Grange Farm

Summary of Dr Bull’s ‘Particulate Matter Assessment’ report

The proposed development for four intensive poultry units at Grange Farm would result in more than 7.5 tonnes of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) being emitted each year.

• These emissions would cause damages of more than £1 million pounds over five years.

• The concentration increase at some locations would be almost three times higher than at major infrastructure projects like Gatwick Northern Runway.

• Exposure to PM2.5 can result in serious health impacts, especially in vulnerable groups such as the young, elderly, and those with respiratory problems. 

Planning authorities should consider the impact of developments on air quality in all ambient air, according to Defra. Yet, the application’s Environmental Statement does not do this.

The PM2.5 rate for the development is 7.5 tonnes per year, similar to emissions from 7.5 km of the M25 carrying 160,000 vehicles a day. As the emissions from the poultry houses would be concentrated in a far smaller area, they would have much greater impacts than a motorway.

The predicted increase in PM2.5 for the proposed development is 0.57 µg/m3 at one receptor (Hare Hills Farm) and 0.16 to 0.47 µg/m3 at other nearby receptors. For comparison, the increase at recent major transport infrastructure projects was 0.2 µg/m3 for Gatwick Northern Runway and Luton Airport Expansion.

The damage costs from emissions of air pollutants over five years would be £1,083,131.

Dr Bull concludes: “Given the scale of emissions of PM2.5, the resulting increases in PM2.5 concentrations at nearby receptors and the damage costs, this application is not considered to have complied with the requirements of the Defra Interim Planning guidance.”