Bury MBC Local Plan Submission Dave Bentley Ecology September 2017 V1

River Valley planning policy boundary proposals

Headline – The GMSF makes much of the Pennine fringes as something to be protected and enjoyed. We know this is because the GMSF seeks to destroy the lowland countryside and are only able to offer keeping the Pennines as mitigation!! However this document takes the GMSF at its word and seeks to designate River Valleys that integrate the lowland river valley areas with the Pennine woodlands and moorland streams, to try to ensure that the Pennine fringe’s environmental and recreational opportunities support and are supported by the lowlands.

The proposal boundaries include:

All existing River Valley areas designated under the Unitary Development Plan, excluding I suppose any areas that have genuinely been built on plus

A number of other areas as listed below and show on 12 accompanying maps.

These are the same maps that were presented at the UDP Inquiry by Dave Bentley, using office space and maps donated by Ged MaGee of the then Bury UDP Team. I have not the time to check which if any areas were included in the final UDP Draft. I know few, if any, were. These are the additional areas I would like to see protected under the River Valley policies. Or indeed whatever policies follow on from it. Myself, I prefer several policies to just one Green Infrastructure policy. If a development only becomes subject to one GI policy rather than a number of policies then site defence is weakened. The current Local Plan Natural Environment Paper hints that SBIs, Wildlife Corridors and River Valley could be rolled into one which will mean the abolition of SBIs as a planning and site defence tool as fa as I can see.

The maps – Each area is a scan of the original. The sites are identified with a code e.g. 5.1, and the boundary is shown with a thicker line and a solid v at regular intervals. The River Valley at the time of the UDP Inquiry is NOT shown, but these areas will be fully integrated. In most cases the areas are similar but not overlapping my proposals for Wildlife Corridors. If there is a desire on the part of Bury MBC to accept my proposals then a synthesis of boundaries, if they do that, should include the wider area. But on the whole River Valleys follow man made boundaries, and Wildlife Corridors are a collection of habitats that may have a sinuous boundary.

RVMAP1:

5.1 Dearden Clough near Edenfield – a natural incorporation to link the extensive Dearden Valley in Rossendale with the Irwell Valley proper. Well recognise the connection. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left.

5.2 Brook Bottom Brook near Edenfield - a natural incorporation to link the extensive New Gate Brook and Scout Moor/Whittle Hill in Rossendale with the Irwell Valley proper. Well recognise the connection. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left.

5.3 Cross Bank Brook, Shuttleworth – a natural incorporation to link the extensive Harden Brook, Shuttleworth Brook and Turf Moor in Rossendale with the Irwell Valley proper. Well recognise the connection. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left.

5.26 Carr, Ramsbottom – a natural incorporation into the River Valley to include that west of the Irwell and North of Ramsbottom. This would deal with the ridiculous situation where there is 800m of River Valley east of the River Irwell yet west of it there is zero metres of protected River Valley. This proposal takes the boundary to Helmshore Road and the fringes of Holcombe Moor, sharing a boundary with the West Pennine Moors plan area, and incudes the tumbling valleysides and mill lodges and streams. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left.

RVMAP2:

5.4 Park Brook, Park - a natural incorporation to link the extensive Harden Moor area in Rossendale with the Irwell Valley proper via Park Brook. Well recognise the connection. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left. Here are two choices – to simply recognise the Park Brook River Valley, or to recognise that the River Valley boundary is a bit odd east of Ramsbottom for north of Fletcher Bank the A road is taken as the boundary and the motorway is ignored, yet south of Fletcher Bank the a road is ignored and the motorway is taken as the boundary.

RVMAP3:

5.5 Walmersley Brook, Carr Bank – proposal includes putting a small open section of valley in a constricted, and soon to be more constricted, area of town into the River Valley. Already Protected Recreation Provision in the urban area.

5.6 Pigs Lee and Baldingtone Valley – a natural extension to the valley into Rossendale with links to Deeply Vale and the Pennine fringes. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left. This area may soon become more developed via the GMSF.

RVMAP4:

5.25 Whipney Lane, Greenmount. I doubt the person who drew the original boundary line knew the area. Whipney Lane is a pleasant recreational route with some nice wildlife and has streams feeding into the already protected Valley from the west. The boundary I propose makes more sense. In the West Pennine Moors plan area so proposal gives added protection. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left.

RVMAP5:

5.22 Elton Reservoir Canal Feeder Corridor. To keep the life of the canal feeder free of development and to recognise the potential as a recreational route. This would give some protection to the water supply and help possibly regenerate the fringes.

5.23 Elton Brook from Bury Bridge to Lowercroft. Recognised of value in more recent council reports and high time for inclusion in a protected River Valley. My objection to the GMSF allocation in this area goes into detail and will be resubmitted for the Local Plan in some form. This proposal brings the River Valley right up to the West Pennine Moors plan area at Lowercroft. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left.

5.29 Daisyfield. The exclusion of this area from River Valley and Wildlife Corridor at the time of the UDP was because Bury planners did not want to see this part of the valley developed in sympathy with the valley. The point of these policies is to get developments to contribute to the aims of the River Valley. Taking development sites from out of the valley beforehand is no different from corruption. It’s saying you don’t want the development to contribute the River Valley and you are only playing lip service.

5.8 Woodhill valleyside – The one time Champale site removed from the River Valley so any development would not need to be in sympathy with migrating wildlife or the River Valley. Corruption! My proposal is to put the land in the River Valley so in the event that development happens it will have to be in sympathy with the River Valley – it is actually a terrible site for development and should be left as wildspace as it is end to end wildlife habitat. It lies above vegetated paper pulp lagoons and there so no need to do anything to remediate them, with Sphagnum moss, Reedmace and Palmate Newts being present.

RVMAP6:

5.24 Lowercroft Lodges – Y shaped valley with actual and potential recreational value. In the West Pennine Moors plan area, thus giving added protection. The GMSF makes much of the Pennine Moors as a feature for the conurbation, though in reality it is because the GMSF is trashing the lowland greenbelt and there won’t be much else left.

5.19 Blackshaw Brook northern section. The northern part of this area is in the West Pennine Moor plan area, part is Special Landscape Area, part Golf Course but the base of the valley has dereliction and small fishing lodges. Including this area in the River Valley may encourage an environmentally friendly resurgence of the valley. It seems as it is on the border Bury MBC isn’t interested. The southern part of the valley in Bury has been developed for housing (promised buffer zones planted strips supplied on outline consent and removed on reserved matters consent –Bury MBC planners’ failure) but the industrial riverside strip and lodges were retrained for countryside recreation. Blackshaw Brook Valley needs River Valley designation.

RVMAP7:

5.10 The Hags, Hollins – sloping farmland, streams and playing fields running down to Hollins Brook.

5.11 The Coffin site, Hollins – sloping farmland and stream running down to Hollins Brook.

5.12 Hollins Vale, Hollins – marshy field actually in valley bottom, with slope up to top of bank. This corrects the case of the planning offer not knowing the site and choosing the wrong boundary.

5.13 Hollins Plantation, Hollins – woodland clough running down to Hollins Brook.

5.9 South part of Brightley Brook Valley – amendment includes southern half of the valley taking in lowland meadows, valley slopes and pondy marshes no longer shown on OS base map yet part of Bury MBC GCN survey. This corrects the case of the planning offer not knowing the site and choosing the wrong boundary.

RVMAP8:

5.14 Whittle Brook east of M60. Brook runs in culvert under motorway and valley runs on both sides of M60. No reason whatsoever to exclude the east side, particularly as it an across Local Authority boundary corridor.

5.15 Simister/Rhodes Green – addition taking in streamside, reservoir, ponds, part of the unfulfilled Irk Valley area, once mooted as a protected River Valley but Greater Manchester Council was abolished.

RVMAP9:

5.16 Singleton Brook – including the whole of Bury side of valley.

RVMAP10:

5.17 Lily Hill – part of River Valley and only excluded as it had an old planning consent that had lapsed, and the UDP inspector put this site into the Greenbelt. He said it was an exceptional circumstance to put right the boundary. Should go into River Valley if not already fixed by UDP Inspector.

5.28 Swan Lodge fringe – the River Valley boundary oddly runs through the SBI (unless it was fixed by the UDP Inspector). This amendment fixes that. River valley boundaries should not run through marshes. Boundary to run along Employment Area boundary.

5.30 Blackford Bridge. On the south side there is a never enacted planning consent which kept this site out of the River Valley. The site is solid woodland with ponds, industrial archaeology and the old bridge and highway and is a wildlife corridor. On the north side there is other open land which is oddly out of the River Valley despite of being open and with a recreation area.

RVMAP11:

5.18 Hollybank Street, Radcliffe. This is to incorporate the SBI into the River Valley dealing with a mismatched boundary following the SBI boundary revision.

5.20 Brook Bottom Road, Black Lane/Elton Res – to incorporate into the River Valley the fields between the old Bury to Bolton railwayline and the River Valley boundary which runs to the north of Withins Reservoir along the track to Doffer Fold Farm. This new boundary is in sympathy with the one around Elton reservoir which takes a rather arbitrary boundary down the farm track with the same landscape on both sides. The railwayline is an obvious contour line to follow.

RVMAP12:

5.21 Heap Bridge – Open field in Roch Valley in river loop to be added to River Valley.

5.31 Topping fold to Smethhurst Wood. For some reason this huge chunk of river valley in a deprived ward isn’t designated as a River Valley. This corrects this.

5.7 Pilsworth Industrial Estate - Not shown on map – north side of Pilsworth Reservoir to include remaining habitats including the reservoir and inflow as far as motorway.

5.27 Gigg - Not shown on map – all remaining riverside habitats to be added to river Valley now development is complete.

Maps:

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