Response from Mr Wallace Park (Individual)
1. Mr Wallace Park (Individual) : 21 Apr 2016 10:35:00
Please make your comments in the box below and refer specifically to the reference number of each site you are commenting on.
Site S127 - Bottoms Lane, Silverdale
For 30 years during my working life, at the end of my day, I used to drive down Bottoms Lane. Not the quickest way home, but beautiful and tranquil. When you turn off into the top of Bottoms Lane, after 100metres you are back in old Silverdale. On the left of the narrow twisting road you may pass pigs and poultry in the field to the left, while on the right is a wood, a biological heritage site. Further down on the left is some pasture and gardens (the suggested site for development), then a S-bend takes you past an inconspicuous caravan site on the right beside a traditional stone farmhouse. Often in summer the farmer, now retired, sits outside in the sun to pass the time of day with hikers and walkers. On the left of the road now are some barns sensitively converted to homes. Further down on the right is a disused limekiln, an open field on the left which gives way to a wood, and grazing land for sheep and cattle on the right, before ending up at the junction with Park Road beside the village cemetery.
This is the type of countryside which is vanishing, and which organisations such as the AONB and CPRE were founded to protect for our descendants. I cannot imagine for more than a moment that the AONB would consent to the siting of any housing here, much less the uninspiring monotonous urban style housing which has been contemplated elsewhere in Silverdale. But other problems also exist. The road itself is narrow and without pavements, adequate with care for the present users which include many walkers, but not for increased vehicular use. Silverdale has no mains sewerage. As more houses are built, the pollution to our land increases. This should be a major factor in inhibiting future housing expansion here. Even the most modern small treatment systems used in Silverdale essentially remove the lumps and the smell, and the grey water (150 litres/person/day), with some bacteria and viruses, detergents, phosphates, nitrates and hormones pass on into the ground water. Please leave Silverdale with its village atmosphere. W.G Park, 7 Whinney Fold.
