Representation by The Woodland Trust (The Woodland Trust)
- Date submitted
- 24 January 2020
- Submitted by
- Other statutory consultees
The Woodland Trust welcomes the opportunity to register a representation to the following project. For the purposes of clarity, our concerns described below are with respect to both applications (East Anglia North ONE and TWO), but as requested by the Planning Inspectorate the Trust has submitted the same response separately for each application. We hold concerns with regards to the potential impact to Grove Wood, designated as ancient on Natural England’s Ancient Woodland Inventory. The scheme boundary directly borders the woodland, but it is not clear from the mapping provided as to the nature of the works proposed. It is therefore difficult to assess the impact the works will have to the adjacent ancient woodland. As such, the Trust would like to highlight Natural England’s Standing Advice regarding development bordering ancient woodland. It states: “For ancient woodlands, you should have a buffer zone of at least 15 metres to avoid root damage. Where assessment shows other impacts are likely to extend beyond this distance, you’re likely to need a larger buffer zone.” Once further information is submitted, the Trust can provide a more detailed assessment of the impacts posed. Furthermore, the Environmental Statement within the applicant’s submission for both projects refers to the presence of veteran trees (Chapter 22; Onshore Ecology). The Trust requests that an arboricultural impact assessment is provided to allow the Trust to assess whether these veteran trees will be impacted by the proposed scheme. In summary, the Woodland Trust objects to the proposed development on the grounds of impact to ancient woodland. We hope our comments are of use to you.