Shuffleton development warning

Published on 22nd November 2007 in Letters

Sir - Having being forced out of Richard Cooper Street by the threat of ERYC taking my home by compulsory purchase, I decided to rent for a while before ERYC threw another bag of surprises at everyone just before Christmas.

However I feel the surprise could be for them as, talking to the Environment Agency and other specialists in groundworks, any new development on the Richard Cooper Street/Phoenix Street/Adelphi warehouse site would have devastating results for surrounding property in several streets.

This is because Goole is built on a peat layer, and at present all of the existing property sits on top. However, if you look at the new property off Hook Road you will see that they are having to go through the peat layer and pile-drive down, a very costly process. For the developer of the Richard Cooper Street/Phoenix Street/Adelphi warehouse site this could be around £10 million.

That is not the concern - it is what happens after this work. In simple terms, imagine a wet sponge and start adding weights to the centre. There comes a stage quite quickly where water oozes out. When this happens there is only one place for it to go - into people's homes and through their floors and up their walls.

Also, with greater disturbance of the peat layer, subsidence will be a major problem for years to come. Household insurance will not cover this and so when ERYC go for planning consent it is essential that everyone gets an undertaking that ERYC will pay for any claims over the next 50 years.

If anyone is concerned, then write to Sally Burns at County Hall Beverley asking for a copy of the extensive groundworks survey that must have been completed and, I presume, resulted in Environment Agency warnings.

P. Tomlinson

Marshfield Road,

Goole