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SAND AND GRAVEL EXTRACTION UPDATE :
We are delighted to report that 63 villagers travelled to St John’s College on Tuesday 28th May, many of them children from St Peter’s Primary School. Placards, posters, banners and air pollution masks added to the effectiveness of the protest.
The students of the college were handed leaflets explaining our concerns regarding the contradictory ethos of the College which is:
“to take every opportunity to reduce its environmental impact”
This is something that St John’s College will not be doing by excavating sand and gravel and permanently removing high grade agricultural land, together with the associated air pollution and ecological disaster.
Many students were surprised and dismayed at the College’s stance on the land being proposed as part of the Minerals Plan and it is now a subject for discussion within their Students’ Union. It is a big step forward to have a direct line of contact with the students whose concern with the college flouting its own standards is most encouraging.
We had good local press coverage both before and after the Oxford trip with the Oxford Mail attending on the day and running the coverage on the front page the next day. The Daily Mail then followed up the story with a visit to Barford and an interview with Nicky Hendry and Malcolm Eykyn.
Thank you to all who sent the many letters and emails to St John’s and have now gained a response from the College. We are not surprised and certainly not deterred by their reply which we will of course be responding to. To see photos of the protest and the reply from St John’s go to: http://www.barfordresidents.co.uk/ and click on the Homepage.
WCC have commenced a new consultation, MCS10- Underground Coal, which runs until 9th July (an omission from the previous round), thereby delaying the process for at least 6 weeks. We need to be ready as it appears that thereafter the plan will be submitted to the Inspectorate. To keep updated join Barford Residents Association today. You will receive a notification as soon as the website is updated with further news and details of how you can help.
Remember your community needs you to help stop this threat to our villages and our lives!
Visit the website http://www.barfordresidents.co.uk for more details
If you are concerned about the future of the village and wish to help preserve it – please visit our website for more information.
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