Battle for heart of village (From Western Telegraph)

Battle for heart of village

Pembrokeshires first designated recycling centre has come under fire before it has even been set up.

Residents of Johnston are up in arms over plans to locate the centre in the heart of their village.

Their opposition was voiced at a recent stormy public meeting. And over 200 objections are being handed in to Pembrokeshire County Council. If the plan goes ahead stronger action could be taken.

The former Arnolds Scrapyard - next to the Silverdale Motel on the main Haverfordwest to Milford Haven Road - has been identified as a suitable location. The site has been earmarked in the draft Joint Unitary Development plan drawn up by the county council and the Pembrokeshire National Park Authority.

But local community councillor Ken Rowlands said: We are not opposed to a recycling centre. In fact we support the idea. We know the Government and European Community have instructed local authorities to provide them. But we do not think that it should be located in the middle of a residential village such as Johnston. There are more suitable locations in Pembrokeshire.

The recycling centre is being put across to the community as a employment park.

This is a total misnomer. The number of people employed there would be negligible, said Councillor Rowlands.

Johnston is a developing village. The Brookside estate has already been built opposite the proposed recycling site and the county council has given permission for 70 more houses there. The Silverdale Motel, which is right next to the site, has developed a complex of chalets, which are used as a base by visitors to the county.

Johnston is the biggest village in Pembrokeshire but it has missed out on amenities. This site should be used to provide community facilities. Because of its former use as a scrapyard, pockets of the land are possibly contaminated.

The county council will have access to central government grants to develop the brownfield site as a recycling centre.

But Councillor Rowlands pointed out that funding should also be available to clear the contaminated land and develop it for community use. This is the road the county council should be going down, he added.

Doug Harvey, whose property at Brickhurst Close overlooks the proposed site, said: Local residents are very concerned about the possible noise and smell. A centre like this should never be located in the heart of a residential area.

Mr Harvey added that one of the criteria for a recycling centre is that it should be near a rail link. But he pointed out that the sidings at Johnston Railway Station had been dismantled and if the plan went ahead then they would have to be reconstructed.

A much more suitable location would be at Waterston which has a rail link and is an industrial area already, he said.

There has been canvassing around the village and I would estimate that at least 90% of residents are strongly against the plan. Most of them will be putting in a objection.

Councillor Brian Hall, County Council Cabinet Member for the Environment and Transport, is being urged to support the Johnston residents campaign.

Four years ago he found himself in a similar situation when plans were put forward for a waste transfer station at Waterloo, Pembroke Dock. He even produced two stuffed rats at a council meeting in support of his case.

Councillor Hall was at the public meeting in Johnston and knows the strength of feeling against the recycling centre, said Councillor Ken Rowlands. He fought against the development in his own ward and managed to convince his fellow councillors to turn it down. I only hope he will do the same for Johnston. I plan to write to each of the 60 councillors myself.

Said a county council spokesman: Since the proposal was made public, Pembrokeshire County Council has maintained contact, and met with, Johnston Community Council on a number of occasions. The county council also made a detailed presentation of the proposal at a public meeting in the village on July 1st.

The authority appreciates that there are concerns and, at the meeting, offered villagers the opportunity to view a similar plant in operation in another part of the country. All the observations on the proposal, including those from people replying to the JUDP, will be collated and duly considered by the county council before any decision is reached.