Planning permission sought for mobile phone mast near Bullpot farm

[alanw]

Citizen Portal Planning

planning.agileapplications.co.uk

Location: Land at Hoggs Hill, Barbon Low Fell, Off Fell Lane, Casterton, LA6 2JP (same postcode as Bullpot Farm)

Full planning permission for installation of a 25m lattice tower supporting 6 no. antennas, 4 no. transmission dishes, 2 no. equipment cabinets, 1 no. meter cabinet and ancillary development thereto including a generator and associated fuel tank, fenced compound, hard standing, and an access track for the Shared Rural Network project on behalf of Cornerstone

 

[alanw]

Uproar as 25m-high telephone mast plans would 'desecrate' un-spoilt landscape

Barbon in uproar at telephone mast plans for fell

www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk

 

[alanw]

The Red Rose have already responded to the consultation. I can't link directly, however it's on the "Citizen Portal Planning" link, scroll down to "Responses" and expand the fold

 

[2xw]

Ah brill, will be good to get some reception from the BPC

 

[cap n chris]

The reason this is posted here is presumably because it will meet with significant support from the caving community not only because the signal strength will benefit rescues but also because it will make Bullpot Farm almost twentieth century.

 

[hannahb]

Ah brill, will be good to get some reception from the BPC

Hehehe

 

[hannahb]

I've talked to a few people about this. Opinions are divided. I enjoy being at the farm and not having signal. It's a nice break from the rest of the world sometimes.

 

[Oceanrower]

I've talked to a few people about this. Opinions are divided. I enjoy being at the farm and not having signal. It's a nice break from the rest of the world sometimes.

I’m pretty sure that most phones come fitted with an off button. This would enable you to have your break AND allow others the convenience of the modern world…

 

[Fjell]

A lot of people go walking where this is proposed to be. I’m not surprised they’ve already got 30 objections. And prob more when people work it out. It’s pretty substantial with genset and fuel tanks. Seems excessive given that everyone in range already has access to B4RN gigabit internet. It’s currently very wild and sweeping. I thought the YDNP recently extended the boundary west to stop this sort of thing in this area?

 

[Greybeard]

It's all these people moaning that means the coverage in the Dales is so poor. You can be out in the wilds in France with good reception. Do you notice the masts...........?

 

[AR]

I'm reminded of a Private Eye cartoon from many years ago showing some beardy rambler type stood in front of a mobile mast on his mobile phone complaining about the eyesore spoiling the countryside...

 

[JAA]

As someone who lives in one of the wilder bits of the Yorkshire dales id kill for a phone mast as would most locals! Lack of decent mobile signal 4/5G stifles local business, puts young families off moving here, means when my elderly parents are sorting farm animals and need assistance or worse have an accident they have no way to contact anyone etc.
The place is littered with industrial ruins, it’s only cos they’re old people like them! How often do you notice the wind turbines etc once they’re there.

 

[Fjell]

The Park specifically extended the boundary to stop more windmills. You don’t need masts on the top of the fells to improve reception. They are just being cheap. Would work really well on the top of Whernside, go for it.

 

[thehungrytroglobite]

I think this is a real shame tbh. I already get 4g in patches at bullpot farm, plus it's easy to get better signal by just walking up the track. There is also the WiFi already. Its very easy to get in touch with people if needed / in an emergency. The lack of signal is one of the reasons the farm remains such a peaceful and idyllic place where it is possible to escape the stresses of the modern world for a short while

 

[Andrew N]

To people who oppose this sort of thing, I do wonder what your actual perceived detriment is? The benefits of mobile phone coverage are obviously huge, otherwise most of the country wouldn’t be blanketed with it at huge expense to everyone - so I don’t think that is really up for debate - not reasonable debate anyway.

Do you really think a phone mast is going to ruin something? Or really make any tangible negative impact on something? If so, what? The atmosphere? The view? Something else?

There’s a lot of catastrophising about this sort of thing and honestly I just don’t get it - in my view it is blown way out of proportion and usually comes down to a dislike of change with no real rational argument behind it. If the mast gets built, you’ll barely ever think about it or notice it, but for sure you’ll be glad of the new conveniences and benefits it brings.

 

[Loki]

It’s these perceived conveniences and benefits that have the planet in the state it’s in. 30yrs ago nobody was complaining they couldn’t have a live video link with grandma in Australia whilst stood on leck fell in the rain. Or order their groceries from barbondale at 2am. Nobody NEEDS this sh1t, or the internet for that matter. We’ve merely created this demand for ourselves. Without Airbnb there would be 1000’s more houses for people to actually live in. Without the internet there would likely be significantly less polluting flights as people would have to get up and go to the travel agency (remember those?).
Not saying a very small number of people won’t benefit from a mast there but really is it worth the destruction of that piece of land for it?

 

[Ed]

They could tweak the application and make it more eco-friendly

Replace the generator and fuel store with a wind turbine 🤔🤣🤣🤣

 

[Fjell]

It will benefit very few people. I don’t recall anyone in the surrounding villages demanding it. What they did want is fast internet at home, which hundreds of people got out of bed for because they installed it themselves digging trenches across fields (B4RN). I was at those meetings, no-one was interested in a phone-based system, and these people go walking on that fell. There is no local village without mobile phone coverage, and all those villages now have fibre.

This is someone looking to make a quick buck on the backs of other peoples environment, one of the reasons B4RN was supported is because it is buried. A choice was made by the parishes, people should respect it.

The principle of B4RN is that every property in a parish gets connected and for the same price. It is a non-profit.

 

[Rob]

Indeed it seems to be a very devicive (sic) topic. I hope therefore that the RRCPC carefully reviewed the topic with the whole club before submitting their formal response:

I represent the tenants of Bullpot Farm, Red Rose Cave & Pothole Club located at the end of Fell Road Our water supply at Bullpot Farm is from springs not far from the access track and we are concerned that this might be affected (Grid Ref: SD6593 8143) Road access is up to the site is a single track and very steep road with sharp bends. It has been poorly maintained in the past and has numerous potholes. Contractor vehicles will make it worse. No real need for the mast. Although the area is a blind spot for mobile reception most of the local properties are connected to Broadband for the Rural North network (B4RN) and can access mobile signal from phones via this. There is an emergency landline phone at Bullpot Farm. This is a tranquil and remote part of the Yorkshire Dales National Park and the mast would be a detraction to the local views.

 

[pwhole]

It’s these perceived conveniences and benefits that have the planet in the state it’s in. 30yrs ago nobody was complaining they couldn’t have a live video link with grandma in Australia whilst stood on leck fell in the rain. Or order their groceries from barbondale at 2am. Nobody NEEDS this sh1t, or the internet for that matter. We’ve merely created this demand for ourselves. Without Airbnb there would be 1000’s more houses for people to actually live in. Without the internet there would likely be significantly less polluting flights as people would have to get up and go to the travel agency (remember those?).
Not saying a very small number of people won’t benefit from a mast there but really is it worth the destruction of that piece of land for it?

Without the internet you wouldn't have been able to post this. In fact we wouldn't be having this discussion at all. We drove past that Emley Moor tower on the way home yesterday afternoon. That's quite tall, but is rather useful, and (still) looks fantastic, IMHO.