Dedham Vale Society Winter 2007 No 61

ESSEX PLANNING NOTESThe Dedham Vale forms part of a totally unique cultural heritage where the views paintedby John Constable are present today and his progress through the Vale can be followed throughhis wonderfully atmospheric landscapes. If current and future generations are going to enjoythe Vale as it has been passed down to us a key to that enjoyment must be to maintain thepeace and tranquillity from the intrusions of the modern world.Two notable victories in defence of this the smallest of the Areas of Outstanding NaturalBeauty have been achieved in the last few months. Firstly the planning application from theEssex and Suffolk Gliding Club for a large increase in their powered flying days fromWormingford Airfield was withdrawn in the face of strong local opposition. A second successwas the rejection of an appeal against enforcement action taken by Babergh District Councilconcerning the use of a second runway at the Wissington by Nayland Airfield. We are all awareof the problem of the noise of aircraft passing over the Vale but locally generated noise is aserious issue in the west of the AONB. We must never be over-confident; these “disputes”have been running for over two decades and further battles will almost certainly lie ahead.However, the greatest threat to the whole of the AONB must be the Horkesley Park Heritageand Conservation Centre. When the third application was withdrawn in March 2006 in faceof local opposition, a full consultation process with the local community was promised – nosuch process appears to have taken place and a resubmission appears to be imminent. Here isnot the place to research the arguments on how this development would impact the whole ofthe Vale, it is enough to say that 750,000 visitors a year focused on Horkesley, Nayland andBoxted but spreading throughout the area on a totally inadequate infrastructure would bedevastating. With the developments associated with the rapid expansion of the East of England,it becomes even more important to protect the countryside from commercial exploitationwhilst encouraging the widest recreational opportunities for all.Having grown up on farms in Lincolnshire in the 1940s when the shire horse was anintegrated part of the working countryside, am I the only one who finds it deeply offensive to seethese magnificent Suffolk Punches paraded by Bunting & Sons at all manner of occasions andplaces including supermarket car parks? These are creatures of great beauty and we underminetheir dignity by parading them as fairground animals in furtherance of commercial gain.We must garner all our resources to oppose any development that would undermine thewonderful cultural heritage that we are privileged to experience today. The Stour ValleyAction Group will admirably lead the opposition and you can keep yourself informed atwww.stourvalleyactiongroup.org.ukAnother issue, which is likely to change the face of the countryside, is the movement ofagricultural subsidies from a production to conservation basis. Many farmers are looking at awide range of diversification projects, which will bring opportunities, including rural employment,to the countryside. However, the vision of redundant farm buildings being turned into lightindustrial use could, and indeed would, change the very nature of the Vale. Such developmentsmust be monitored to ensure that any change of use is sympathetic to the environment.I will detail here the proposed chicken farm at Cherry Tree Farm in the heart of GreatHorkesley, the subject of great debate and anger, as this lies outside the AONB but could be asign of things to come.Above I have concentrated on the major threats to the Vale. However, much smaller issuescan have, collectively, a serious impact on the enjoyment of the environment we all treasure.The inappropriate and unsympathetic building or extension, the proliferation of street signs,the excessive, and often unnecessary street lighting, all impact on the countryside. Whilst wemust concentrate on the “big issues”, we must also be alert to the small issues that change thenature of what we enjoy today. (Roger Drury, Essex Planning Secretary)5