LOCAL residents are incensed by a planning application to store waste in a barn that burned down last year. They are unhappy about Hampshire County Council (HCC) seeking to regularise an unauthorised activity which, they believe, will send the wrong message to those who wish to flout planning law. However, the owner of the barn is adamant. In the past he has not needed a licence to store material that could be put to agricultural use and not only was he seeking to diversify, in line with government policy, but he would be providing a valuable recycling service. The row erupted over an application, by South Warnborough farmer Richard Porter to continue using two agricultural barns at The Avenue, Lasham, for waste paper and biomass storage. Objecting to the application, some 80 members of The Avenue Residents' Association (TARA) are equally determined - they do not want the practice to continue. In a statement to the press this week, they point out that in August 2005 one of the barns burned down, sending a pall of acrid smoke over an area as far afield as Alton. At the time The Herald reported that the fire had destroyed "mountains of shredded and compacted paper, plastic, mulched wood chippings and contraband, such as bank notes and tobacco, seized by HM Customs" bound for a power station. Firefighters felt the blaze could have been due to spontaneous combustion, but police investigated arson, but no evidence was found. The barn was rebuilt and storage of waste resumed. As a result, local residents urged EHDC planners to stop what they believed to be an illegal activity, but to no avail. The Environment Agency declared the material as "waste" which transferred responsibility to HCC. TARA claims HCC will not take enforcement action without a planning application being submitted. Although the site has been accepting waste paper and biomass from Slough Heat and Power (renewable energy plant) since 1994, according to Mr Porter the rules regarding storage of waste have changed. He has now submitted an application as part of a diversification project for his agricultural business. The barns at Lasham will provide emergency storage capacity for "briquettes" of waste paper and biomass. Grain lorries will collect the material from Slough during down times when the power station has a glut of fuel which, Mr Porter says, will prevent more than 100,000 tonnes of material being sent to landfill each year. Traffic movements will be similar to seasonal agricultural use. While convinced that last year's fire was arson, Mr Porter has assured planners that the temperature of the material (around 45 to 48C) would be monitored daily. County councillor Mark Kemp-Gee is backing residents. "Clearly there is a fire risk associated with the current unauthorised use fo the barns. If HCC does grant permission, it must put in some very clear conditions and must enforce them."
