Housing plan for peatland site to be withdrawn

Plans for a new housing development on a peatland site in Cheshire look set to be withdrawn, as the proposals "cannot be fully reconciled" with the council's peat and carbon policies.

Concerns had been raised about plans for almost 1,000 new homes on a site known as the South Macclesfield Development Area, which is jointly owned by a commercial housebuilder and Cheshire East Council

A report to councillors has recommended that current applications should be withdrawn and alternative options for the site looked into.

The council will discuss the site's future at a meeting on Tuesday 3 June.

Cheshire East Council owns 55% of the site, while Barratt Homes owns approximately 41% of the proposed development area.

It is situated next to the Danes Moss, which has been identified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Campaigners had raised concerns about the proposals, particularly with regard to the potential loss of rare peatland found on the site.

Outline planning permission was granted in January 2019.

However, a community group called Save Danes Moss, founded in 2021 (later becoming Danes Moss Trust), had objected to the plans following the submission of the reserved matters application, which afforded further details of the proposed development.

A petition in 2022 also received more than 6,000 signatures with Cheshire Wildlife Trust, which runs neighbouring Danes Moss nature reserve, claiming the council had not completed the right studies.

Now, the current reserved matters applications look set to be withdrawn.

In the report to councillors, officers said both Barratt and the council had "concluded that the approved development proposals cannot be fully reconciled with the current council policies relating to peat and carbon management".

Officers said they anticipated any alternative plans would include "a reduced number of residential units built on the least environmentally sensitive parts of the site".

The report stated a link road proposed as part of the development was "unlikely to be delivered" in any alternative plan, and it recommended the council withdrew from the grant funding agreement with Homes England.

The council's economy and growth committee is due to discuss the future of the site at a meeting on Tuesday.

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