A Herefordshire grower of ornamental plants has dropped a large-scale expansion plan after wrangles with council officers over its environmental impact.
Allensmore Nurseries of Madley west of Hereford had planned to turn four fields totalling 70 acres into open-air nursery beds, in a scheme involving new internal roadways, a 1.2-hectare reservoir, irrigation tanks and staff facilities.
Herefordshire Council’s senior ecologist Ana Coxixo objected to the plans, saying they could adversely effect the river Wye special area of conservation, and that further information was needed on how sewage from the staff toilet would be dealt with.
She said no details had been provided on how the a proposed two-metre-high soil banks around the fields were to be constructed, and on what impact they would have on existing hedgerows and their roots. And she asked for further information on proposed rabbit fencing to protect the beds, to ensure this did not harm the hedgerows.
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