110445 — 18/00878/B | Planning Portal IoM | Isle of Man Planning Portal

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1 Singleton, Jason From: Igoea, Andrew Sent: 03 September 2018 12:12 To: DEFA, Planning Cc: DEFA, North Planning Enquiries; '[email protected]'; Harrison, Charles; Reid, Hazel Subject: 18/00878/B; Ballakeigh Farm, Bride Attachments: Tree impacted by barn extension.jpg; Trees to be removed (field side).jpg; Trees to be removed.jpg; Sdefa c280 18090310270.jpg Dear Sir/Madam,

I would like to make the following comments in relation to application 18/00878/B (Ballakeigh Farm, Bride).

Extension of Agricultural Building At the western end, the footprint of the proposed barn extension is quite close to a large mature ash tree. The proposed construction is likely to require excavation within the RPA of this tree. Consequently, the construction has the potential to damage/disturb roots and the movement of equipment/plant required to undertake the work is likely to cause compaction in the surrounding soil. I do not object to this proposal, however, because the tree is in a poor condition and removal could be justified regardless of the development.
Visibility Splay The plan showing visibility splays and the supporting documentation both say that there are 3 trees to be removed here. The annotated photograph, however, indicates that there are 4 trees to remove (there are 4 blue lines). The applicant needs to confirm which is correct. If the photograph is incorrect then I advise that an amended version is submitted so that there is no confusion. These comments are based on the removal of the first 3 trees as you travel east along the Lhen Road from the farm lane.

There are 2 sycamores and 1 elm proposed for removal. All of these trees are large mature specimens of good form for the species, especially given the exposed location. In terms of BS5837:2012 (Trees in relation design, demolition and construction) these trees should be considered as high quality, category A trees, worthy of being a material constraint to development. These trees are very prominent when driving along the Lhen Road and make a significant contribution to the character and amenities of the area.

Obviously, in this situation the loss of the trees and the benefits they provide needs to be balanced against the benefits to road safety. However, it is important to ensure that every alternative option and solution has been thoroughly assessed before the removal of these trees is considered. Input from highway services will be critical in this regard. If it is determined that the removal of the trees is the only viable option to resolve the issue, and that the benefits outweigh the costs/impacts, then some replanting should be considered along the roadside edge. I note that the application proposes the planting of 9 trees near the farm buildings; this will not do anything to mitigate the visual impact from the road as the newly planted trees would be some distance away from the removed trees and would not be visible to the general public.

The re-profiled roadside edge might be a challenging environment to establish new trees because of the exposure, but with the right species choice and some protective measures it would be possible. I would recommend planting a row of 6 trees at 3m spacing along the top of the re-profiled bank. These would need to be contained in a 2m stock proof strip along the northern edge of the field to prevent grazing damage. The use of a plastic mesh wind break barrier would protect and harden off young plants whilst they establish. Also, if a wind break barrier was erected then plastic tubes would not be required. Given the exposure and the (likely) light, well-drained soil, I would recommend Austrian pine (Pinus nigra Austriaca),

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2 holm oak (Quercus ilex) and turkey oak (Quercus cerris) as suitable species for this site. I would recommend that these trees are planted as 60-90cm bare root whips rather than standards as they are more likely to successfully establish at this size.

I have annotated the ‘visibility splay profile’ to show what this would look like - see attached. Also attached is a small selection of photos from my site visit.

Regards,