Pretoria Energy Ltd, run by Richard Lee, has submitted a planning application for an anaerobic digester and maize clamps on land east of Greys Farm in Iretons Way, Chatteris, about 500 metres from Mepal Outdoor Centre.  The site straddles Fenland and East Cambridgeshire District Councils so the application has been submitted to both.

A previous application last year was rejected by Fenland District Council, on grounds which the new application is said to address.

However, a number of consultees – in particular surrounding parish councils – have expressed their concerns at the likely effect of the facility on surrounding roads, including the stretch of the A142 between Sutton and Chatteris.  Mud on the roads has often made conditions on this piece of road quite hazardous, and it is feared that muddy deposits from vehicles associated with the anaerobic digester could make matters worse.

If the application is to be approved, a key issue will be improving the unmade road that links the single track road from Sutton Gault to Chatteris to the A142, and ensuring that this, rather than our local roads and the A142, is used both by digester traffic and by lorries associated with Lee’s packaging plant.  The last thing we need is more heavy traffic through the village and the Gault, and indeed East Cambridgeshire District Council should be using every opportunity to reduce it.

Details of the application are on the planning pages of the East Cambridgeshire District Council website.