ED172

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Examination Document ED172
I am writing to say I, like many other people in Hitchin, in fact everyone I know and come into contact with, are appalled at the Green Belt land grab for development. I believe the whole Site selection process is a sham. It is driven by landowners and developers who dictate the process and terms and who are only interested in profit. If the sites were assessed correctly and thoroughly then there is no way the Hitchin sites HT6, HJT5 & HT3 would be selected for development. No wonder there is huge support for Save Hitchin Green Belt !

I could say so much more, like all the documents supplied as evidence are biased towards the developers. We have witnessed surveys being done in the depths of winter trying to record bird songs, we have witnessed road surveys being done during holiday periods and the pandemic, etc..

NHDC have proposed huge amounts of Green Belt for development, so how can this possibly be acceptable in these days when Climate Change is a priority and by using Green Belt, we are reducing carbon absorption thus increasing our local carbon footprint!

Speaking on behalf of the 4,784 supporters of Save Hitchin Green Belt (as at June 24rd), as proposed by the Government Inspector, we are commenting on the Examination Document ED172:
We entirely agree with the Inspectors comments about how the Green Belt review has affected site selection or to use his words “Put simply, I cannot see how the conclusions of the Green Belt review exercise have informed the selection of sites.”
We wish to place on record that we believe the whole Green Belt review process and site selection is badly flawed and sites have been classified incorrectly in terms of their contribution. Sites have also been selected that cause the MOST environmental and ecological damage. Rather than looking for sites that would cause less harm and impact to the environment, pollution and quality of life for Hitchin residents and suggesting to landowners other possibilities, sites have just been proposed by landowners based on profitability. Sites HT3, HT5 & HT6 provide a “Considerable” contribution to the Green Belt. These green open spaces form a wildlife corridor that is essential for the ecological balance of West Hitchin (bats, badgers, deer, foxes, owls, etc all live & feed here and most important insects & pollinators that start the lifecycle process). They are the last remaining uncultivated fields in West Hitchin. Woodland bordering the Sites will also be destroyed and Site HT6 is also on a ridge and will be visible for miles.
In addition, the changing economic climate has changed the demographics for housing needs. New urban developments are coming available in Hitchin as shops and offices are converted to dwellings. Plus other developments such as the North Herts College, all means that there is NO NEED TO DESTROY GREEN BELT & cause so much environmental damage. Plus of course, the latest ONS Statistics reveal housing needs for North Herts has reduced so not so many houses are needed.
Finally, we believe the Governments latest position is NOT TO BUILD ON GREEN BELT, as per a public announcement: “Prime Minister Johnson on Friday stressed that there has been a “misunderstanding” about the reforms, insisting the government would not build on green belt land. “What we want is sensible plans to allow development on brownfield sites,” he said. “We’re not going to build on green belt sites, we’re not going to build all over the countryside.”

Please see our full Petition, which we now present, at https://www.change.org/p/save-hitchin-green-belt

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We would like to make the following representations in response to the latest consultation on the further proposed main modifications to the NHDC Local Plan 2011-2031.
1. ED172 references the Green Belt review. With reference to site 328 in particular (currently within the Green Belt), a SHLAA was carried out in 2016 that established this site as having not passed its tests and unsuitable for development for heritage reasons. Furthermore, this site has recently been rejected for development on the basis of its ecological and heritage value. However, the site continues to be proposed within the Ickleford Village boundary, converting to 'White Land', even though the reasons for its unsuitability will never change. The change of designation is inconsistent with the selection process articulated within document ED172 and we request that the site is removed from the village boundary and restored to its current Green Belt status.
2. ED191A references the OAN figures for North Herts based on a 2018 assessment point. Although these figures have reduced since the previous assessment, following both Brexit and the pandemic, it is now wholly appropriate to entirely revisit the future need for housing within NHDC. As you will of course be aware, these two events have seismically changed the landscape for housing demand. Brexit has already seen large volumes of population return to their EU nation countries. The pandemic promises to fundamentally shift the relationship between people's places of residence and their place of work and is already leading to an increase in housing demand in more rural areas, far beyond Hertfordshire's boundaries. This trend will surely only continue and we therefore request that these macro trends are given due consideration when using this data to inform policy decisions.

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