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Plan set to be resubmitted after challenge
A LEGAL challenge from campaigners has forced Cory Environmental to withdraw its application for a landfill site at Thakeham.
Thakeham Village Action (TVA) bid for a judicial review because it believed Cory's planning application was 'invalid'.
Cory now says its only option is to withdraw the current application and immediately submit an identical proposal.
John Boldon, director of planning and estates for Cory Environmental, said: "Our legal advice is that the application is valid according to current case law as the issues raised are not material to the application.
"The challenge made is based on a technical argument that the application is not valid as the application form and notices were incorrectly completed.
"Unfortunately, the only way of testing this challenge would be through the High Court, which could take up to nine months.
"We have therefore been left with only one option, which is to withdraw the application and immediately resubmit it with an amended application form. The content of the application remains absolutely identical to that previously submitted."
The application for the site at Laybrook was due to be discussed at Horsham District Council's development committee on Tuesday this week, but councillors chose to defer the item until a new application is submitted.
Members were concerned that early discussions could predetermine the new application and prejudice their right to comment on the plans in the future.
Thakeham Village Action's spokesperson, Jean Locker, said: "All in all, TVA is reasonably pleased with the district council planning committee's decision to defer their response until the new planning application is submitted by Cory Environmental and the next public consultation period starts.
"It seemed to us to be a sensible decision to take in the circumstances, even though it meant a wasted journey for those TVA members who went to the meeting, also for the parish councillors who were there."
TVA now expects that the process will have to start again and that the county council will have to validate the new application, advertise it and then hold a 16 week public consultation period, similar to that done for the current application.
Mrs Locker added: "We are waiting for all the implications of the legal challenge and the new application to be sorted out.
"We have consistently said that the documentation submitted by Cory for a rotting rubbish landfill site in the unspoilt countryside of West Sussex is lacking in detail and we hope that Cory also take this opportunity not only to get the application forms right, but also to address the concerns that have been raised to them at various public meetings regarding highways, environmental, health and ecological issues amongst others.
"The fact that a company so well experienced in applications of this type has got such a basic thing as the application forms wrong really does not give us confidence that they have addressed the issues that everybody is really concerned about in an expert manner."
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Weather for Horsham
Thursday 09 February 2012
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