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Plans for a new housing development in an area of high need in Carmarthenshire have been refused on appeal. A Welsh Government-appointed planning inspector said the 21-home scheme in Glanamman would be "harmful to ecological interests" based on the evidence provided. Ammanford-based developer Beacon Eco Homes Ltd wanted to build the two and three-bed properties on land off Cwmamman Road. A planning, design and access statement submitted on its behalf said the homes would be within walking distance from shops and community facilities and that due consideration had been given to biodiversity. It added that two of 21 properties would be classed as affordable and that the site was earmarked for up to 28 homes under Carmarthenshire's local development plan. Referring to biodiversity it said mitigation and enhancement measures were proposed and argued there would be no detrimental impacts. An ecological appraisal report was among the bundle of planning documents. Stay informed on Carms news by signing up to our newsletter here There were many objections to the application and petitions were also submitted to Carmarthenshire Council's planning department. Cwmaman Town Council opposed the scheme on drainage and coal mine grounds and claimed local people hadn't been made sufficiently aware of a pre-application consultation. Residents raised highway safety and biodiversity concerns, among others. One of the objectors, Shan Thomas, said in an email to the planning department: "The land is home to a generation of wildlife - badgers, bats and others. Building on this land would diminish their natural habitat." There were also a handful of supporting emails from people who said the properties would be much-needed bungalows. Supporter Susan Thomas wrote: "I know a lot of elderly people that are desperate to be able to move to a bungalow thus releasing a family home for the young to be able to start up, everyone would be happу." After further information was provided by the applicant, the Mining Remediation Authority - formerly the Coal Authority - withdrew its initial objection. Environment regulator Natural Resources Wales noted the number of houses proposed had been scaled back from 30 but said its concerns at pre-application stage still stood. Carmarthenshire Council then turned the application down on four grounds, three relating to habitats and biodiversity including the removal of some trees. That refusal decision has now been upheld following an appeal. The Welsh Government-appointed inspector said the main issue to consider was the effect on ecology given that planning policies sought to maintain and enhance biodiversity. She said the scheme had been reduced in scale to minimise biodiversity impacts but that, based on the reports provided, the proposal would harm ecology and therefore not comply with policies. She acknowledged the properties would boost housing supply and that the council's housing department had confirmed Glanamman was an area of "high housing need", but she added that "tangible evidence" of a housing shortage was lacking.
