No Eco Town
The Government has shortlisted Ford in West Sussex for a new so-called 'eco-town' of at least 5,000 homes - three times the size of Arundel - and possibly as many as 20,000. Communities Against Ford Eco Town has a campaign to stop this proposed 'eco-town.'
Created about 1 month ago by Communities Against Ford Eco Town
Based in Ford, Arundel, West Sussex
Why should you join?
This so-called 'eco-town' will be built on a greenfield site by developers who have been allowed to bypass our local councils and normal planning procedures. This doesn't
just affect Ford.
It is a HUGE development on a greenfield site which could eventually lead to one vast area of housing in the lower Arun valley, swallowing up our local villages.
The first eco-towns will be completed by 2016. Local people have been given just THREE MONTHS to register our views. We must unite now to fight these proposals and persuade the Government that Ford is the wrong place to build a new town.
As part of the campaign, in early June, 2,000 local residents attended a rally in Yapton followed by a march along footpaths across the fields where the houses are proposed to be built.
Our Concerns:
1. The wrong location
Arun District Council has already RULED OUT this area for large scale development and rejected previous applications from developers. The eco-town will swallow up the rural villages of Ford, Yapton and Climping.
2. Destroying greenfield land
87% of the land is GREENFIELD, actively used for agriculture - it is not a brownfield site as claimed. Eventually the whole area could become one large town, concreting over one of the last green spaces on the coast between Peacehaven and Portsmouth.
3. We don't have the infrastructure
Our roads, schools, hospitals and water supplies are already under huge STRAIN - 5,000+ houses will increase the pressure on local services even further. The proceeds from 5,000 houses will not be enough to pay for necessary improvements such as an A27 Arundel bypass. There will be a HUGE increase in traffic levels through our local area.
4. Undermining local democracy
The 'eco' town is being imposed by ministers and buraucrats in Whitehall, subverting the normal planning process. We believe that LOCAL PEOPLE SHOULD DECIDE through our elected representatives. It's a question of democracy and accountability.
5. West Sussex is already building 58,000 houses over the next decade
The 'eco-town' is likely to be ON TOP of these numbers.
6. An ECO-CON, not an eco-town
Developers had already been promoting a new town at Ford. The new 'eco' label is a CON - pure window dressing. We are told that half of all the new houses
will not use cars. So how will they travel in West Sussex? The plan just won't work.
Recent Activity
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Eco-town campaigners lobby Parliament
2 July 2008 Campaigners against the proposed ‘eco-town' at Ford took their fight to Westminster on Monday (30 June).A delegation from Communities Against Ford Eco-Town (CAFE) joined forces with other campaigns against eco-towns from across England to lobby Parliament. They were met by West Sussex MPs Nick Herbert (Arundel & South Downs) and Nick Gibb (Bognor Reg...
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Created by Rene Jorgensen, Last updated about 1 month ago,
MPs raise eco-town concerns in Commons
23 June 2008 West Sussex MPs Nick Herbert and Nick Gibb called for local councils to be allowed to say where new housing will go during a Commons debate on Thursday afternoon (19 June).The ‘Topical Debate' was an opportunity for MPs to discuss the Government's proposals for ‘eco-towns'.Ford in West Sussex is one of 15 sites around the country shortlisted for an eco-...
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Created by Rene Jorgensen, Last updated about 1 month ago,
Labour fears electoral backlash
Labour politicians fear they will suffer an electoral backlash over the Government's eco-town proposals. The Telegraph, 01/06/2008They are predicting further punishment at the ballot box as voters blame them for ministers pushing ahead with plans for 10 environmentally sustainable new towns. Campaigners are already mounting protests, targeting Labour MPs and c...
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Created by Rene Jorgensen, Last updated about 1 month ago,
Local people "shut out" of eco-town decision
16 June 2008 Arundel & South Downs MP Nick Herbert has criticised proposals to build an eco-town at Ford, saying that "local people are simply shut out of the argument".He was speaking on the BBC's Politics Show on Sunday afternoon (15 June) from Ford Airfield Market in West Sussex. The market is held regularly on the concrete runways of the former military airfiel...
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Created by Rene Jorgensen, Last updated about 1 month ago,
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