The Secretary of State has issued his long awaited decision on
Helioslough's appeal against St. Albans City & District
Council's refusal to grant planning permission for a Strategic
Rail Freight Interchange at Colne Valley, Hertfordshire.
The Secretary of State, in his decision letter, found that the
project would be inappropriate development in the green belt, that
it would cause harm to the historic setting of St.Albans and that
it would cause have adverse effects on ecology and landscape.
However, against this harm the Secretary of State weighed the
need for SRFI's to serve London and the South East and the lack
of alternative locations which would cause less harm to the
greenbelt. Taken together with the other benefits of the scheme,
which include a local country park, improvements to footpaths and
bridleways and a bypass the Secretary of State concluded that very
special circumstances existed to justify development on the
greenbelt.
