Water standards for the happy campers

Greensands Camping, run by the Saxons, submitted another planning application to put a camping and leisure park on the site of the former Potton Quarry in Carthagena Road, near Potton and Sutton.

Planning permission was previously refused in April last year because: “The applicant has failed to demonstrate that the development site will not result in an unacceptable risk of pollution of groundwater.” Part of the site was used as a landfill in the past.

The new application states: “Historical documentation indicates that the landfill site was in-filled with a mixture of inert, domestic and commercial waste which was not considered at the time to be toxic.”

A plume of contaminated water was found on the site in concentrations exceeding regulatory standards for drinking water and surface water.

But monitoring wells close to the nearest local water spring to the landfill show that the water does not exceed the limit.

The report adds: “There is currently no risk to surface waters in the area and from comparison with data collected from landfills of similar age and construction it is also concluded that the current conditions are representative of a steady state or reducing plume which implies that risks to surface water will not worsen.”

Groundwater standards can be controlled if deemed necessary it adds.

View the application at http://tinyurl.com/c39cy6k

Central Beds Council will make a decision in June at the earliest.