Housing development rejected over mine gas concerns

Proposals for 16 new homes near Cross Hands have been rejected over concerns about the effect of coal mine gas emissions

Plans for a housing development have been rejected over concerns about the effect of coal mine gas emissions on future occupiers.

Planning inspector Christopher Sweet reviewed an appeal submitted by developers after Carmarthenshire council rejected the application for 16 homes off Waterloo Road and Gorsddu Road, near Cross Hands.

Mr Sweet said risk assessment reports submitted by the developer were robust but the "exact level of risk" to any future residents had not been established, so dismissed the proposals.

However, he added the council "did not appear to have considered the matter in any detail" before turning down the proposal on five grounds last November.

Carmarthenshire council said it would "study the inspector's findings in full" when it received the report.

Mr Sweet acknowledged developer LCCD Property 20 Ltd had recommended monitoring could be required as a planning condition, but said given the nature of the proposed development and the mine gas risk assessment's conclusions, a precautionary approach was necessary.

The report said: "It has not been demonstrated that the proposal would avoid harm to the safety of future occupiers, and on the evidence before me I am not persuaded that conditions would provide sufficient certainty, such that granting planning permission would be justified."

The Welsh government-appointed inspector considered other matters such as an affordable housing agreement and other planning obligations which the applicant was said to be willing to enter in to with the council, although no mechanism for securing them had been set out.

There had been objections from local residents to a proposed access road to the houses from Waterloo Road and over the loss of a small number of on-street parking spaces, but Mr Sweet said the proposal would not result in harm to highway safety.

As part of the appeal an agent on behalf of LCCD Property 20 Ltd challenged the council's refusal to grant planning permission in a report, claiming some of its reasoning was "illogical", however the appeal was unsuccessful.