RESIDENTS at Clos Parc Isaf in Llangennech have raised their concerns regarding the recent works, which have been undertaken on land bordering their homes. The land owned by Carmarthenshire County Council has been earmarked for sale. Residents claim that they were not notified of any works taking place and only found out when the machines turned up. Rhianwen Condron lives at Clos Parc Isaf. She said:
We as residents knew nothing about what the council were doing. I have lived here for eight years and the council have done nothing with this land. They have now decimated the habitat. We have bats in the area. There was no consultation considering the fact that the council as an adjoining land owner have done works right up to our boundary. I find that rude. Carmarthenshire County Council have told me that it is their plan to sell this land as quickly as they are able to do so to a developer for the development of 50 houses. The community park is also included in the parcel of land for sale. That has been confirmed to me by the council.
As we were discussing the land more residents turned up and expressed their concerns about the lack of consultation. Residents expressed their concerns about the strain on community services and the sewage system. Rhianwen said that she had been asking the council for documents pertaining to habitat surveys and the method statements for the work carried out in the area. She said: “I have concerns about the method of working when dealing with the Japanese knotweed on the site. The machines came in here and they would have come into contact with the knotweed. They did not wash the machines before they left.”
We contacted Carmarthenshire County Council for a comment. Carmarthenshire County Council executive board member for resources Cllr David Jenkins said:
“The land is allocated for residential development in the Local Development Plan and the council has been carrying out clearance work on the site in advance of a possible sale. Full consultation was undertaken with the ecologists before starting the clearance works. The area of land to be disposed of has yet to be confirmed but if it is to include the play area, there is a statutory process to follow.
