Planning and development are always an important topic for the Trust given its potential implications for the river and its catchment. However, due to the Trust’s finite resources, we must prioritise our engagement with planning applications, focusing on those with the greatest potential impact on the natural environment.

Key Planning Applications We’ve Engaged With

Recently, the Trust has provided inputs on several planning applications, including:

• A proposed anaerobic digestion plant near Chilton
• Housing developments in Chalgrove and Thame
• The Watlington Relief Road
• Waterstock Science and Industrial Park

Each of these proposals has potential to adversely affect the river and its catchment, and we have worked to ensure that potential impacts are properly considered during the planning process.

Waterstock Science and Industrial Park

The development proposal which has received the greatest input from the Trust is the proposed science and industrial park at Waterstock. This proposal was initially rejected by South Oxfordshire District Council on 17 separate grounds. However, following an appeal by the developer, the proposal is now subject to an inquiry under the Planning Inspectorate.

RTCT staff and trustees have provided written and oral evidence on ecology and hydrology issues in opposition to the proposal. The inquiry is due to conclude in January, with a determination made by the Planning Inspectorate in the following weeks.

Conservation Target Areas (CTAs) and Biodiversity Opportunity Areas (BOAs)

In addition to our work engaging with planning applications in the Thame catchment area, the Trust has focused on influencing planning policies or other spatial  initiatives with a bearing the river and its catchment. This includes making sure that the River Thame, its tributaries and their floodplains are included in Conservation Target Areas (CTAs) in Oxfordshire and Biodiversity Opportunity Areas (BOAs) in Buckinghamshire, which play key roles in maintaining and enhancing biodiversity within these regions.

Following on from the Trust’s role in supporting the adoption of the Thame Valley CTA in Oxfordshire, we were keen to update the Thame Valley BOA in Buckinghamshire, to ensure that the river, its important tributaries and floodplain habitats, are recognised in the planning system. Working closely with the Buckinghamshire NEP (Natural Environment Partnership) and Bucks & Milton Keynes Environmental Records Centre (BMERC) we were able to agree on a methodology for reviewing and updating BOAs and have been successful in designating a new Thame Valley BOA. The new maps are now live as part of the BMERC BOA dataset and all of the Buckinghamshire Council Ecologists are now aware of the new area and the new targets. The Thame Valley BOA can be viewed on the Bucks NEP website alongside other BOAs in the county.

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