Out with plastics and in with properties
Ashford Borough Council and Canterbury City Council have teamed up to create a new nutrient neutrality company with an aim to delivering 2,000 new homes.
When you hear the words ‘plastic’ and ‘homes’ in the same sentence the mind might wonder to a new edition of Barbie’s dream house or the cast of Mean Girls creating a new neighbourhood, but the idea Ashford and Canterbury have come up with is arguably better.
Already named Stour Environmental Credits Ltd, the local authorities have created a new company to help developers deliver much-needed social housing on land near the River Stour without causing too much environmental damage.
The organisation works to ensure plans don’t increase the level of chemicals such as nitrogen and phosphorous in the river. Some of the measures proposed to help this include retrofitting better water flow systems in council housing stock, improving wastewater treatment and encouraging farmers to plant winter crops on land close to the water that would otherwise be left bare.
Noel Ovenden, leader of Ashford Borough Council, said: ‘Our administration is passionate about providing much-needed affordable housing for local people while also caring for the environment.
‘So I’m delighted that Ashford and Canterbury have united to deliver a bold and innovative solution to the thorny problem of nutrient neutrality constraints on housebuilding.’
Nutrient neutrality, which was introduced in the UK in 2018 following an EU ruling, works to ensure new developments don’t increase the amount of nutrients in a water catchment. The principle only applies to new schemes in areas with protected habitat sites that are in ‘unfavourable condition’.
To fund their project, the councils are hoping to use £9.8million from the government’s Local Nutrient Mitigation Funding programme.
As it stands, Ashford council’s cabinet have already agreed to the plans and it is expected Canterbury will follow suit at their meeting scheduled for 7th October.
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