Blackrod and Horwich Environmental Action Group

Blackrod is a Village  3.9 miles  north-northeast of Wigan and 6.6 miles west of Bolton 

The name Blackrod derives from the Old English, blaec and rodu, meaning a “dark clearing”. The first mention of the town dates to 1189, when it was recorded as Blacherode. It has been suggested that “rod” may also mean Holy Rood (Cross of Christ).

There is a legend that the Romans built a fort on the northern side of the town, on what is now a residential area called Castle Croft. The A6 road built along the course of a Roman road runs below the hill on which the town sits.

The main industry of the town was coal mining (seven pits in 1869, which employed c 1000 people from the village), agriculture (thirty farms in 1902) and a weaving mill (built in 1906), but today only a few farms remain with the pits all closed. Today it is mainly a residential area, but still retains a Town Mayor and Town Council.

The population of Blackrod was 4975, from the 2001 Census, a rise of nearly 40% from the 1961 census. Population growth has been fuelled by the developments in the Greenbarn Way and Waterhouse Nook areas.

The Blackrod and Hulton Ridge is a gentle rolling ridge to the south of the Borough rising up from the lowland agricultural areas adjacent to the urban areas. Its altitude varies between approximately 120 metres rising to 165 metres above sea level. 

The pattern of settlement within this area, which includes Blackrod and Westhoughton, has created a very linear landscape. It is further characterised by degraded agricultural land dissected by ribbons of development, which closely mirror the road network. Despite this, some of the largest remaining areas of open rural land in Bolton are located within this zone.

The landscape type reflects a history of coal mining in the area. It is an elevated landscape of gently sloping hills and valleys falling to the Mersey Valley in the south. It is further typified by low grade agricultural land with flashes which provide physical evidence of subsidence from former mine workings. The area is also characterised by a scattering of small ponds and broadleaved woodland. The broadleaved woods in this part of the Borough play a significant part in defining local landscapes. ”The ponds are of particular importance for supporting a European Protected Species, the great crested newt. This particular ‘pondway’ across southwest Bolton, Wigan and Salford is considered important in a regional context.

The valley at Blackrod in particular has been visually damaged by the construction of the Blackrod bypass. Furthermore, it has been dissected from the remainder of the Borough by the M61 motorway, and the railway lines, creating thin strips of agricultural and recreation land separated by the transport routes. As examples of older transport routes, the presence of the Leeds–Liverpool canal not only visually enhances the northern extremes of this landscape character area with its related features such as bridges. It is now a valuable recreation resource and is afforded protection for its nature conservation value.The area is afforded protection in the UDP by both green-belt and landscape character status.

Bolton Council’s Core Strategy, identifies the importance of the area in policy OA1

6 Ensure Protected Open Land around Horwich and Blackrod remains undeveloped, except to the west of Horwich Loco Works where development will be allowed to support the regeneration of the Loco Works site.

11 Ensure that new development does not harm the landscape setting and protects views from public areas to the surrounding landscape. 

Blackrod Wikipedia

Landscape Character Appraisal of Bolton

Bolton’s Core Strategy

Following consultation with Blue –NG, local residents and several national environmental groups, Blackrod and Horwich Environmental Action Group will be objecting to plans to build a  renewable energy plant on the outskirts of Blackrod.

Less than 25% of people attending the recent pre-application consultation approved of the proposal. When it was pointed out that the plant will not create 250  construction jobs for local people and was unlikely to create the 66 local agricultural jobs reported in the press, together with the fact that despite reducing carbon emissions the overall effect of the plant may increase global warming a straw poll suggested that support would  further reduce.

A spokesperson for Residents Against Greenbelt Exploitation (RAGE) comments “The plant is simply too big, on protected Green Belt land, and its environmental credentials are questionable.  There are thousands of gas reduction plants around the UK It is proposed to be located at a gas reduction plant, miles away from the fuel source, miles away from the electrical grid, with little or no opportunity to utilise the waste heat – all key points in choosing appropriate locations.”

Potentially an area greater than Manchester planted with rape seed. National groups are concerned about the impact to Global warming, and directly or indirectly the effect that the plant will have in protected habitats, most notably the rain forests and tropical peatlands where palm oil plantations are devastating the environment and causing human right’s abuses. Where land is already in agricultural use the argument moves to food not fuel, with the potential for millions of people to be pushed into food poverty as food crops are replaced by fuel crops.

 We have never had such a large number of concerned residents contacting us about a planning proposal at this early stage. It is likely that this will be our largest ever campaign.

We have also been contacted by several national groups including Biofuel Watch http://www.biofuelwatch.org.uk/ , Friends of the Earth and the Green Party, who have all expressed concerns about  the proposals.

Blue-NG have not yet submitted a planning application to Bolton Council.

If an application is to be progressed it expected to be lodged in the next few weeks, at which time we will be able to consider the proposal in more detail

Regular updates will appear on this site, with an anylsis of the fuel options later this week.

A response has been received with respect to the twenty complaints submitted to Bolton Council by four local action groups.

The response appears to acknowledge that our legal arguments   have so far been correct.

There remains some disagreement regarding the two applications which will be heard by Horwich Council 24 June 2010

A meeting has been arranged with the Planning department 25 June 2010, to discuss the issues, in the mean time we have asked that the complaints be referred to the Chief Executive.

Bolton Council Response to Complaints

The following two applications will be considered at Horwich Town Council, Thursday 24 June at 7.15pm

1 Extension of permission 50252/97 until 2042  

        Pilkington quarry 83999/10

        Objection 83999/10

       Environmental Judgement

        EV1

        EV2

        EV3

2 Extension of Quarry, and aggregate recycling.

    Pilkington Quarry 84065/10

    84065/10 Objection letter