DORSET County Council cabinet members have agreed that Broomhills is probably the best place for a new Bridport waste management centre – so now they must find out if it can actually be used.

Over the next few months, an estimated £77,000 is going to be spent on further investigations into its suitability.

That will take the cost of the search for a new site up to almost exactly half a million pounds (£422,942 so far + £77,000 = £499,942).

Broomhills is currently run as a nursery on the south side of the straight stretch of the A35 between the Crown Inn roundabout and the hill that goes up towards Eype.

If it turns out to be feasible, another £175,000 would have to be spent on hiring consultants to help prepare a planning application, and £250,000 on detailed design work.

Site development costs would be roughly £2.5 – 3 million, excluding the price of the land.

If everything were to go smoothly, a new facility could open at Broomhills in Autumn 2014. That’s a year later than the previous target date, and a year after the county council’s permission to operate the current inadequate household recycling centre  in South Street, Bridport, is likely to expire.

Dorset County Council insists that a new centre must be built to replace the one in South Street. For one thing, the South Street centre is too small and causes traffic jams. For another, not having a proper modern waste management centre in the Bridport area is costing the council £450,000 a year.

Between now and 2014 that’s £1.8 million (4 x £450K). The reason is, the county council has to compensate West Dorset District Council for the costs the district council incurs in having to cart rubbish and recyclables over to Crossways and Wareham.

Steve Burdis, Dorset County Council’s head of waste management, said: “It’s crucial we provide a new facility in Bridport at the earliest opportunity.”

A new facility would also give the district council the chance to provide enhanced recycling collection services, which would help divert more rubbish away from landfill.

However, in a report he’s wrote for Dorset County Council’s cabinet meeting today (Wednesday), Mr Burdis warned: “Any development in Bridport will be a departure from the Local Development Plan and it is anticipated that securing a planning consent will continue to be protracted and difficult.”

This is the additional work, costing the estimated £77,000, that needs doing to check Broomhills suitability:

• More detailed ground investigations, flood risk assessments and discussions with the Environment Agency
• Detailed mapping and land survey
• Full transport assessment, junction design and junction safety audit to be carried out to the Highways Agency’s satisfaction
• Further studies to identify any protected species on the site
• Explore options for pedestrian access which link to existing wider networks
• Follow up discussions with the landowner
• Assessment of the full cost of development

One final note. The county council spent £218,000 on preparatory work for a new facility at Gore Cross, on land owned by the Church Commissioners just off the A3066 on the northern outskirts of the parish of Bradpole in Bridport.

If Broomhills ends up getting a new waste management centre, all that money will have been wasted.

If Broomhills turns out not to be suitable, then Gore Cross – and a site at Miles Cross on the western edge of Bridport – could come back into consideration.

Today’s Cabinet discussion lasted about an hour and half, and included contributions from residents and parish councils.

Councillors are due to discuss the project again next summer, after the further investigations into Broomhills.

First published September 12; updated September 15, twice.

Local reaction: below is the text of an email sent out by Simon Williams, chair of the St Andrews Road and District Residents Association, which has opposed the idea of siting a new waste management centre at Gore Cross, particularly because of the prospect of increased traffic problems. (I was talking to Mr Williams just the other day after the wing-mirror was smashed off the car of someone visiting his house. The person who broke the wing-mirror – I saw them do it - pulled over for a few minutes up the road, then drove off).

This morning the cabinet of Dorset County Council voted one hundred percent in favour of proceeding investigations at Broomhills.

Of course there are many potential stumbling blocks, particularly with the Highways Agency. So the fight is not over yet. However it can proceed.

Thank you everyone for the support you have given and to those who turned up in person today.

Your presence was a great morale booster.

Any suggestions on overcoming the traffic problems etc will be gratefully received.

Louise Ramsden’s contribution really stood out. It seems from some of the cabinet comments we may at last be getting the School Children on the map in the debate.

Also the new set of traffic accident stats give real hope for at last getting them to do something for pedestrians and cyclists on St Andrews Road.

But there is still a lot of work to do.

Thanks everybody.

Regards,

Simon Williams, Chair, St Andrews Road and District Residents Association 

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