22 October 2022 CLOUD response to houses on Conder flood plain

Newsflash 22 October 2022

CLOUD response to 22/01158/OUT -45 Houses on Main Road, Galgate

If the alert we put out on 11 October 2022, about proposed building on Main Road, Galgate concerned you, it is vital to respond and make your concerns known.

Below is CLOUD’s objection. If you use any of the arguments we have included do use your own words. Details of how to object are at the end of this Newsflash.

22/01158/OUT | Outline application for residential development for up to 45 dwellings with access, associated infrastructure and open space | Land At OS Grid Reference E348374 N455851 Main Road Galgate Lancashire

I am writing to object to this application for a number of reasons related to flood and pollution risk. The site of this development is part of the flood plain for the River Conder and it floods regularly after heavy rain. The land is adjacent to Main Road, Galgate which is also susceptible to flooding, most recently in November 2017.

The following extracts from the National Planning Policy Framework are relevant here:

159 Inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding should be avoided by directing development away from areas at highest risk (whether existing or future). Where development is necessary in such areas, the development should be made safe for its lifetime without increasing flood risk elsewhere.

160. Strategic policies should be informed by a strategic flood risk assessment, and should manage flood risk from all sources. They should consider cumulative impacts in, or affecting, local areas susceptible to flooding, and take account of advice from the Environment Agency and other relevant flood risk management authorities, such as lead local flood authorities and internal drainage boards.

To highlight the seriousness of the flood risk, this video clip shows flooding on the field over the last 6 years here is a video clip showing flooding of the field in question between 2015 and 2020 (photos provided by a Main Road resident) A field that floods, Galgate 2015-20

1. The application by Hollins Homes (para 4.82 Flood Risk assessment) outlines measures to ensure the new houses do not flood by raising some above the field area by 600mm and by providing cascading attenuation basins and open play area to achieve better catchment. Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDs) are only as good as their maintenance. Who will be responsible for maintenance when the development is complete? SuDs frequently fail in exceptional storms such as November 2017. The application talks about a 100 year event. Climate Emergency renders these events far more frequent and severe. How will flooding of the site and nearby properties be avoided in the case of SuDs failure? How can residents be confident, given past experience, that this development will not make the flood risk for existing Galgate residents worse?

2. At a meeting convened by Hollins Homes on 10 October 2022 the Environment Agency (EA) representative said that the flood defences for the Hollins Homes development on the west of the A6 was not proving feasible and that the run off for the houses already built was going into the Mill Race and then into the Conder to the detriment of Salford Road. This is does not inspire confidence.

3. What account has been taken of additional surface water run off from upstream sites that impact on the Conder, what impact of the houses being built on the Ward Field Farm site, also by Hollins Homes, on the flow of the Conder and surface water run off onto Main Road?

4. Has account being taken of the implications of surface water run off from the proposed link road for the reconfiguration of Jt 33. The engineering reports said that attenuation ponds would drain into the Conder - and at a point upstream from this proposed development. It is essential that the flood risk from this development is not assessed in isolation but takes proper account of all other known development proposals in the Conder catchment area..

5. Why is an application being considered on a site which has not been identified for housebuilding in the Lancaster Local Plan. This site should be part of the zone of separation between Galgate and South Lancaster - to which the Lancaster Local Plan is committed.

1. Without careful planning, significant water pollution incidents can easily arise on construction sites, especially with the wet weather we often face. The simple act of stripping a site of topsoil may create pollution when it rains. Other day-to-day building activities which involve chemicals such as, paint, solvents, fuel and cement present further problems. How will the danger of pollution of the Conder be avoided if this development goes ahead?

The site map for this proposal does not show where access to the site would be located. This issue needs to be addressed, taking account of such factors as its location relative to the access for the Ward Field Farm scheme on the opposite side of the A6 and now under construction and the additional traffic flows that would be generated in Galgate.