A TRAVELLER site in a hamlet near Great Notley has been given the go-ahead by Uttlesford Council despite widespread objections from nearby residents.
The one-pitch site in Bartholomew Green was approved by councillors by seven votes to four with two abstentions at a planning meeting held last Wednesday.
Darren Buckley, 40, currently of Clockhouse Way in Braintree, has owned the overgrown smallholding for around 20 years but only put in an application to live there on June 12 this year.
Residents' objections relate to Mr Buckley's previous convictions for fly-tipping in 2009, in which he was found guilty of illegally dumping drums of chemical fertiliser in Sible Hedingham, forcing police and fire services to shut the road.
While clearing the site two of the council workers began to feel ill, complaining of a "burning sensation" on their tongues and were later taken to hospital.
Mr Buckley pleaded not guilty but magistrates ruled he was not a credible witness and fined him and another man £250 and gave the pair a 12-month community order to do 200 hours of unpaid work.
A 260-strong petition from residents along with more than 60 letters of objection from people living near the site were sent to the council.
Cllr Vic Ranger said: "This is a speculative development as much as it is generally accepted that the applicant is not a gypsy or traveller.
"It seems there is a section of society that is treated differently because of their ethnic background, but it's not that we object to travellers being in our community – it's that this section of society is given preference in a way that would not be afforded to other residents.
"If this was a normal residential application it would not have been allowed because there's not enough garden space.
"They know how to use planning regulations to get traveller applications approved by using the sustainability argument.
"But it's clearly not sustainable – it's a long way from any amenities and the access entrance is on to a dangerous road."
Speaking prior to his application, Mr Buckley said: "I've not dumped anything here, there's just a bit of hedging. It's only me here so if it gets approved that will be handy."
His application has been handled by Green Planning Solutions, run by Matthew Green, a former Lib Dem MP turned planning expert now dubbed "the gypsy king" due to the company's high number of planning cases involving travellers.
Mark Ault, 46, has lived in Bartholomew Green for many years.
He told the Chronicle: "This proposal is contrary to the council's own planning policy which seeks to protect the countryside from development.
"This is not a sustainable location, as it is isolated, some distance from services and facilities and where public transport is very limited.
"The council's officers are saying that there is a need for gypsy sites within the district which overrides the countryside protection policies, which is based on an incorrect interpretation of planning policy and is not backed up by up-to-date evidence. "The council has not properly sought to establish either the need or the best locations for sites, which it should have done through the preparation of a local plan."
An Uttlesford District Council spokesman said: "Applications for traveller sites are determined in accordance with the national planning policy guidance.
"This will continue to be the case until we are provided with an up-to-date assessment of the need for these sites across Essex which is currently being drawn up by all the local authorities in the county.
"This assessment will tell us how many traveller pitches are required in Uttlesford and enable us to identify the extent of the shortfall we acknowledge currently exists in the district and draw up proposals to meet it.
"Comprehensive and detailed advice on the relevant national policy guidance was taken into account by the planning committee in coming to its decision with regards to the Felsted application."