15th August 2006

 
The decision by the Forest of Dean District Council to allow plastic tunnel farming to continue at Newtown Farm, Newent, was always a foregone conclusion and sets a further unwelcome precedent for environmental health in the region.  Objectively, such developments are unsustainable in the long term and they can only operate within a legal framework that continues to allow private gain at the expense of both the surroundings and the public good. No one should be deluded, this is the opposite of local production for local need and, although the ‘tenant’ may have local roots, he is actually the undeclared front man for the multinational business, Haygrove Tunnels.

Now that the decision has been made, we, the resident community must require those involved to demonstrate that there are real local benefits not just for now but into the future.  Next year it will be for us to decide whether our district councillors have considered our best interests or have once again been mesmerised by private wealth and corporate power.  If you have a vote, use it!

Stephen Tweedie, Newent