Derbyhaven is in the news as the result of a planning application from Mr Ferguson Lacey to build 21 dwellings on part of the golf course. The residents oppose it as they believe it is a breach of a deal which they thought they had reached with Mr Lacey not to build more than one house - a mansion house - on the site.

 

Attached is my letter to the Appeal Inquiry Chairman supporting their position.

 

19th June 2006

 

The Planning Appeals Inspector,

Government Offices,

Douglas.

 

Dear Sir,

 

PLANNING APPLICATION 05/02044/A

 

4 Apartments and 17 Houses Golf Course, Derbyhaven Road.

 

Introduction.

 

Further to the written objections, which were made originally on behalf of this Society by Mr Ian Bleasdale, our Planning Officer, I am now making additional submissions as proof of evidence. These comments are not meant to be exhaustive but are simply intended to be supportive of the comments made by numerous objectors and in line with our original comments.

 

As the residents of Derbyhaven have asked me to appear as a witness to the Appeal Inquiry, I am providing you with some details of my background and experience which I believe are relevant in these circumstances.

 

I am a Manxman whose family originally came from the Castletown/Derbyhaven area. My parents always regarded Derbyhaven as a very special place because of its stillness, beauty and wildlife. I have inherited this love. Professionally I am a pharmacist and businessman. I am heavily involved in church life being an Anglican Reader in the Diocese of Sodor &Man; an executive member and trustee of the Church of England Central Reader’s Council and a member of numerous pastoral, financial and social church bodies.

 

Currently I am Chairman/Treasurer of the Society for the Preservation of the Manx Countryside & Environment (founded in 1938) whose patron is The Lieutenant Governor. This has similar objects as the Society for the Protection of Rural England. I am also Chairman of Island Agenda 21, which is involved in sustainability issues; Public Relations Officer of the Isle of Man branch of Friends of the Earth; a member of the Department of Transport’s Hedge Committee; of the Governments’ Steering Group looking into Climate Change; and of several other environmental and heritage organisations.

 

 

 

 

 

2.

Summary of Issues.

 

It is the policy of Tynwald to ensure all Government Departments take note of Agenda 21 i.e. to ensure all development is sustainable and does not prejudice the interests of present and future generations. It is clear that this application if successful may do damage on social, economic and environmental grounds. Consequently, I believe the Appeal should dismiss this Planning Application..

 

Social.

 

The proposal by the Applicant to build 4 Apartments and 17 houses on the Castletown Golf Course has created widespread dissent within the hamlet. The large attendance at public meetings and the weight of opposition as indicated in the statements before the Inquiry is evidence of this. This is disturbing as it is prejudicial to the social fabric of the village particularly as the Applicant is the owner of the Castletown Golf Links Hotel. There is no doubt that if the application was to be granted, the tranquillity and character of the hamlet would change. The Derbyhaven of today with its peace and quiet - some people would call it Manxness - will disappear and be replaced with the start of a sprawling suburb as this application would give the green light for more residential development possibly on the best golf course on the Island which is one of the top 100 courses in the British Isles. Unique charm and beauty will be lost. This is stupid. Those who set in motion such developments are not doing any favours to the Isle of Man particularly when there appears to be good evidence that gross misrepresentation over a Section 18 agreement is involved. It seems to me that profit for an individual entrepreneur will be in this instance a major loss for the community and the Manx countryside. Social and economic factors ideally need to be in balance. Undue weight to the smallish contribution one individual can make compared to the rest of the community would certainly shed a different light on this proposal.

 

Economic.

 

I have considered the economic implications of this proposed development. There is no doubt that the Applicant is considering developing on a prime site, which guarantees a considerable profit to the developers. When money comes into the equation all qualms about the social and environmental consequences are put aside. Good planning must counteract this. The value of beauty and tranquillity, the unique character of a hamlet should come before the profit motivation of the landowner. Good stewardship demands a value must be put on the natural resources inherent at Derbyhaven. The development must be considered in the light of new economics not sheer commercialism, which has profit as it’s over riding motivation.

 

 

 

 

3.

There is talk that an extra 21 dwellings will encourage some shops to open. This of course is complete nonsense. All it will do is put houses in a place where there are no facilities useful for young families or the elderly. These people will be dependent on a twice-daily bus to take them to Castletown. The independent inspector who chaired the

IOM Strategic Plan inquiry says in his report (page 14, para. 4.07) “In my view, Derbyhaven is a small settlement that lacks basic services”.

 

Environmental.

 

Apart from the question of zoning legalities and in my Society‘s view this site is not zoned for further residential development, my main concern is the effect on the environment. I could reiterate most of the points made by other objectors detailing the effects on the landscape value, scenic beauty, the problems of water drainage, flooding , bird life including choughs, the protected grasshopper that this Society fought hard to protect in the early 90’s. All these matters are of great concern and all are at grave risk. However, I would like you to take note of three matters, which seem to have been given little consideration.

 

I understand that a substantial length of the existing stone and sod wall will have to be removed to enable visibility and access to be achieved. In other parts of the British Isles, such a move would involve an Environmental Impact Assessment to ensure that there is no irreversible to the fauna and flora which inhabit this area and that are no historic reasons why these changes should not take place. I believe this has not been done in this case. Obviously, there will be a great change in privacy for the adjacent residents.

 

Secondly, I would draw your attention to the observations of a member of Friends of the Earth, Mr D C E Bellamy, who as part of a supervised project by the neighbouring King Williams College investigated and researched the coastal systems in the Castletown Bay area and their effect on the local landscape. He is presently an undergraduate at Edinburgh University.

 

Mr Bellamy states in correspondence to me (reproduced in full and unedited with his express permission) that:

 

“The great majority of the Isle of Man’s wind comes from the south west (SW). The south-westerly fetch (distance over which waves build up) affecting Castletown Bay is some 8,000 miles in length beginning of the NW coast of Brazil, across the North Atlantic, through the Celtic Sea, St. George’s Channel and finally the Irish Sea to the NE part of Castletown Bay. The Bay is therefore directly in the face of the prevailing winds and this long fetch.

 

 

 

 

4.

The prevailing SW wind causes waves orientated in a NW-SE fashion to attack Castletown Bay, which is made of soft limestone and therefore easily eroded. These constant waves cause swash and backwash to move material up the beach. A swash moves material up the beach from west to east (owing to the orientation of the NW-SE waves). The backwash, under the influence of gravity, percolates water back down the beach at 90 degrees to the shoreline. As the water is percolated, the material washed up the beach is left there and not drawn back down to the sea. Hence, this constant swash and backwash causes material to move in a west to east pattern. This is called long-shore-drift (LSD). Naturally if the wind reverses, say from the south east, so does LSD. There LSD would occur from east to west. However the great majority of wind on the Isle of Man is SW, hence, as stated, LSD is west-east on Castletown Bay.

 

Langness has not always been part of the Manx mainland. At one time, it was a separate island formed from conglomerate and various other rocks. Over time LSD in Castletown Bay has caused such a build up of material (beach nourishment) that, the 100m or so sea barrier has been bridged by nature. This is known as a tombolo: when two islands meet by the creation of a land bridge. Therefore, the region from around the N-S Ronalsway runway to the entrance gates of the Golf Links (approx.) does not have above sea-level bedrock. Here the land lies on sands, gravels and rounded beach stones, which have acreated there over time. Sand dunes eventually built up, as shown in 18th and early 19th 4.

century paintings. However, these were levelled to create a sandy golf links. Some still exist however, especially on the southern shore of Sandwick Corner.

 

This proposes many problems. First of all the area where development is planned, very close to the Irish Sea on not one, but two sides, furthermore only a few feet in elevation above the ordnance datum (OD) (sea level), is at constant risk of flooding, both from up welling water and storm surges washing overland. Please also remember that the proposed development is right in the way of an 8,000 mile fetch.

 

However, one might say, since this tombolo has been formed over recent centuries by the accretion of beach material, over time more material will further protect the land. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case. The construction of Castletown Harbour in the early 18th century, with extensive extensions (including a new breakwater) in the early 19th century, the construction of a concrete slipway midway on Castletown Promenade, the erection of four groynes near Hang Hill (wooden walls designed to stop LSD and build up beach material, hence building up a beach for us by humans, and also to cause the waves to break out further to sea to prevent damage) and the construction of an extensive sea-wall defence along the Promenade and another at Hango Hill (effectively stopping erosion in the western part of Castletown Bay, have all led to a reduction in material build-up at Sandwick. All of these constructions are therefore holding material firmly in place, allowing little erosion, therefore reducing beach nourishment further along the Bay.

 

5.

The consequences of this are that the cessation of beach nourishment at Sandwick Corner means that the constant attack of the sea will no longer build up the storm beach at Sandwick, but actually now slowly erode the material. This therefore shall, in time, reverse the process of accretion, which built up the Langness tombolo several centuries ago.

 

Please also note that in recent years the small road to the Golf Links Hotel has been damaged by the sea. There the tombolo is also receiving erosion on the Derbyhaven side, despite the short fetch from the north of England, large breakwater and sheltered Bay. On noting the level of erosion here, please note just how exposed the other side of the tombolo is.

 

Furthermore and regrettably, both the predicted and recorded rise in sea level and the increase and intensity of sea storms, owing to Global Warming, will place the future of this low-lying, poorly consolidated tombolo in serious jeopardy. It is indeed conceivable that in a short period of prolonged major storms, that the Irish Sea could once again reclaim the land between Castletown and Derbyhaven Bays. Standing on top of one of the dunes of the Golf Links, this becomes clear. Global Warming, the rise in the ordnance datum and the cessation, or more correctly the major decrease in beach nourishment at Sandwick Corner, makes this area geologically extremely unsound. There is no stopping the sea: it shall reclaim this area. “

 

Moreover, the proposed extension to the runway at the nearby Ronaldsway airport may well cause tidal and coastal problems affecting Derbyhaven.

 

I would draw your attention to Acclimatise Report on How Climate Change is likely to affect the Isle of Man which is now with the Chief Minister. Climate is changing faster than ever and this is likely to continue. An increasing frequency of more intense events can occur due to a number of factors, such as changes in humidity, atmospheric circulation patterns and increased storm activity. The best estimate for global mean sea-level rise over the present century is 0.48 metres. It is anticipated for the Isle of Man that changes in extremes are likely to be greater in the future, such as an increase in the frequency of extreme hot days, extreme wind speeds or more intense precipitation events. As a member of the Steering Group which put together this Report I have good reason to believe this area is at significant risk as it is low lying and very vulnerable to sea levels rising. It would definitely be unwise to add to the existing flooding problems by allowing substantial development. Metroeconomica Ltd. Say that “the estimate damage costs for the storm surge and tidal flooding that affected coastal areas on the island on the 1st February 2002 is more than £8 million.” Climate change is a significant factor cautioning against this proposal.

 

 

 

 

6.

Thirdly, we should be aware of the biodiversity of the SSSI area with regard to bird life and other wildlife. As this area is rough grassland, it will be important for some species.

 

In addition, Derbyhaven’s shallow bay with its expanse of intertidal mud and weed-covered rocks attracts a good variety of waders. Oystercatchers, Kestrels, ducks, curlews, golden plovers and Bar-tailed Godwits etc are present. Therefore, this is an important area for nature, which we would not wish to see disturbed.

 

Conclusion.

 

There are many other points, which are valid reasons for refusing this development near to a significant coastline, which far outweigh the provision of five affordable houses. I will not reiterate them but suffice to say that The Society for the Preservation of the Manx Countryside & Environment totally opposes this planning application.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

 

 

Charles Flynn.

Chairman,

SPMCE.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reply to:

 

31 First Avenue,

Douglas.

 

 

 

Mrs Williams, 20th June 2006

The Chief Secretary,

Governments Planning Appeals.

 

 

Dear Mrs Williams,

 

Planning Application 05/02044/A

 

I enclose a letter for the Appeal Inquiry.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

 

 

Charles Flynn.