People living around Pleasant Valley have come together to keep their valley ‘pleasant’ and not developed by a remotely owned company just for profit.
Their Objection, submitted in October 2019 has raised awareness locally and the level of resistance has continued to grow with more and more people joining the mailing list and Facebook group.
The planning application, doubling the size of the Heritage Park in Pleasant Valley may be given the go ahead as early as March 10 when the Planning Committee meets.
The case against the proposal is based on sound planning and legal objections and are documented at http://issues.spvrg.wales/. But, as Ben Morris, Chair of the SPVRG, says “Planning applications often seem to achieve strange outcomes.”
The project protestors say will:
• Proposes to cover the whole area at the top of the valley with a significant development on land riddled with unmapped old coal mines and over a floodplain.
• Includes around 80 accommodation units, some of which will, from historic experience in this kind of development, be used as permanent residences,
• Will surround, and discourage access to, an important CADW heritage industrial site with walks, trees and wildlife.
• The car parking and access to walks and woodland, that have been enjoyed by large numbers of local people and visitors for many years, will be restricted.
• Will increase light and noise pollution, which along with human activities will significantly repress wildlife such as rare bats, dormice, a wide range of shy birds – woodpeckers, owls, herons, dippers, treecreepers, etc.
• Proposes to remove trees at the very time we understand the importance of rewilding our countryside and retaining mature trees.
• Overdevelop a small rural community, in a very narrow valley served by a single track road.
• Is unlikely to create more than a handful of unskilled jobs.
• Goes against the PCC recently published aim to encourage tourism development ‘while balancing this with the need to protect and celebrate the very features that make Pembrokeshire an attractive visitor destination.’
Ben Morris said: “Our objections are to protect this small community from over development and maintain the long held, access for local people and visitors to this heritage and wildlife area.
“If there is demand for more self-catering spaces there are many less sensitive sites where such developments could take places,” he added.
Mr. Morris said that the scheme is being opposed by Friends of the Earth, Woodland Trust, other environment groups and a high proportion of local residents and visitors.
Local residents wanting more information, or to join SPVRG can visit: http://spvrg.wales
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