing a sigh of relief after controversial plans to build a five-acre waste crushing plant on neighbouring land were rejected.
Littleton Stud, based near Winchester, Hampshire, produces horses that compete at the highest level – including ‘wonder horse’ Frankel.
However, fears were sparked for the future of the farm after an application was lodged to build waste plant, nearly five-acres large, nearby.
The proposed centre would have installed an industrial-scale crushed to deal with 75,000 tonnes of waste a year – and would operate six days a week and occasionally overnight.
Internationally-renowned stud farm Littleton Stud (circled), near Winchester, Hampshire, has been spared from having a five-acre waste centre built on nearby land (boxed out) after proposals were rejected by Hampshire County Council
Littleton’s general manager David Bowe (pictured) was ‘delighted’ by the council’s decision to reject the waste centre proposal
Littleton Stud objected to the plans, claiming the dust and noise created would have affected the ‘peace and tranquillity’ needed for horse breeding.
However, the council planning officer recommended that the proposal be approved and civic chiefs said they faced a difficult decision.
After a three-hour Hampshire County Council meeting the plans were eventually rejected, with Littleton general manager David Bowe ‘delighted’ by the decision.
David said: ‘I don’t think you can expect a planning result one way or the other but we were very happy it ruled in our favour.
‘We were delighted, it was something that we had feared because the stud has been here since 1913 and we just expect to be left to do our business.
Littleton Stud objected to the plans, claiming the dust and noise created would have affected the ‘peace and tranquillity’ needed for horse breeding
Fears were sparked for the future of the farm (pictured) after an application was lodged to build waste plant, nearly five-acres large, nearby
‘Having a recycling plant 100 yards away from our perimeter fence would not be conducive to our business so I am delighted.
‘We are not against recycling in any way shape or form, we have no problem with their business and we wish them well, I hope they do it somewhere else.
‘But I don’t think they took us into consideration when they submitted their initial plans, because we were listed as “agricultural land”‘.
David went on to say that Littleton were concerned for their jobs, future and the health of their employees had the waste centre been approved.
‘Racehorses are fundamentally elite athletes of the equine nature. They need to be raised in peace and tranquillity and, most importantly, clean air,’ he said. ‘We are not here jumping for joy, we are just happy we have been left to ply our trade.’
David went said that Littleton were concerned for their jobs, future and the health of their employees had the waste centre been approved
More than 200 objections had been lodged against the waste centre proposals. Pictured: A general view of Littleton Stud
The proposals for the waste centre had been put forward by Portsmouth-based TMR South Coast Ltd and had been met by more than 200 objections.
However, TMR said that the plans would deliver ‘sustainable development with benefits across the environmental, economic and social dimensions’.
At the planning meeting, TMR stressed that appropriate measures would be put in place to protect local residents and the environment.
They also said that vegetation would prevent dust from spreading to nearby areas and would have been happy to set up a liaison group to deal with concerns.
Councillor Stephen Burgess raised concerns over the traffic that the site would create and Councillor Jan Warwick argued that she could not see ‘overwhelming evidence’ in support of the application.
Following the committee ruling, a spokesperson for TMR said: ‘As a business trying to improve our operations in a compliant and professional manner, we are disappointed that the planning committee refused the application against the advice of their experienced officers.
‘We await the final decision notice with interest and will then take professional advice and decide upon our next steps in respect of the site.’