The original application for an 8,100 cow dairy farm had been slimmed down to a proposal for a 3,770 cow farm. But despite reducing the scale of the project and making other amendments to appease planning authorities, Nocton Dairies has once again shelved its plans.
Objections
The farmers said continued opposition from the Environment Agency prompted its decision. They said the environmental regulator maintained that the plans contained insufficient information on the risks posed to the water table and failed to convince about the benefits.
Amendments to the original plan, including an additional £4m investment to improve the waste management system, were not enough to convince the Environment Agency otherwise.
In a statement Nocton was highly critical of the verdict.
“This precautionary stance and requests for new information reflect unfamiliarity with agriculture in general and the design of the modern dairy farm in particular.”
While Nocton said the stance of the Environment Agency was the sole reason behind its decision to put the plans on hold, the local planning authorities said afterwards that they were also hostile to the application.
Officers were recommending that members of the North Kesteven District Council reject the application due to be heard on 8 March on six grounds related to local water supply, odour, noise, impact on wildlife, failure to assess alternatives and concerns about the construction of worker houses. Around 1,600 objections had been lodged with the local planners.
Industry reaction
Dairy UK said it was disappointed that the Nocton application had been withdrawn.
In a statement, the industry association said: “Dairy UK believes that the planned dairy farm at Nocton, with its focus on high yield and investment in environmental measures, would have represented a further evolution in the constantly improving environmental performance of UK dairy farming.”
Meanwhile, the organic food lobby welcomed the news. Emma Hockridge, head of policy at the Soil Association, said: “Nocton was a potential animal welfare disaster and highlighted the way in which our farming systems have become increasingly divorced from what nature intended.”
The Nocton farmers said they will now be taking some time to consider their options.