Market Drayton: Plans to house 500k chickens held over odour fears

Residents are worried the odour would worsen if a chicken farm doubled in size

Plans to double the size of a chicken farm so it can house 500,000 birds have been deferred over odour concerns.

Four years ago, plans for four new chicken sheds at Hollins Lane poultry unit in Woodseaves, Market Drayton, were lodged with Shropshire Council.

Planning officers had recommended refusal after receiving a report from a leading odour consultant, commissioned by nearby residents.

The parish council also said current poultry was affecting the Union Canal.

Planning officer Kelvin Hall said there were already four poultry rearing sheds on the site as a result of planning permission granted in 2015.

Each shed houses 58,000 birds - a total of 232,000.

If granted, the latest plans would see another four sheds put up next to the existing ones, containing the same number of birds, Mr Hall told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

'Overwhelming impact'

Sutton upon Tern Parish Council said it would have "an overwhelming impact on the area".

The parish council said in addition to the odour concerns, there was also "circumstantial evidence" from residents that the current poultry operation was impacting the section of the Shropshire Union Canal which runs to the east of the site, and causing regular flooding on the towpath.

Nick Williams from Berrys, agent to the applicant HLW Farms, asked councillors to defer the application rather than go along with the officer recommendation of refusal.

He said: "On Monday morning last week we received a notification from Shropshire Council that the recommendation was to grant planning permission.

"On Monday afternoon, we received further notification from the council saying instead they would be recommending refusal.

"The last minute u-turn is off the back of comments from Shropshire Council's public protection team who, at the 11th hour, have stated that additional odour survey work could be required."

Mr Hall added that the council department and Environment Agency were yet to respond to the odour survey.

However, Mr Williams was told by Mr Hall that the first email suggesting officers were recommending approval was an "administrative error".