Chris Tarrant slams 'appalling' plans to build huge waste plant

Chris Tarrant slams ‘appalling’ plans to build huge waste plant close to river where he enjoys trout fishing: TV presenter joins angry locals in condemning proposals they say will leave Hampshire beauty spot stinking of manure

  •  Former Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? host said he is ‘horrified’ at biogas plant
  • Angry locals fear the ‘ugly, evil smelling monstrosity’ will result in a stench
  • Read more: Watch as ‘raw sewage’ flow out of a water pipe and into popular lakes

TV presenter Chris Tarrant has joined villagers in slamming plans to build a huge waste plant in a celebrated part of the British countryside – which threatens to leave the area stinking of manure.

The former Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? host said he is ‘horrified’ by ‘appalling’ proposals to build the biogas plant, which is so big it will be the same size as 13 football pitches, in Hampshire’s Test Valley.

Angry locals fear the ‘ugly, evil smelling monstrosity’ will result in the stench of animal waste wafting across the Hampshire countryside and plaguing their village.

Plans have been submitted by British energy company Acorn Bioenergy to build a 7.6 hectare ‘anaerobic digestion facility’ with 55ft tanks in the heart of the valley.

The region boasts beautiful countryside views, chocolate box villages, and the River Test – a chalk stream renowned across the globe for its salmon and trout fishing.

Former Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? host Chris Tarrant (pictured) said he is ‘horrified’ by ‘appalling’ proposals to build the biogas plant in Hampshire’s Test Valley

Angry locals fear the ‘ugly, evil smelling monstrosity’ will result in the stench of animal waste wafting across the Hampshire countryside. Pictured: The River Test which runs through the village of Wherwell, Hampshire

Plans have been submitted by British energy company Acorn Bioenergy to build a 7.6 hectare ‘anaerobic digestion facility’ with 55ft tanks in the heart of the valley

A staggering 91,000 tonnes of waste – made using materials such as farmyard manure, bird litter, and cow manure – will be processed at the site every year, according to Acorn Bioenergy.

Locals fear the processing of waste – arriving ‘by the truckload’ – will leave a ‘revolting’ smell, blighting the area.

Nearest to the proposed site is the hamlet of Picket Twenty and the village of Wherwell, where the average house price is £1.2 million.

Now, Tarrant has hit out at the impact the site would have on the River Test, where he and other celebrities including Jeremy Paxman, Vinnie Jones, Nicolas Cage, the Royal Family, and even George Bush Senior have enjoyed fishing.

The 76 year old former host of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? said: ‘I am horrified that there is yet another attempt by a big thoughtless company to pollute the Test Valley.

‘Wherwell is at the epicentre of one of Britain’s best loved areas of natural beauty and the very thought of a biogas plant anywhere near this lovely village is appalling.

‘As we become more and more aware of the desperate need to reduce pollution on our planet the very idea of these ugly evil smelling monstrosities being built in this area is shocking.

‘We must resist it and stop it.’

Back in 2019 Mr Tarrant also criticised plans to build a ‘monstrous’ industrial incinerator in the much-loved Test Valley. 

US firm Wheelabrator scrapped the plans in 2020 to build a 600ft long, 230ft wide and 150ft high incinerator, which would require huge quantities of water and the subsequent pollution would potentially jeopardise the River Test.

It was also feared the ‘hideous’ industrial plant would pollute the atmosphere and cause traffic chaos.

Angry Picket Twenty resident Angela Martino, a data analyst, fears she and her partner might have to move house.

The 40 year old said: ‘We are scared of the smell that will come up here.

‘Having the site so close to the area will decrease our quality of life and values of the properties.

‘In summer it will affect our daily lives. It’s not going to be nice to live here and moving out will be challenging, as nobody will be looking to move here.

‘The area is surrounded by parks for walks and trekking, and I cannot imagine walking and breathing nasty smells instead of fresh smell.

‘But we’re worried that with [the site], there will be traffic, big lorries, pollution, smell and it will decrease property value in the area.’

Now, Tarrant has hit out at the impact the site would have on the River Test, where he and other celebrities enjoy fishing

The region boasts beautiful countryside views, chocolate box villages, and the River Test – a chalk stream renowned across the globe for its salmon and trout fishing. Pictured: The village of Wherwell

The plans are also ‘strongly’ opposed by the Parish Councils of Goodworth Clatford and Upper Clatford as well as Andover Town Council.

In its official opposition to the plans, Goodworth Clatford Parish Council stated: ‘The current application dwarfs previous applications in its scale and detrimental impact on the landscape in this area.

‘Whilst the applicant has tried to mitigate this where possible by putting the tallest buildings in the lowest area of the site this is completely inadequate in mitigating the sheer intrusiveness of the scale of the facility.’

Regarding ‘odours’, the council raised concerns that no health and safety assessment of nearby residents had been carried out in ‘more extreme scenarios’ such as the heat of summer 2022.

Neighbouring Upper Clatford Parish Council, which criticised the ‘entirely inappropriate’ proposed location, said: ‘Whilst the volume of information accompanying this application is substantial, the simple facts are inescapable – animal waste arriving by the truckload to be stored onsite and ventilated to the outside air will generate odours, unpleasant ones that nobody reading this would want in their own homes.’

Picket Twenty residents said they have not been consulted on the proposals and fear the potential air pollution may impact their health. 

Resident Daniel Sammarco said: ‘With wind conditions heading over the estate it is unavoidable that we will suffer bad smells meaning we will not be able to open windows in certain conditions.

‘There is also the extra traffic of heavy goods vehicles, pollution of the surrounding area and the fact it would spoil the country views which have already been impeded by the solar farm.’

The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) – the trade association which represents the range of interests and matters related to the anaerobic digestion of organic materials (AD) across the UK – declared its ‘full support’ for this application and concern at objectors’ ‘wholly inaccurate’ comments.

Despite the initial waste material used, Acorn Bioenergy said the plant will not ’emit odour’ because the biomethane produced is itself ‘odourless’.

Nearest to the proposed site (red outline) is the hamlet of Picket Twenty (pictured) and the village of Wherwell, where the average house price is £1.2 million

The field (pictured) where plans have been submitted to build an anaerobic digestion facility

A spokesperson said: ‘The anaerobic digestion process by its nature is contained to produce biomethane, an odourless gas. As a result, the plant does not emit odour.

‘The site will generate biomethane as part of a carbon-negative process to provide a sustainable alternative to natural gas in the national grid.’

The company claims ‘economic benefits’ will follow if plans are approved, as they will buy crops and agricultural waste from local farmers, as well as providing ‘local employment opportunities’.

Acorn said a ‘supportive’ three hour public exhibition was held in October at Goodworth Clatford Village Club where the proposals were ‘well received’ by the ‘majority’ of attendees.

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