As of today we have 2109 signatures on our online petition and 1041 members on our facebook page! Please continue to share both and to continue to voice your objections to the quarry reactivation. There are several ways to do this: NOTE: if you choose to write an email or a letter, and by commenting directly onto the Stirling Council website IT IS CRUCIAL THAT YOU MAKE IT CLEAR THAT YOU ARE OBJECTING to the planning application (except on the petitions which already state this) otherwise what you say will only be regarded as information. 1. SIGN THE ONLINE PETITION that outlines the reasons for our objections. You can also write a message after youve signed. This petition is for anyone to sign, but will also serve as a voice for those of you without a UK address who cannot comment on the Council website. This will go to the Senior Planning Officer, Stirling Council. https://change.org/p/jane-brooks-burnett-save-gillies-hill-petition-objecting-to-planning-application-14-00742-ful-continuation-of-quarrying-new-access-road-and-public-car-park-including-restoration-proposals-murrayshall-quarry-polmaise-road-to-carron-reservoir-stirling 2. SIGN THE LOCAL HARD COPY PETITION: Download and print from the Files section above and/or conrtact Margaret Strang or Marion McAllister by posting here. Please consider volunteering to help circulate petitions. They will go to the Senior Planning Officer, Stirling Council. 3. Register your objection on the STIRLING COUNCIL WEBSITE PAGE FOR SUBMITTING A COMMENT/OBJECTION: Step 1 Go to pabs.stirling.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=externalDocuments&keyVal=NFWNK7PI0CD00 This takes you to the 14/00742/FUL planning application page Step 2 Click on Register at the top of the page (if you havent already registered to view planning documents) Step 3 After youve registered, go back to the web page address in Step 1 and click on Login at the top of the page Step 4 After logging in go back to the same web page address and click on COMMENTS. If you havent Registered and Logged in it will say: comments may not be submitted at this time Step 5 Opposite where it says STANCE you need to click in the box OBJECT. Below that it gives lots of boxes where you can decide whether or not to put a tick. In the space below you can write your objections and comments. 4. EMAIL Jane Brooks-Burnett at [email protected] who is the Planning Officer for the application and send a copy of objection to the Chair of the Planning Committe; [email protected] 5. POST(snail mail) your written objections to Jane Brooks-Burnett, Planning, Stirling Council, Municipal Buildings, Corn Exchange Road, Stirling, FK8 2HU 6. Write to or email your Councillor: my.stirling.gov.uk/councillors?theme=MyStirling 7. Write a letter to the editor of the Stirling Observer - John Rowbotham, Editor Stirling Observer john.rowbotham@trinitymirror 8. Scroll down this facebook page to read others letters and get ideas for your own https://facebook/groups/savegillieshill/ NOTE: IT IS CRUCIAL THAT YOU MAKE IT CLEAR THAT YOU ARE OBJECTING to the planning application (except on the petitions which already state this) otherwise it will be regarded as information. Put this in your title and your first sentence. A suggested format is: Dear Ms Brooks-Burnett PLANNING APPLICATION 14/00742/FUL OBJECTION We refer to the above Planning Application submitted by Paterson’s Quarries Ltd and wish to register our objection. -Send copies of any objections you send to Councillors, MSPs, the website comment section (below) or to the Stirling Council Planning Department to other parties as well. -Consider first doing a draft on a Word document before you go into the Comments site as the page times out quickly and you’ll have to start over if it does. This way you’ll only have to cut and paste. -Keep copies of your correspondence. Consider posting them on our facebook page to help others formulate their letters. ISSUES ON WHICH YOU CAN COMMENT: History: Gillies Hill where Robert the Bruce placed his sma folk or ghillies before calling them down from the hill in a decisive moment on the second day of the Battle of Battleburn ensuring a victory for the Scots. The Hill also boasts two Iron Age forts, Gillies Hill Fort and Wallstale Dun: early 19th century lime-kilns which have already been damaged by both quarrying and quarry lorries in the recent past; a myriad of limestone tunnels; the ruins of Polmaise Castle, the last of the homes of the Murrays of Touchadam were the local lairds for 600 years. Landscape: The destruction of the highest elevations of the hill along with the Giant Redwood grove which is visible from throughout the Stirling area.: All who look on Gillies Hill from the surrounding areas see its iconic treeline with the grove of five Giant Redwoods standing proudly as a beacon seen from miles around and beloved by local residents as a key hiking destination. If the quarry comes back this beacon along with its historical connection to Polmaise Castle and those who planted the trees will be gone, the very top of the hill shaved off. Transportation, Traffic and Road Safety: The proposed route means 132 trips per day on a country road through Kings Park and the tourist road beneath Stirling Castle.If the quarry is opened 300,000 tonnes of quarry stone will be extracted each year for the next 40 years removing 12 MILLION tonnes all together ALL of which will be transported by road by 132 Heavy Goods Vehicles per day, each carrying between 20 and 29 tonnes of quarry stone on the outward journey. All of these lorries will travel along Polmaise Road, an unsuitable, unclassified, country lane much used by walkers, cyclists, and equestrians all of whom enjoy the area because of its peace; tranquillity and spectacular views. Polmaise Road also serves as the main corridor for the significant number of school pupils of St. NInians Primary School and Stirling High School thus bringing these children into potential conflict with obvious danger. The proposed route passes a Hospital; Children’s Nursery; sheltered accommodation; and the City’s prestigious Public Park, Kings Park passing through Victoria Place, one of the most beautiful streets in the City; and past the viewpoint below Stirling Castle at which Health and Wellbeing: The use of Gillies Hill by hundreds of local, regional and visiting recreationists will be compromised. Gillies Hill, popular for its peace, tranquillity and clean air, is used by over 30,000 people per year for rambling, running, educational field trips, climbing, dog-walking, mountain and BKX cycling, geocaching, photography and wildlife & bird watching. The Development if approved would lead to loss of green area for recreation close to Stirling, loss of opportunities for healthy lifestyle, loss of opportunity for activities especially for younger generation and loss of unique landscape views Economic Benefits / Need for Rock: The Development if approved would lead to use of resources not required to meet Stirling Council’s 10 year landbank requirement, and consequently create a potential disincentive to contractors to recycle construction aggregate. This proposed Development would therefore be contrary to LDP Sustainable Development Criteria and Primary Policy 11. Renewed quarrying could also open the door to further quarrying and landfill operations on Gillies Hill. Flora: Renewed quarrying will significantly reduce any remaining semi-natural ancient woodland on the apex of Gillies Hill along with its associated understorey soils and flora that have taken centuries to become established. Additionally renewed quarrying will reduce the overall population of Scots pine (natural, plantation and regenerating) on Gillies Hill by a significant amount through the destruction of the several pine groves in the north and eastern sections of the quarry zone, as well as the upper terrace of the old quarry which has been colonized with a young woodland of Scots pine and birch which will provide future habitat for red squirrels and pine martens. Renewed quarrying will undoubtedly spread the seeds of pirri pirri bur - an invasive non-native plant that occurs throughout the quarry zone whose seeds cling to rocks, wheels - throughout Scotland wreaking the same kind of ecological havoc that is currently occurring on Lindesfarne. Fauna: Quarry expansion will drive away all animals currently living within the quarry zone including red squirrels, pine martens, badgers, peregrine falcons, and three species of bats. Red squirrels, A UK protected species that is returning to our woodlands, and their dreys have been sighted and photographed within the proposed quarry zone. Renewed quarrying will drive them further into already occupied habitat. Pine martens, which have only recently returned to the Stirling area, have been photographed within the quarry permission zone. It would be tragic to have them driven away so soon after they have re-established their population on the hill. Additionally Stirling Council’s Local Development Plan’s Green Network continuum that runs from Loch Carron through Sauchie Crag, Murray’s Wood and Gillies Hill to Gargunnock and beyond will potentially be disrupted. Badgers will be faced with crossing the new quarry access road which will pass through one of two known badger foraging habitats on the southern slope of Gillies Hill. They will also face 132 lorries per day traveling down Polmaise Road which the badgers use to get from their setts to their foraging grounds Loch Kruse, one of Gillies Hill’s few perennial lochs to the east of the Giant Redwood grove and which contains a healthy population of palmate newts will be drained and destroyed. Renewed quarrying will destroy habitats used by recently returning peregrine falcons.Redwood grove and which contains a healthy population of palmate newts will be drained and destroyed. Renewed quarrying will destroy habitats used by recently returning peregrine falcons.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 22:36:46 +0000
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