A new application has been made for planning permission for an intensive broiler chicken farm near Bontgoch (original application ref. A190916, new application ref. A211093).

This would be a terrible development in many ways: pollution, sustainability, bringing large lorries onto small roads, and, of course, for animal welfare. The heritage value of the whole valley, with its healthy ancient woodlands, unrivalled natural beauty of the interesting hill formations redolent with historical detail is absolutely outstanding and must be preserved. 

We ask Ceredigion County Council to reject this application.

We live in a time of accelerating crossovers of viruses between animals and humans because of rising temperatures and our human behaviour that makes that happen.

Industrialised farming methods, and our relationship with animals and biodiversity, could be the main reasons for future pandemics.

There is a huge demand for cheap chicken from our urban population, but there are good, affordable and healthy, alternatives. For chicken and eggs, we need to think smaller and outdoor in Wales, with agro-environmental funding for farmers, unless Mid Wales is to become the breeding ground for the next epidemic. We also need to consider the ethics of how we raise and consume fowl, and how they are fed. Trashing these ethics has consequences.

Soy feed is grown on felled rainforest land, causing climate change. Covid19 has exposed the vulnerability of the global supply chain and the real fragility of our market system. We import 50% of our food, but if we are to have food security in an era of fast rising temperatures (perhaps 4 degrees C according to a recent Treasury report, based on our current level of investment in fossil fuel), we must feed hens sustainably on locally produced feed. There is no future unless we build sustainable local communities globally. Ceredigion has, of course, recently declared a Global Climate Emergency. With this recognition, developments of this nature should be rejected outright.

The scale of this application is totally inappropriate, involving -

• Reduced landscape value - of what is an area of outstanding landscape value
• Significantly increased traffic - on a single track road, dealing with lorry-loads of feedstuffs coming in and broilers going out and significant risk of damage to an ancient, historic bridge and the surroundings of an historic chapel. It's 40 miles to the digestor in Penparc, which would increase heavy traffic both along the unsuitable narrow twisty lanes and also affect all the communities along the A487
• Pollution by chicken manure - on both the land and into the watercourse, with potential impact on local drinking water supplies - the new application mitigates this issue only but does not address any other issues, and would lead to even greater industrial traffic on rural roads
• Air pollution - these operations produce unacceptable levels of acrid odours in the vicinity (the Guardian newspaper has recently reported several articles on complaints arising on similar scaled broiler operations in Powys)
• Poor animal husbandry/welfare issues - arising from the intense over-crowding of broilers

A successful application would contravene all seven well-being goals of the Well-being of Future Generations Act, in the ways set out above, and more, as well as Ceredigion's own planning guidelines.

Ceredigion: please reject this application.