Clean River Group told court that Chicken Megafarm in Shropshire must not be built | Agriculture
Clean river activists told the court that the planning permit for Shropshire Poultry Megafarm is illegal and should be overturned.
In the Cardiff Superior Court on Wednesday, Dr. Alison Caffyn argued that the council failed to take into account all environmental impacts of industrial chicken units, which would accommodate 230,000 birds at any time, especially the impact of spreading fertilizers on the land.
Supported by River Operations, Caffyn is conducting a judicial review of Shopshire Council's decision in order to expand chicken farms outside Shrewsbury to Megafarm. Kaffen noted in court documents that the expansion of the farm is part of a “responsive and unsustainable” surge in the region’s intensive factory agriculture.
“Now, everyone in Shropshire has nearly 65 chickens – the Council is allowing more. We believe a lot of chicken is dipping into our rivers. They need to stop,” she said.
The case argues that in the valleys of Wye and Severn Rivers, large dense poultry units (called IPUs) are the main drivers of river pollution, because chicken manure contains more phosphate – more phosphate – than any other animal manure – river plants containing oxygen and oxygen. The filing before the court said intensive poultry cultivation is also a driving force for air pollution.
Shropshire, Herefordshire and Boyce counties have homes of more than 50 million chickens at one time, and Kaffien believes this puts huge pressure on the Wei and Severn rivers.
She said that phosphorus and nitrogen pollution, especially in the latter case in the form of ammonia, leads to degradation of many protected environmental sites.
Although the Powys and Herefordshire committees have limited the number of IPUs, Shropshire Council approved the creation of Megafarm in May last year.
River Operations Chairman Charles Watson, who is funding judicial review, said: “Shropshire Council is just trampling on huge chicken factory farms in rubber without considering the potentially terrible cumulative environmental impacts that stack these industrial forces on one another.
“These farms are present like sepsis throughout the river, with no sustainable plans to sustainably manage their huge chicken manure emissions. If we don't stop them now, it's too late for another iconic British river.”
The judicial review comes after Norfolk MPs rejected plans to one of Europe's largest poultry and swine industrial farms, in terms of climate and environmental issues.
The Shropshire Council said: “The plan application is to build four poultry-raising buildings and related infrastructure. The application is accompanied by an environmental statement, which includes a detailed assessment of the possible impact of the proposal on the environment.
“As part of the planning application process, the consultant sought technical advice, including the Environmental Agency, Natural England and the Council’s ecological and public conservation team…the justification for the judicial review challenge is versus the way in which fertilizers generated by poultry feeding operations are evaluated and managed, and the way in which they are evaluated in customary regulations.”