"Water compatible development"
The Environment Agency has written to me saying that they will consider working "with a flood plain" only if it is part of a "water compatible development". EXACTLY!!! This is NOT a "water compatible development" and yet it is surrounded by water (and water which has behaved very badly in the past - the not very distant past).
WHY does Seaton have to have a "non water compatible development" on a flood plain?
Because it makes a LOT of money for the developer (it must do if he can afford to bring in 1 million tons of infill to start with), gives EDDC chance to wash its hands of Seaton once again, and means that EDDC gets lots of council-tax paying houses (which it doesn't have to build elsewhere) and a revenue-producing marshland. Not to mention that the nasty supermarket can be put in EDDC's least favourite town (which then protects its most favourite town from such a nasty thing).
And watch out - once EDDC has got its hands on 250 acres of marshland it can do anything it likes with it. Although, of course, rising sea levels might mean that there is no marshland left in 50 years time and only the "Island" with its supermarket, with its shallow draft boats or sea tractors will survive! (By the way, the Environment Agency objects to my using the word "island" but what else can it be if it is described as being "surrounded by at least of 3 ft of water" after extreme weather?).
Will the use of Section 106 money to purchase the long-gone marshes look such a good buy then?
posted by Fighting for East Devon's future @ 10:32 am
4 Comments:
I think it sounds a great idea Seatons' "Little Venice-next the sea" Can't you just imagine the Gondoliers punting about in the effluent."Just one Cornetto" and all that.
I'm not too sure about the effluent, but I reckon that might be preferable to rescue boats/tractors because some muppet developed a flood plain;-)
No I can't stand cornettos either..
There is some doubt about the ability of the sewers to cope with rising water levels. Add a large number of extra houses and it is not impossible that there will be effluent in the flood water. Or other unpleasant things since parts of the site have high levels of contamination from the petrol stations.
Don't forget that there is also contamination from: the old railway station and sidings (apparently this is the worst of the lot), the old gasworks and the 2 or 3 redundant electricity sub-stations with PCBs. All this information from the developer's planning application.
And it isn't just sewerage from the 600 plus homes - don't forget the 230,000 people at the visitors centre and all the shoppers and the tramway!
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