Organic farm under threat from rail plan

Bosses at Swillington Organic Farm near Leeds were shocked this week when they discovered the government’s plans for a multi-billion pound high speed rail line would run straight through their land.

Not scheduled for completion for nearly another 20 years , the HS2 line between London and Leeds would slash journey times and bring a reputed multi-million pound benefit to the region’s economy.

However Jo Cartwright and her family, who have run Swillington for more than 10 years, say that their business will no longer be viable if the construction work goes ahead and they have launched a campaign to have the route altered.

Ms Cartwright told Country Week: “We only found out three days ago, the same time as everyone else.

“We will fight it, I do not think we have much of a chance, but we are not just going to lie down and take it.”

The family has launched an online petition to bring to the Government’s attention the damage the proposed route will cause and a Facebook group has already attracted much support.

Ms Cartwright said: “We want them to find an alternative route.

“It is not just farmland that it will run through. It will go through our fishing area and some of the marshlands we have on our land.

“We have some land in Higher Level Stewardship for wildlife conservation and have things like harvest mice and water voles living here, as well as some relatively rare plants.

“I was actually surprised they decided to build it through where they have, it seems like quite an expensive way to go.”

Other rural communities along the path of HS2 expressed concerns over the proposed route.

The announcement provoked anger in the village of Church Fenton where there are plans for the line to be mounted on “stilts” in case of flooding.

Parish councillor Jo Mason said: “We as a village will fight this every step of the way. There are no benefits to Church Fenton and it can only mean one thing to this ancient village – disaster. Whatever happens people have been put in this very uncertain position of living under a massive flyover with 200mph trains going through it.”

The Country Land and Business Association said the second phase of the route (between Birmingham and Leeds), would blight many rural businesses without providing fair compensation for compulsory purchase.

CLA President Harry Cotterell said: “The Government has rushed through the route announcement before two major consultations on phase one have finished, showing contempt for rural land and business owners.

“The current compulsory purchase system treats landowners badly while helping to deliver profit to commercial operators.”

The Government will consult heavily on the proposed route. Log on to epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/45151 to sign the petition.