Month: April 2021

Here’s an opportunity to show the council the value of our stretch of the Taff River Corridor.

Cardiff & Newport are taking part in this year’s City Nature Challenge, which starts on 30th April 2021. This is a great opportunity for us to capture the birds, animals, insects and plants that inhabit the threatened woods and meadow near Danescourt and record them in this international initiative that is being supported by Cardiff Council. More details on how to join in can be found here:

On 18th March I wrote to Julie James MS, Minister for Housing and Local Government, asking some detailed questions about clause 1.34 of Planning Policy Wales, and how it relates to this planning application. The government’s planning directorate has decided to consider my questions as a call-in request. The result is that the government has issued a “Holding Direction” to Cardiff Council, preventing them from issuing a planning decision until the call-in process is concluded (though they can still consider the application or refuse consent).

In some special circumstances, where a planning application raises issues of more than local importance, Ministers can “call in” a planning application and effectively take over the decision from the local planning authority. You can read more about the process here. A decision will now be taken to determine whether these special circumstances apply to this planning application. If they do, the Minister will take over the decision from Cardiff Council. If they don’t, the normal planning process will continue, and my original enquiry about clause 1.34 of Planning Policy Wales will still be relevant. I’ll provide updates here as soon as I have further news.

An ENDS investigation has located hundreds of buried landfills containing hazardous waste across England and Wales. Radyr Quarry is among them, identified in the Report as containing hazardous waste, details of which are lost. Concerns have been repeatedly raised by Councillor Sean Driscoll and many other objectors to the development. Yet those proposing to build houses on and adjacent to the site of the former quarry have ignored the concerns. Here’s a link to the report’s map of landfills containing hazardous waste:

https://www.endsreport.com/article/1704522/mapped-england-wales-toxic-legacy-landfills