Representation by James Francis Fairley
- Date submitted
- 21 June 2024
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
This relevant representation is submitted by James Fairley, the owner of Wolves Hall Tendring. 1. Impact on Wolves Hall Farm and the Farming Business: a. Cable Route Hosting: - We will be hosting 3,480 meters of the cable route, significantly impacting our property and business operations for the entirety of the proposed project and beyond. b. Agricultural Field Access: - The maintenance of existing agricultural field accesses, along with careful management of accesses where shared use is proposed, will impact the operation of our farm business and limit our ability to farm. c. Severance and Destruction: - The severance of existing fields and field drainage schemes, destroying high-grade, productive arable land will be a permanent impact on the farm business. d. Utility/Diversion Works: - The implementation of utility/diversion works remains unclear regarding the specific works, programme, and period of temporary possession, which has created uncertainty for our business. Specific Concerns: a.Cropped Area Affected: - Approximately 60% of the cropped area on our 750-acre farm will be directly impacted. The planned route targets the highest-yielding, most productive central areas of our fields. During the construction phase being expected to farm multiple inefficient severed areas is going to be mentally and logistically challenging. b. Proximity to Residence: - The construction will pass close to our home. There has been no consideration of this. c. Soil Health Concerns: - We practice regenerative farming and are devastated by the inevitable negative outcomes on our soil health. Although good practices may be followed, the adverse effects on soil structure, drainage, biology, and chemical characteristics are unavoidable. d. Heat Impact on Soil Ecology: - The heat generated by the cables could adversely affect soil ecology, moisture levels, and nutrient availability for crop roots. e. Concrete Pad Placement: - Each concrete pad laid in the field will necessitate a cultivation headland, like the needs of pylons in an overhead scheme, requiring 20 meters on all sides for machinery operation. This reduces efficiency and increases compaction, lowering yield on the surrounding 1,600 square meters of a pad. We are expecting a minimum of 32 pads impacting our farm permanently. Engagement: a. Collaboration: - Collaboration with Five Estuaries and North Falls remains unclear, particularly regarding the phasing of each development. b. Poor Engagement: - Meaningful engagement has been poor, with very few meetings to discuss a voluntary agreement and address the above concerns and issues. c. Inadequate Heads of Terms: - The Heads of Terms for a voluntary agreement lack specific details covering our concerns listed above. Five Estuaries' presentation is a “take it or leave it” proposition, which we do not feel is fair or reasonable given the overwhelming impact the scheme has on our farm. Despite our willingness to accommodate the electric cable proposal, the lack of engagement from Dalcour Maclaren on these critical issues is profoundly disappointing. We reserve our right to make further and/or additional representations in relation to the Five Estuaries project proposals (as detailed in the Application).