Testun llawn:
Increased Congestion - Cardiff road and Pen-y-turnpike are already oversubscribed. There have been no upgrades to these to ease current congestion and they are not suitable for road widening. The additional houses could potentially add 300-500 extra cars which, in turn will add more pollution and therefore more pressure on the NHS due to lung conditions such as asthma, particular for children at the school on the lights.
The active travel plan is essentially moot, with no legal access for the proposed site that doesn't include using private property not included in the development. Additionally, there is no facilities at Eastbrook station for non able-bodied people or prams etc. The schools are already at capacity, (we have checked) so any new residents may have to take their children by car to school outside the vicinity, so wouldn't be using Eastbrook station.
It's wrong of the plan to show a definite "secondary access" at my address. It's misleading of the documents to show this when highways require Persimmon to carry out further study, yet there transport documents supply none, not even a drawing as supplied for the primary access.
Access from the parking on the left (8 Wayside cottages) would become infeasible so close to a future junction. The wall and trees on the right (9 Wayside cottages) would have to be removed for road widening, while the Eastbrook flows into a pipe culvert under the wall and roadway at that point. Widening the access track over the Brook has technical problems that Persimmon has not addressed.
Flooding of adjacent homes has occurred because of blockage due to debris carried down the Brook and caught at the 90* corers in a narrow (deep) channel. Currently the channel and pipe entrance are visible and accessible so can be cleared. Roadway on top would prevent this. Permission could inset a grill to hold back debris, however, this is not proposed. If they were to do this, Persimmon should take responsibility for regular inspection and maintenance and particularly at any time of rainstorms. I do not trust that they would do this, therefore who would then be responsible for any flooding of my, and my neighbors property? Will the Vale buy our properties as RCT council did in Ynsybwl (Clydach Terrace)?
The storm drain overflow at 9 Wayside cottages that feeds into the Brook has seen a large increase in waterflow since the expansion of Llandough hospital. Therefore, the proposed development will only add to an already overwhelmed drainage system and more water being diverted into the Brook, thereby potentially causing flooding at this point and further down Cardiff Road.
It is also my understanding that if the boundary falls within 10 meters of the bank top of a watercourse, then Persimmon will require a River condition assessment to inform the biodiversity net gain in order to comply with BNG user guidance.
Checks have been made and all the doctors are at capacity, and there has been no on-going consultation with GP services. How will this be addressed? Will a new medical centre be built as part of this development?
I am very aware that Persimmon have had an ecological study done. Where are the results of this? Having spoken to the ecologist who carried out the study, it was very obvious that he was concerned about the "wonderful" meadowland and the old oaks on the site. Permission have a history of cutting such trees regardless and paying the fines. This is well documented on various news and social media sites. Currently I have evidence of bats, various raptors and many birds, foxes etc who call the site home. What is proposed to re-home them?
There are brownfield sites available within the Vale of Glamorgan far more suitable for development. Why are these not being considered? It also appears that JBA consulting suppressed Dinas Powys flooding in the RLDP documents. There SFCA has to record details of historical flooding events yet omitted the flooding of around 100 homes in Dinas Powys in December 2020. The same company wrote its section 19 legal report in 2021. Their SFCA just mentions the flooding measures dealt with the problem yet their 2021 report recommends that NRW access the viability of options to manage flood risk across Dinas Powys, for DCWW to access the viability of offline storage for the Caer odyn surface water system. It's surprising therefore, to find their map on the last page of the SFCA proposes woodland planting to hold back rainstorm run off on part of the proposed site for development by Persimmon.
The Senedd has recently approved groundbreaking new environmental legislation aimed at helping Wales make significant progress in addressing the nature and climate crisis. A new independent watchdog has been created. Will you be consulting this watchdog to ensure compliance with the Senedd's objectives? Deputy first minister with responsibilities for climate change, Huw Irronica-Davies said, "This is a landmark moment for nature in Wales. By passing this bill, we have sent a clear message that protecting our natural environment is a national priority." He further said "As winter has shown, climate change is driving more extreme weather events putting pressure on environment and biodiversity." Therefore, in line with persimmon's own ecology report, this proposed development is in direct opposition to this bill.
In summary, I believe the Vale of Glamorgan council needs to confer with, and report on how these matters are going to be addressed with regard to:
Contacting schools and GP practices in Dinas Powys to ascertain capacity.
Engage, as is required, with highways regarding road capacity etc.
Engage with Welsh Water to establish drainage capacity. Question persimmon regarding access sites for the development.
Ensure Eastbrook station is adequately accessible to all. Ensure proper and effective flood management going forward for ever increasing rainfall etc.
Look at why brownfield sites aren't being considered instead.
Check the SFCA report proposing woodland planting to hold back rainstorm run-offs.
Conduct yourselves in line with Senedd guidance with regard to nature and climate guidance.
