subject: The amazing Creswell Crags [print this page] The amazing Creswell Crags The amazing Creswell Crags
Creswell Crags have suffered at the hands of humans since early excavators used dynamite to blast their way into the caves, and later a road and sewage works were built in the gorge. Thankfully, the balance has been redressed and much work has been carried out over the past decade, including; relocating the road, moving the local sewage works and building the new Visitor Centre, thus giving this amazing little gorge surroundings to match its historic significance.
You may be forgiven for thinking "all's well that ends well". And that was the case until Alkane Energy submitted plans to Derbyshire County Council to build an Anaerobic Digester less than 2km away on Southfield Lane, Whitwell. This, in itself may not be a particularly bad thing for the Crags, after all, the stench of rotting vegetables, poultry litter, sugar beet pulp and cow and pig slurry wafting over the gorge may add a certain authenticity to the life of Neanderthal Man (and Woman)!
But consider this:
"Site traffic will be directed to and from the main road via the B6042, Hennymore Lane"- copied directly from Alkane Energy's Planning Application.
There are two routes visitors can take to Creswell Crags, the B6042 Hennymore Lane is one of them.
Feedstuffs will come from as far afield as Newark-upon-Trent and transportation of the feedstuffs will be in 20T Rigid Tippers, 18T Vacuum Tankers and Farm Tractors and Trailers.
There will be an estimated 8,000 additional vehicle movements along the B6042 Hennymore Lane per year 365 days a year.
There is a 7.5 tonne weight limit on Southfield Lane, which means this is the only entrance/exit they can use.
So why would Alkane Energy even consider placing an AD facility on such a sensitive site? Apparently, "there is already a suitable electrical grid connection and small scale generating facility on adjacent land". Put simply, this means Alkane Energy can save money on their development.
At present the application is on hold pending DCC's receipt of an Environmental Impact Assessment I don't think you need to be an expert in environmental matters to see that this development would be a complete disaster and not just for Creswell Crags, but for the surrounding area.
Perhaps modern man (and woman) will learn from the mistakes made by their less enlightened predecessors who blighted Creswell Crags. If not, I think Creswell Crags can kiss goodbye to the coveted World Heritage Status they've been working towards achieving.
