Sewage fight goes to High Court
The battle to stop Southern Water building a sewage works at Lower Hoddern Farm in Peacehaven is moving to the High Court with a 'Judicial Review'.
John Carden, Des Turner and John Hodgson at the PROUD meeting.
Environmental lawyers told a recent PROUD (local residents campaigning group) meeting that they believed that the decision of the East Sussex County Council Planning Committee was unlawful in four regards.
Local Labour MP Des Turner was at the meeting.
"This is a sad indictment of the county council and Southern Water that when it came to issues of odour and air quality, as well as the visual impact, the decision is felt to be unlawful. It will hopefully help this campaign that we now hear that the Southern Water works at Pebsham is failing to meet its odour control conditions."
Simon Burgess, who is standing as Labour’s candidate at the next general election said:
"As with Portobello local residents have shown incredible determination. We may yet force Southern Water and the County Council to finally accept what we have all been saying since the beginning – only a brownfield site away from residents is acceptable!"
Before the meeting could decide to go ahead with the Judicial Review there were difficult decisions to be made about legal costs. Some initial costs to the environmental lawyers needed to be paid, and then a local resident eligible for legal aid, and in whose name the challenge could be made, needed to be found.
Local Labour Party Chair, Laurence O’Connor told the meeting that the campaign to stop Southern Water is "so important to the local community" that Meridian Labour Party is donating £200 to PROUD. Following that a further £600 was raised at the meeting.
The Chair of PROUD John Hodgson asked for backing from the local Town Councils. The response from the Conservative councillors present was lack lustre to say the least, so local Lib Dems and Labour Environment Campaigner John Carden stepped up to the microphone. John said; “we have to get this backing from the councils, it’s our taxpayer money after all. In Telscombe the money was raised to purchase the Tye for the good of the community – this is just as important, we need a commitment from the councils urgently”.
Since then the councils have moved slowly towards giving some limited backing. Labour in Peacehaven and Telscombe Cliffs says to all the local councils; “Pull your finger out and defend the local community – this is our last chance to defeat the county council and Southern Water!”.
