A bit about us

Our small village and surrounding villages are being blighted by an industrial size biogas plant (Crouchland Biogas) that was built without planning permission. It is one of the largest biogas plants in the UK which has brought an industrial operation into a very rural area and results in over 6,500 Heavy Goods Vehicles using our narrow lanes . The area is used by locals and visitors alike for walking, cycling and horse riding . We're  just outside the South Downs National Park and benefit from similar beautiful countryside. 

Huge lagoon built without planning consent, full of digestate

Our case

Quite simply our case is that this location is completely inappropriate, not only does it industrialise the rural landscape but it is only accessible by narrow lanes which are unsuitable for so many HGVs bringing in thousands of tonnes of waste. 

HGVs too big for our lanes

It adversely impacts on the landscape, has harmed the environment (Our local rivers and streams have suffered what the Environment agency call "significant pollution events" not once but on several occasions) and the HGVs on narrow lanes are an accident waiting to happen.  

Environment Agency Incident Team on Site for one of the significant spills

We are not against renewable energy, in fact the site was originally a small scale on-farm biogas plant using the farms cow slurry which was supported by our community. It's the industrial expansion without permission that we object to.

Cleaning up the toxic digestate spill from several miles of local waterways

Unfair

Spending millions on expanding the site to an industrial scale without seeking prior planning approval in our view could hardly be an oversight. Its hard to understand how a plant like this can continue operating and receive substantial government subsidies when it does not have the permissions in place, but that is the reality.

It has meant they have been able to operate for over 4 years receiving millions of pounds in subsidy at taxpayers expense whilst we have to spend our time jumping through more and more legal hoops to stop them.

 What are the funds for?

WE have been successful at overturning the county councils initial intention to grant permission in to a refusal and a first planning inquiry deciding that the importation of waste was not lawful we   now need to raise more funds for the latest phase of our legal fight.

This is a 10 day Planning Inspectorate Inquiry at which the owner Crouchland Biogas is appealing West Sussex County Councils refusal. We are 9 days into it with our final day on 31st July

Crouchland Biogas has been able to pay for a long list of experts and a QC to fight their case at this inquiry. They receive over £5m per annum in government renewable energy subsidies (despite the plant being unlawful)  as well as being supported by a national gas company SGN and having many institutional investors. We on the other hand rely on community spirit, a sense of injustice, determination and a lot of cake sales!  

What's at stake?

If we lose, we all lose a beautiful tranquil part of the countryside for ever and big business wins again. If we win, we preserve our countryside and we show that communities can fight back  and we leave big business with a lesson learnt, hopefully preventing this type of inappropriate development spreading across the countryside.

Small rural lanes not appropriate for 6,500 HGV's

More Information

If you want to see more of the detrimental effect this site is having, visit the Local Protest Group's website https://www.facebook.com/poreorg/