Sidmouth recycling site - decision made already claim

Public exhibition over Sidmouth recycling sites “charade” claims Bowd resident

ACCUSATIONS that Devon County Council has already decided which site it wants to use for a new recycling centre near Sidmouth, have been refuted.

George Callaghan, who lives near one site at The Bowd, claims Woods Farm recycling centre staff had told him the favoured site was just a few hundred yards from the existing centre, on the B3177 Sidmouth to Ottery St Mary road.

He claims the county’s public consultation on Tuesday was a waste of time if DCC had already decided which site it wanted.

Mr Callaghan added: “Why go through public consultation and the charade of attracting people’s attention if they have already got a preferred site?”

He says he also believed a deal had been made with Bicton College regarding “a swap” of Woods Farm land for the Bowd site, but, confirmed DCC, the land is owned by Clinton Devon Estates and it was only talking to landowners for each location.

A council spokeswoman said councillors had suggested consulting the public on which location they preferred after visiting the three sites.

“No decision has been made as to the final site; the views and comments from the exhibition will assist councillors in their considerations.

“Once the final site has been selected, it will be subject to more consultation through the planning application process.”

She said feedback from the exhibition showed the public clearly preferred the Bowd site. (See page 23).

“We will continue to accept views from the public for the next few weeks. We would also like to thank everyone for attending and giving us their thoughts on the matter,” she added.