Representation by The Woodland Trust (The Woodland Trust)
- Date submitted
- 3 November 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Thank you for the opportunity to register as an interested party for the proposed scheme. The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity, aiming to protect native woods, trees and their wildlife for the future. We own over 1,000 sites across the UK, covering over 30,000 hectares and we have over 500,000 members and supporters. We are an evidence-led organisation, applying existing policy and using expertise to assess the impacts of development on ancient woodland and ancient and veteran trees. Our representation is based on a review of the information provided as part of this Development Consent Order submission. The Trust's interest in this project relates to potential impacts to ancient woodland and veteran trees. We have maintained concerns around the impact of this project for some time now, and participated in the developer's public consultations to make our concerns known. We acknowledge that the applicant has reduced the overall impact of the scheme, however some concerns still remain in respect of this irreplaceable habitat and we would welcome being able to respond further at written representation stage. We note that four ancient woodlands will be subject to trenchless crossings, and therefore we would ask that further information is provided outlining whether any potential indirect impacts to ancient woodlands are anticipated, such as access to the woodlands for maintenance and whether any soil disturbance might be required in the future. Ancient woodlands are irreplaceable habitats and therefore we would hold serious concerns about any potential degradation or detrimental impact to facilitate the scheme. Furthermore, we would request that a commitment is secured regarding protection of the veteran trees within proximity to the proposals (including appropriate buffer zones for T367 and T1199 during the proposed works). Development within the buffer zone of veteran trees can result in damage to the trees' root system and rooting environment, so it is imperative that protection in line with Natural England/Forestry Commission's standing advice is secured. Thank you for this opportunity to provide comment and we look forward to engaging in the proposals further.