Ground Force Day
This year's Ground Force day will take place on Saturday September 17th between 10.30am and 12.30pm.
Please join us if you can for our annual clean up of the Conservation Area. Offers of help to Denise Gandhi (8886 3632) or just come along and pick up bags, brooms etc from a table which will be placed by the stocks (near the roundabout).
This year we plan to focus on tidying up the roundabout (which seems to have been returned to SGA's sponsorship) and Minchenden Oak Garden, as well as a general litter pick of the area.
Update on Proposed Waste Processing Plant at Pinkham Way
All our objections to the North London Waste Plan (NLWP) were submitted in time and many thanks to those of you who took the time and trouble to submit your own personal objections.
The next big piece of work on Pinkham Way will be to prepare for the Examination in Public of the NLWP (http://www.nlwa.gov.uk). This Plan identifies Pinkham Way as a site suitable for a Waste Processing Plant of this size. We don't believe the case has been made out for a plant this size and even if such a plant was necessary, this is not a suitable location for it. The NLWP is riddled with errors and especially the method used for selecting Pinkham Way as a suitable site.
It is expected that the NLWP will be submitted to the Inspector for examination in October 2011 with the Report being issued in spring 2012. We anticipate that the Inspector will want to have a hearing at some stage during his examination of the Plan. It will be important for as many people as possible to attend this hearing, to support those who have submitted objections and to show the Inspector the extent of opposition to the Waste Plant proposals for Pinkham Way. We will inform you of the dates and details as soon as we know them. A joint outline planning application was submitted to Haringey Council at the end of May 2011 by The North London Waste Authority and Barnet Council for the proposed industrial MBT waste processing plant and Refuse Depot at Pinkham Way (artist's impression shown on picture below).
This site is 2 km from Southgate Green and the prevailing wind is from the south west, placing Southgate Green in the direct line of wind (and smell and pollution) from Pinkham Way. The top of the chimney will be in direct line with Southgate Green which is 26 mtrs above Pinkham Way. By the NWLA's own admission, there are only plans to 'control' odour, not 'eliminate' it
In July a large number of protesters lobbied Haringey Council's meeting about the application and the following day Haringey announced "the application has been put on hold". However, on 6 September, Haringey's planning officer stated that "Haringey has made a decision to continue to validate the outline application (sept/oct), but then put the application ' on ice' until there is a recommendation from the NLWP Public Inquiry." We are trying to find out what they mean by putting it "on ice" and why they are continuing to process it when they agreed not to. Watch this space.
Following the Examination in Public in June of Haringey's Core Strategy document during which the PWA (www.pinkhamwayalliance.org) raised issues about its consultation process and the redesignation of Pinkham Way from 'Employment Land' to 'Local Strategic Industrial Land', the Inspector informed Haringey they needed to undertake a revised consultation. This will happen in September/October. A result for the PWA.
Notice of a Protest Meeting from the Pinkham Way Alliance
Residents to lobby Haringey Council over waste plant planning application
North London residents will lobby Haringey Council next Monday (July 18) to call for them to stop the validation of a planning application for a waste treatment plant and vehicle depot at Pinkham Way.
We say the planning application should not be validated until the North London Waste Plan, on which is it based, undergoes a proper and full examination in public in January next year.
The issue is to be debated at the council meeting on Monday evening in a motion put forward by the Lib Dems.
The plans, on the site of Pinkham Wood, include a building which will be 150m long, 23m (75ft) high (plus chimney), which will be located just 85m from the nearest dwellings. We have many major concerns about these plans, including massive traffic congestion from 1,200 vehicle movements a day (most of which will be trucks), increased pollution, and the loss of an important green space. There are at least 11,000 homes within a 1km radius of the site and many schools, the nearest of which is only 300m away.
We contend that the North London Waste Plan is deeply flawed, especially in the way the criteria used to select the Pinkham Way site were applied.
Photo opportunity: Monday July 18, 7.00pm Residents and children will protest outside the Civic Centre Interviews: Representatives of the Pinkham Way Alliance and other local residents will be available for interviews.
SUMMARY OF OBJECTIONS SUBMITTED TO THE NORTH LONDON WASTE PLAN (Proposed Submission Version May 2011) ON 8 JULY
'The Plan' is unsound because it is riddled with contradictions and confusion.
The Plan period is up to 2027 NOT to 2041. All the evidence covers the period up to 2017. There is no evidence for the claim that "in order to meet the longer term management of municipal waste until 2041 some larger sites are needed immediately and hence … two sites totalling 9.23 hectares are identified. If NLWA wish to plan for the period 2017 to 2041 they should produce a new plan for that period. Their own evidence suggests that "Further assessment of new and emerging technologies will need to be undertaken by the NLWA as they progress towards letting a new contract for waste management services from 2014.
The evidence does not support the need for this MBT plant, on the contrary, waste levels are falling. The evidence shows that existing, and already planned capacity, will far outstrip the amount needed until at least 2021. There has been a steady slowing of growth in municipal waste … and "the residual waste stream has actually fallen whilst extensive improvements in local recycling and composting services have occurred …" When the work is undertaken to analyse waste management needs beyond 2027, that will be the time to identify whether or not additional sites will be needed.
Errors of fact and methodology in the assessment and scoring of sites
- Pinkham Way should not have been included at all as it falls into the category of a site within an area in the show stopper category.
- Proximity to railheads and/or navigable waterway wrongly marked. It is not near either. Adding 3 instead of subtracting 3 gives an error of 6 points in favour of a site for a factor that ought to count against choosing that site.
- Air quality – not properly considered. If it were the score would not favour the proposed site. Adding to the existing problem in this area more than 1,000 trips per day by heavy vehicles is inconsiderate and dangerous
- Prevailing wind and topology not taken into account. Southgate Green at ground level is approximately 26m higher than the Pinkham Way site, and therefore only 9m below the top of the proposed chimney. Bedroom windows in Southgate Green would be perfectly aligned with the chimney emissions!
- Visual impact can not be mitigated. The height of the proposed building (23m) and chimney (35m) ensure that there is no form of mitigating measure that could prevent a significant negative visual impact on the surrounding residential areas. The evaluator multiplied 3 by 3 to score 9 turning a detriment into a bigger benefit. The correct score should have been minus 9, so the evaluator has introduced a substantial error in favour of the site.
- Site Access from Trunk Roads wrongly assessed. The maximum score of 5 ignores the road distance resulting from the markedly differing height of the site compared to the A406 roadway. There is no direct access from the A406. Vehicles arriving from the east must exit the A406 on the westbound slip road to the Colney Hatch Lane (B550) flyover, and cross four traffic lanes at the traffic signals to position themselves to turn right. Then turn right onto the Colney Hatch Lane and right again at a second set of traffic lights to get on to the eastbound slip road leading to the Friern Retail Park, turning right at the roundabout to access the road bridge (Pegasus Way) at the end of which is a second roundabout and access to the site. Distance from the A406 = 0.78 miles or 1.27k
- Vehicles exiting to the east must first take the westbound slip road (known as Orion Way) from the site to the Colney Hatch Lane flyover, and cross four traffic lanes of traffic at the traffic signals to position themselves to turn right. Then turn right onto the Colney Hatch Lane and right again at a second set of traffic lights to get on to the eastbound slip road leading to the A406 eastbound. Distance to the A406 = 0.7 miles or 1.22k
- Vehicles arriving from the west must exit the A406 on the eastbound slip road to the Colney Hatch Road flyover, cross the flyover at the traffic signals, on to the eastbound slip road leading to the Friern Retail Park, turning right at the roundabout to access the road bridge (Pegasus Way) at the end of which is a second roundabout and access to the site. Distance from the A406 = 0.85 miles or 1.38k
- Vehicles exiting to the west must take the westbound slip road from the site to the Colney Hatch Lane flyover, cross two traffic lanes to position themselves to cross the flyover at the traffic signals. Then on to the westbound slip road leading to the A406. Distance to the A406 = 0.75 miles or 1.27k
- Routing of vehicles to site scored a maximum of 5 by ignoring the impact on existing congestion on Colney Hatch Lane flyover which is already a notorious traffic congestion spot in the locality. Every trip to and from the site must use this bridge.
- Breakdown/Sustainability. The slip roads referred to above are 7 metres wide, comprising a single motor traffic lane and a cycle lane. Were a refuse truck to break down on one of these roads other traffic, especially other refuse trucks, would be unable to continue. With an average of 83 trips per hour (one every 45 seconds), the frequency and length of these vehicles would rapidly tailback to fill the slip roads, Pegasus Way Bridge, Colney Hatch Lane flyover and inner lanes of the A406, along with traffic using Tesco's huge supermarket and petrol station etc. How long it would take to remove a broken vehicle. They may first need to clear the obstructing tailback by reversing all these cumbersome vehicles out. How many hours would it take to clear these tailbacks, what if an emergency vehicle (fire ambulance etc) needed to gain access to the site?
Conclusions on NLWP Proposed Submission May 2011
The Report is not soundly based; it is riddled with inconsistencies and is not based on proper evidence. It is not clear about the period it is planning for and the methodology used for scoring in the supporting London Waste Plan Technical Report May 2011 is wrong in its method and calculation. If the scoring had been applied correctly for all the headings associated with the Pinkham Way site the score would have been 59 and not the erroneous 102.
Evelyn Ryan
(A copy of Evelyn Ryan's full statement can be supplied on request. A copy of the objection submitted by The Pinkham Way Alliance can be seen at http://www.pinkhamwayalliance.org/. See also The North London Waste Plan and the full set of supporting evidence on their website http://www.nlwp.net/
Proposal to reinvigorate Minchenden Oak Garden
We are currently developing a proposal to be submitted to Enfield Council to reinvigorate and refresh Minchenden Oak Garden – a hidden gem in Southgate (opposite the entrance to the Walker Ground in Waterfall Road).
The oak tree in this garden is estimated to be 800 years old and is thought to be a survivor of the ancient Forest of Middlesex. Southgate Green Association is proposing the restoration and enhancement of the Minchenden Oak Garden, which is managed by LBE on behalf of the local community.
Southgate Green Association proposes that the Garden is restored, re-landscaped, repaired, and made accessible to provide the community with a resource for recreation, contemplation and learning for all ages.
The proposals and ideas are outlined in our presentation. We understand that Enfield Council has set aside a sum of money for community projects such as this to benefit each Ward in Enfield and that a substantial sum of money has been allocated to the Southgate Green Ward.
You can see the plans for the proposals at the SGA AGM. If you like what you see, please confirm your support for this project and urge Enfield Council to allocate part of the funds for this worthwhile project by signing the petition. If you are unable to attend the AGM please write to us indicating your support for the project.
EMAIL ADDRESSES
Once again, we ask that if you have an email address and you haven’t given it to us, please do so. We won’t pass it on to anyone, and it is a quicker, cheaper and more environmentally friendly way for us to contact you.