Letter from BW volunteer, dated 10-Aug-2022
Swinnow Park, Wetherby Planning ref 17/02594/OT
Discharge of conditions 31 & 32
House Design
Dear Mr Platten
I wish to express my concerns about the proposed house designs for Swinnow Park.
At the outset we were told this was to be an exemplar site with Innovation. I see nothing in the house design types which proclaim Innovation or forward thinking.
The house types proposed can be seen up and down the country next to Motorways and Railway lines. There is very little, apart from some elongated window heights in a few of the houses, to distinguish the proposed houses on Swinnow Park from anything around the country.
There are excellent design types in York and Cambridgeshire, which I am sure your design consultant could point to.
At a time of a Climate Emergency it seems very wrong to be building with bricks and blocks, which are very heavy users of energy to make them, transport them and put them together.
Timber frame property materials are not as heavy to transport and a timber frame home will sequester 23 tonnes of Carbon whereas the average brick and block house produces 80 tonnes of carbon during manufacture etc. Furthermore, timber frame houses are more airtight and therefore require less energy to heat, an important factor in the current energy crisis.
I will now move on to the matter of the discharge of conditions 31 and 32 with respect to Air and Noise Pollution at the Swinnow Park site.
I have written at length regarding the Consultants reports.
At least the Noise Consultant used equipment to measure noise levels around the site and produced maps showing, as would be expected, that the properties nearest A1M and B1224 are most affected to the point that decibel levels in those properties are above recommended levels and that the gardens/ amenity space in those properties will hardly be an enjoyable place to sit. A follow on report showed that a bund with fence on top did reduce decibel levels somewhat, but still there are properties where home owners will not be able to open their windows. This is very concerning in the light of the very warm weather we have experienced this summer and are likely to experience in the future due to the Earth warming.
Noise Pollution is known to affect health in insidious ways. Trying to sleep but waking unrefreshed by disturbed sleep has a potential for increased accidents in cars, on bikes etc and over several years can lead to heart attacks and Diabetes.
An MVHR system will not help to keep homeowners cool on hot days. Purging the inside air by opening windows and doors in the early morning and late evening is the most effective way to cool a property. This works best if there is an opening skylight in the roof. This is hardly practicable when people go out to work for early or late shifts or children or animals need to be kept indoors. Homeowners also need to be taught about keeping doors, windows and blinds and curtains closed on the sunniest summer days to reduce heat build up.
It is to be hoped that Taylor Wimpey will consider the installation of brise soleil at windows to prevent sunlight entering the properties in the height of summer and heating the home beyond comfortable levels. There are also special finishes which can be applied to window glass which help reduce heating up in the summer.
With respect to Air Pollution, as far as I can tell, not a single measurement of NO2 and Particulate levels has been taken at Swinnow Park.
The Air Pollution Consultants relied on NO2 measurements taken in Wetherby, well away from A1M along with a measuring station on Spofforth Hill and a measuring station 18km south of the build site! How can these figures be deemed representative of Swinnow Park? Why were all figures based on modelling? Why was there no mention of Particulates. The western bund along with tree cover might reduce Particulate levels somewhat, but from what initial level to what subsequent level?
Building so close to a very busy Motorway is never going to be good for the residents. We all know that NO2 can cause asthma attacks severe enough to kill people. Incidence of asthma in young children has grown year on year. Our permitted pollution levels are much higher than in many European countries.
With respect to Particulates, particles PM 2.5 and PM 10, research is constantly finding more health problems triggered by inhaling particulates into the lungs. The particulates can pass across the lungs into the blood stream and from there through the placenta and into the foetus. Latest research implicates particulates as a cause of Alzheimers disease.
Since most of the affordable housing will be near the A1M and the B1224, it will be families on lower incomes already hit by rising energy and fuel bills and having to use Foodbanks who are most likely to be affected by both Air and Noise Pollution.
I would like to know how the discharge of Conditions 31 & 32 was arrived at. I have not seen any evidence of any serious amelioration of the issues.
xxxxxxxxxxxxx Wetherby resident.
Discharge of conditions 31 & 32
House Design
Dear Mr Platten
I wish to express my concerns about the proposed house designs for Swinnow Park.
At the outset we were told this was to be an exemplar site with Innovation. I see nothing in the house design types which proclaim Innovation or forward thinking.
The house types proposed can be seen up and down the country next to Motorways and Railway lines. There is very little, apart from some elongated window heights in a few of the houses, to distinguish the proposed houses on Swinnow Park from anything around the country.
There are excellent design types in York and Cambridgeshire, which I am sure your design consultant could point to.
At a time of a Climate Emergency it seems very wrong to be building with bricks and blocks, which are very heavy users of energy to make them, transport them and put them together.
Timber frame property materials are not as heavy to transport and a timber frame home will sequester 23 tonnes of Carbon whereas the average brick and block house produces 80 tonnes of carbon during manufacture etc. Furthermore, timber frame houses are more airtight and therefore require less energy to heat, an important factor in the current energy crisis.
I will now move on to the matter of the discharge of conditions 31 and 32 with respect to Air and Noise Pollution at the Swinnow Park site.
I have written at length regarding the Consultants reports.
At least the Noise Consultant used equipment to measure noise levels around the site and produced maps showing, as would be expected, that the properties nearest A1M and B1224 are most affected to the point that decibel levels in those properties are above recommended levels and that the gardens/ amenity space in those properties will hardly be an enjoyable place to sit. A follow on report showed that a bund with fence on top did reduce decibel levels somewhat, but still there are properties where home owners will not be able to open their windows. This is very concerning in the light of the very warm weather we have experienced this summer and are likely to experience in the future due to the Earth warming.
Noise Pollution is known to affect health in insidious ways. Trying to sleep but waking unrefreshed by disturbed sleep has a potential for increased accidents in cars, on bikes etc and over several years can lead to heart attacks and Diabetes.
An MVHR system will not help to keep homeowners cool on hot days. Purging the inside air by opening windows and doors in the early morning and late evening is the most effective way to cool a property. This works best if there is an opening skylight in the roof. This is hardly practicable when people go out to work for early or late shifts or children or animals need to be kept indoors. Homeowners also need to be taught about keeping doors, windows and blinds and curtains closed on the sunniest summer days to reduce heat build up.
It is to be hoped that Taylor Wimpey will consider the installation of brise soleil at windows to prevent sunlight entering the properties in the height of summer and heating the home beyond comfortable levels. There are also special finishes which can be applied to window glass which help reduce heating up in the summer.
With respect to Air Pollution, as far as I can tell, not a single measurement of NO2 and Particulate levels has been taken at Swinnow Park.
The Air Pollution Consultants relied on NO2 measurements taken in Wetherby, well away from A1M along with a measuring station on Spofforth Hill and a measuring station 18km south of the build site! How can these figures be deemed representative of Swinnow Park? Why were all figures based on modelling? Why was there no mention of Particulates. The western bund along with tree cover might reduce Particulate levels somewhat, but from what initial level to what subsequent level?
Building so close to a very busy Motorway is never going to be good for the residents. We all know that NO2 can cause asthma attacks severe enough to kill people. Incidence of asthma in young children has grown year on year. Our permitted pollution levels are much higher than in many European countries.
With respect to Particulates, particles PM 2.5 and PM 10, research is constantly finding more health problems triggered by inhaling particulates into the lungs. The particulates can pass across the lungs into the blood stream and from there through the placenta and into the foetus. Latest research implicates particulates as a cause of Alzheimers disease.
Since most of the affordable housing will be near the A1M and the B1224, it will be families on lower incomes already hit by rising energy and fuel bills and having to use Foodbanks who are most likely to be affected by both Air and Noise Pollution.
I would like to know how the discharge of Conditions 31 & 32 was arrived at. I have not seen any evidence of any serious amelioration of the issues.
xxxxxxxxxxxxx Wetherby resident.
