No 5G mast on public bridleway in Grayswood AONB

No 5G mast on public bridleway in Grayswood AONB

Started
14 July 2022
Signatures: 203Next Goal: 500
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Why this petition matters

A 20m 5G mobile phone mast has recently been approved by Waverley Council alongside a public bridleway in Grayswood village. We believe this approval should not have been given, and must be reversed. 

Planning law

  • New government planning laws mean that masts like this can be put up anywhere, without needing full planning permission. However, they can be refused on the grounds of their ‘siting and appearance’.
  • Despite c50 objections from villagers & others, e.g. Witley Parish Council, Waverley has approved the mast.
  • The siting and appearance of the mast could not be more inappropriate.

Devastating effect on local area

  • 20m high mast sited right next to a bridleway popular with local families, joggers, dog walkers and horse riders; much used by walkers and cyclists to go up to Gibbets Hill and the Devil’s Punchbowl.
  • Views from the bridleway look right over the Surrey Hills – mast will be clearly visible for several miles around; will also be highly visible from All Saints Church, Grayswood village green, the village hall and all houses along the main road and side private roads.
  • Will blight the landscape in this AONB.
  • Mast is of no benefit to village, only railway passengers.
  • The mast exceeds the height of all nearby trees and its greyscale colour and height would be in stark contrast to the surrounding natural landscape, particularly for half the year when the trees have no leaves.
  • Bomb disposal experts removed a WW2 bomb from this site a few years ago. Waverley appears content to take the risk that there are no other explosives on site.
  • If this mast goes ahead, it will also allow for future development on this site which could mean further devastation to the local landscape and AONB.

Mast sharing:

  • Government guidance says that they do not want masts sprouting up all over the countryside and that wherever possible, operators should share masts, including redeveloping an existing site.
  • There is a Vodafone mast, barely half a mile away. It is not visible from the surrounding area. However, EE refuses to pursue this as an option. Nor have they tried other options e.g. another less obtrusive site on land belonging to the owner of the field where approval has been granted. Waverley has done nothing to make them take this option seriously.
  • EE claim other sites have been considered and dismissed but provide no evidence of this.

Inconsistency

  • The Planning Officer’s Report summarises the objections raised but then bizarrely concludes that the mast is ‘in a secluded area’ and only ‘people driving past’ will see it. With dozens of walkers, cyclists and riders enjoying the bridleway every day for its natural beauty, this is completely incorrect.
  • Waverley has turned down another EE mast application at Fox Hill, near Haslemere Garden centre because of its siting and appearance. This mast will only be visible from a westerly direction on the A286 and is therefore far less intrusive.

Conclusion

  • Waverley should withdraw permission for the Grayswood bridleway mast.

PLEASE SUPPORT US BY REGISTERING YOUR DETAILS DEMANDING WAVERLEY RECONSIDER AND REVERSE THIS DECISION.

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Signatures: 203Next Goal: 500
Support now
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