Route down onto A472 though Ancient Woodland

The meeting held at the Soffryd Community Centre on Tuesday August 8th 2006 at 20.15 was very well attended. Thankyou very much.

Foxgloves in the Canyon

Can you see the bee ?

Please write to Torfaen, your MP, your AM, your newspaper, anyone to save all this ..

Canyon in the Snow

There must be somewhere less beautiful to quarry

Photos

Basic Information

HELP SAVE BLAENCUFFIN “CANYON” !

On the road between St. Illtyd and Pantygasseg/Hafodrynys
see
http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?lat=51.7026&lon=-3.1012&scale=25000&icon=x

A planning application has been resubmitted to Torfaen County Borough Council by Peakman Ltd, they want to sell aggregate from the Torfaen end of the “Canyon” left by the open cast mining. The rock will be processed by three huge crushing and screening machines, and operations will run from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday. 100 lorries per day will leave the site and travel across Mynydd Llanhilleth to near Pantygasseg Old School where a new road will be built to join the Hafodrynys Road. The work is estimated to take at least 20 years to complete then the site will be “landscaped”, our heritage wiped out. Only 12 new jobs will be created. Even worse, the applicants say that if successful, they will apply to do further work in the western Blaenau Gwent end of the site.

If it goes ahead, this application will have a huge impact on this peaceful and beautiful mountain. If you do not want the Canyon destroyed or if you do not want more opencast type disruption, then you MUST write to the address below explaining why you do not want the application to be granted.

Points to consider in your letters include:

· What will the impact on the landscape be? The Canyon and surrounding forestry can be seen for miles. The application contains no artists impressions of what the site will look like during or after the work.

· How will it affect footpaths and bridleways? Several public rights of way run through the site.

· What will be the impact on wildlife? The site currently has a variety of woodland, wetland and heathland habitats, and Gwent Wildlife Trust have said that the cliff faces are potential breeding sites for Peregrine. The canyon is unique, I know of nowhere else like it.

· How will vehicle movement affect the area? Surely the road between Crumlin and Pontypool is congested enough !

· What will happen after the 20 year period is up? Could further development take place? What happens if the company run out of money before the restoration is completed?

· What will the noise pollution, light pollution, water pollution and dust be like? The site and surrounding mountain are very peaceful and are well used by walkers, cyclists, horseriders etc.

· Are we certain that there is a need and demand for the materials that can’t be met elsewhere?

Please send your letters as soon as possible to:
Neil Boardman
Planning Officer
Torfaen County Borough Council
County Hall
Cwmbran
NP44 2WN

Quote:-

Re: 03/P/09336 –Recovery of secondary aggregates, Tirpentwys, Hafodrynys, Pontypool, Torfaen


Moss and Lichen Pictures