THE activities at the demolition site at the former Northern United colliery buildings, near Cinderford, are being questioned by pressure group Dean Forest Voice – who have tabled a series of questions that will be put to the Forest of Dean District Council this Thursday.

In a series of broadsides, Dean Forest Voice originally set out seven basic questions for the council to answer – only to have them amended by the council's solicitor on the grounds that they could have been defamatory, and may not have been 'framed in a proper way'.

The questions about the activities on Friday March 28 at the former colliery site centre on the type of demolition process that was used to reduce some of the buildings there to rubble. Activists have claimed that the contractors were only issued a licence to perform a 'soft' demolition at the site, but instead brought in heavy machinery to do the job. Allegedly, this resulted in the destruction of bat roosts in the buildings.

Dean Forest Voice allowed council-imposed changes to their original questions but stated: "We have reluctantly changed the questions rather than lose the opportunity to question them."

The first question that Dean Forest Voice have asked of the council is: "Was the council aware of the urgent instructions concerning the use of machinery and equipment from the HCA (Home and Communities Agency) to their contractors to demolish buildings at the Northern United site and the steps they had to take to respect the many rare bats and their habitat which are protected by law?" The Review has seen copies of the original wording of the questions and we can report that the amendments ordered by the council's solicitor have removed the word 'heavy' before machinery, and also deleted the description of the bats being 'destroyed'. The word 'heavy' was also deleted from a later question relating to the machinery, suggesting that the council themselves are fearful of legal consequences if they even admit that substancial heavy plant equipment may have been used in the demolition of the buildings.

Further probings include questioning what the council's actions were in respect of the demolition, and whether they were aware of the circumstances surrounding it, and they also ask about the timescale of the demolition operation - amid allegations that funding deadlines for the project had to be met on time.

They finish by asking: 'If FoDDC are innocent of all this and are appalled by it, what action do they propose to take?'

A spokesman for the Home and Communities Agency said: "As a government body, we take our environmental obligations extremely seriously and have taken every possible step to ensure local wildlife is protected. The measures we have taken to remove the buildings from the site have been closely monitored by officers from Natural England and independent specialist ecologists. We have also been in close liaison with the police while work is taking place."

Meanwhile, Forest of Dean Friends of the Earth (FODFOE) have issued a statement which requests that the government 'calls-in' the planning decisions made by the district council over the Northern United site, "so that an Independent Public Inquiry can be held into how decisions were made and how the recent demolition of buildings at Northern United was carried out."

On the matter of the demolition FODFOE also stated: "On the coldest March in decades the Home and Communities Agency demolished buildings...in the end using heavy machinery. David Priddis, local bat expert, said: "The noise ws incredible. I am not surprised that a member of the public reported seeing bats flying."

FODFOE planning officer Mary Newton said: "We believe that this site should never have come forward for development and that the effort and money should be focussed in Cinderford which would benefit local businesses and residents directly and more immediately. FODFOE believe that this site should be conserved for future generations as it is an irreplaceable wildlife and recreational asset for Cinderford."

The seven questions from Dean Forest Voice are to be put to the Forest of Dean District Council meeting at the council offices in Coleford on Thursday evening.

--------

NORTHERN UNITED BATS – THE DEAN FOREST VOICE QUESTIONS IN FULL:

1. Was the Council aware of the urgent instructions concerning the use of machinery and equipment from the HSA to their contractors to demolish buildings at the Northern United site, and the steps they had to take to respect the many rare bats, and their habitat which are protected by law?

2. If the Council were aware of this urgent action did they do anything to prevent it?

3. If not, why not?

4. Was pressure put upon Natural England to revoke an earlier hand demolish licence and replace it with a licence to 'demolish quickly' by use of machinery?

5. Was all this urgent action the result of having to meet funding deadlines?

6. Was FoDDC involved in the reporting of these matters in the local Press and the threat of legal action?

7. If FoDDC are innocent of all this and are appalled by it what action do they propose to take?