To: John Morea, CEO: Scotia Gas Networks Ltd.; Southern Gas Networks plc; SGN Commercial Services Ltd.; SGN Connections Ltd. and SGN Contracting Ltd.

Why is Scotia Gas, a national gas distributor, supporting the unauthorised Crouchland Biogas plant?

SGN (Scotia Gas Networks) are petitioned to stop supporting the unauthorised Crouchland Biogas Ltd. industrial gas plant by removing all SGN owned equipment installed and being used without appropriate planning permissions at the Crouchland Biogas site located at Crouchland Farm, Rickmans Lane, Plaistow, West Sussex.

Why is this important?

Why is a national gas distributor, continuing to partner with an unlawful industrial gas plant? Why does SSE, a national energy firm who own 50% of SGN, condone this? The Timeline:
• 27May16: Crouchland seeks adjournment to EA case. Worthing Magistrates Court agrees to 24 June.
• 17May16: Traffic Inquiry reconvenes. Decision pending.
• 11-12May: Appeal against Cert. of Lawfulness is heard. Decision pending.
• 29Apr: The EA announce legal proceedings against Crouchland Farms Ltd in relation to Dec 2013 pollution of the River Kird. Crouchland Farms Ltd and Crouchland Biogas are linked; Leon Mekitarian is Director of both and Angus Cameron resigned directorship of Crouchland Farms in 2013. No announcements yet on 2015 / 2016 significant pollution incidents.• 29Mar: P.O.R.E receives a letter stating “The Gas Alliance Group (including Gas Bus Alliance) no longer take any Biomethane from Crouchland Farms Ltd or Crouchland Biogas Ltd.” and threatening legal action should villagers “communicate any information ... contrary to this statement”. The signatory is Tony Griffiths, former General Manager of MAN UK bus operations.
• 29 Mar: Barry Evans resigns from Crouchland Biogas.
• 16Mar: Another significant pollution incident occurs and while a cleanup in progress, SGN disassociate themselves stating Crouchland is separate and they have no corporate responsibility for the actions of this ‘autonomous’ company. All contrary to CEO John Morea’s 2013 Annual Report to shareholders, that Crouchland was SGN's partner; and from an email to WSCC 28Aug2014 supporting the retrospective planning application, stating "Our pioneering partnership with Crouchland Biogas..." And even though SGN have a fixed and floating charge on the property and undertakings of Crouchland Biogas Ltd, a company that has had multiple breaches of their EA Permit, has caused significant and serious pollution events, is operating without planning permission and is the subject of an ongoing Traffic Commissioners Public Inquiry.
• 4Mar: Crouchland Biogas apply to the EA to vary an environmental permit involving substantial change (EPR/CB3208XJ/V002).
• 12Jan2016: Farm Fuel Ltd called to a Traffic Commissioner enquiry for breaches to their Operator’s licence, effectively using the farm as an unauthorised Operating Centre.
• Nov2015: Plaistow & Ifold and Kirdford Parish Councils –with- The Plaistow Village Trust and P.O.R.E unite in opposition to launch a planning fund for expert / legal representation at the 4 Appeals.
• Oct: Crouchland lodge appeals with the Planning Inspectorate against the Enforcement Notices (to dismantle all equipment installed without planning permission and to stop operating as a commercial biogas plant); retrospective planning refusal and the Cert. of Lawfulness.
• 1Sep: WSCC issue a Certificate of Lawfulness EXCLUDING the conditioning and export of gas, importation of waste and any other materials for anaerobic digestion and many items of development.
• 16Jul: CDC issue 2 Enforcement Notices with staggered compliance dates for cease of use of the land and 6 months for the remaining requirements (PS/13/00015/CONCOU).
• 23Jun: The Environment Agency attends a pollution incident to 1km of an adjoining farm’s watercourse which has significant impact on the ecology and the ability to water livestock.
• 16Jun: CDC inform WSCC they strongly object to granting a Certificate of Lawfulness.
• 2Jun: WSCC pass CDC responsibility to investigate and serve Enforcement but are clear that multiple breaches of planning have occurred.
• 26May: Crouchland apply for a Certificate of Lawfulness for the proposed use as an AD facility with UNRESTRICTED throughput of imported waste or other material and the export of gas and digestate (WSCC/036/15/PS).
• 7Apr: WSCC issue a Decision Notice REFUSING retrospective planning.
• 4Mar-To Date: Despite planning refused, expansion continues. Ofgem confirm SGN Commercial Services owns equipment enabling gas conditioning and exportation in 'Farm Fuel' HGVs to SGN’s Portsdown Hill, Portsmouth injection facility.
• 3Mar: WSCC planning committee REFUSE the retrospective application on multiple grounds.
• WSCC receive 431+ objection letters (including from 7 Parish Councils / CPRE) and 1050+ people sign a petition, requesting refusal of retrospective planning.
• Unauthorised commercial operations continue with extremely high numbers of HGV and other traffic movements through Parishes.
• Oct2014: Inexplicably, WSCC Planning Officers withdraw enforcement notices leaving communities exposed to continued, excessive and inappropriate activity and HGV movements.
• 4Jul: Crouchland submit a retrospective planning application (WSCC/042/14/PS).
• May: The respected Crouchland Farm Manager (former NFU Deputy) resigns.
• Apr: WSCC serve 2 Enforcement Notices (against the erection of unauthorised anaerobic digestion equipment and the change from an operation ancillary to a farm use, to a waste use) requiring the illegal commercial activity to cease.
• Mar2014: After years of complaint of the expansion by stealth and material-change-of-use from an agricultural, farm-related operation into a waste development WSCC serve a Planning Contravention Notice.
• Mar2013: SGN sign a 20year contract BEFORE Crouchland obtain planning permission.
• 1Jan-Jun2013: Professional investors join as directors and/or shareholders: Barry Evans and Ewen ‘Angus’ Cameron (a cousin of PM David Cameron).
• 2012: Plaistow & Ifold Parish Council notify CDC of development/engineering works being undertaken without planning.
• 16Nov11: Leon Mekitarian appointed Managing Director.
• 20Apr11: Crouchland Biogas Ltd. incorporation - William Luttman-Johnson (registered owner of Crouchland Farm) as Managing Director.
• 2007-2008: Crouchland dairy farm with 750 Holstein Friesians, obtains planning consent (with local support) from CDC for an On-Farm AD unit to produce electricity to grid.

How it will be delivered

An email will be sent to Scotia Gas CEO and a Press Release issued.

Maps © Stamen; Data © OSM and contributors, ODbL

Links

Campaign Facebook Page Campaign Website

Updates

2015-06-17 11:51:41 +0100

"Crouchland BioGas Ltd. – Chichester District Council Recommends Enforcement"
by Councillor Josef Ransley: Chichester District Council published its report 16/06/15, recommending enforcement action with two separate enforcement notices being issued. The recommendation now needs to be considered by the Planning Committee on the 24th June which if approved will see some action being taken at last! You can see the full report by following the link below. Read More → http://www.chichesterdistrictcouncil.info/blogs/councillor-ransley/index.php/crouchlands-biogas-ltd-chichester-district-council-recommend-enforcement/

The CDC Report: http://chichester.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s2438/15.0%20Crouchland%20Farm%20Rickmans%20Lane%20Kirdford.pdf

2015-06-12 06:37:14 +0100

Alfold, Surrey residents have commented on the Crouchland BioGas ‘Farm Fuel’ HGVs travelling too fast through their village centre. They’ve been wondering about the source of high frequency green lorries. Watch the video: https://ifolduk.wordpress.com/2015/06/11/alfold-sees-increase-in-fast-moving-hgv-traffic/

2015-06-09 18:27:13 +0100

Multiple Crouchland BioGas HGVs were seen passing through Loxwood High Street over a half hour period today (Monday 8th June 2015) alone! Click here: https://www.facebook.com/poreorg/posts/1603062056600400

2015-06-04 12:27:39 +0100

West Sussex County Council planning committee [on 2nd June] accepted their officers’ recommendation and passed over to Chichester District Council the responsibility to investigate and determine the appropriate enforcement action to regularise the unauthorised activity at Crouchland BioGas. WSCC Officers were clear – there has been a breach of planning.
"This Council [WSCC] has not done itself or residents any favours in the way it’s handled this matter" Cllr. Gordon McAra.

2015-06-03 10:28:23 +0100

WSCC officially passed the Enforcement process over to Chichester District Council Tuesday 2nd June and they have thankfully agreed to work together on this.
One WSCC Planning Committee member did make the comment, 'This is not a glorious occasion for the County Council.'
We fully support their collaborative and immediate enforcement of the Crouchlanf BioGas plant. It has gone on far, far too long.

2015-05-31 14:09:30 +0100

Sunday, 31 May 2014 – P.O.R.E. report black digestate is leaking from the Crouchland BioGas lagoon this morning. Read about this latest incident here: https://www.facebook.com/poreorg/posts/1600261486880457:0

Sign the Petition requesting SGN (Scotia Gas Networks) remove their equipment from the unauthorised Crouchland BioGas. Without that equipment, installed after March 2013, Crouchland BioGas cannot export gas: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/scotia-gas-stop-supporting-the-crouchland-biogas-ltd-unapproved-industrial-gas-plant

2015-05-29 11:05:48 +0100

The Certificate of Lawfulness for which Crouchland Biogas have applied, asks for, amongst other things, UNRESTRICTED THROUGHPUT OF IMPORTED WASTE OR OTHER MATERIAL AND THE GENERATION AND EXPORT OF ELECTRICITY, BIOGAS AND DIGESTATE.
Read more about what this could mean to this Parish and surrounding Parishes at the P.O.R.E. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/poreorg/posts/1599136546992951:0

2015-05-27 16:00:04 +0100

Crouchland BioGas Limited have submitted an Application for a Lawful Development Certificate for a Proposed use or development. Reference: WSCC/036/15/PS Review the documents via this link http://buildings.westsussex.gov.uk/ePlanningOPS/loadFullDetails.do?aplId=1881

2015-05-24 08:46:45 +0100

It's been reported in the news that SSE boosted its retail profits by 40%. SSE were the first of the big six firms to raise its gas and electricity prices in 2013. SSE own 50% stake in SGN - a national gas distributor who partner with Crouchland BioGas even though Crouchland BioGas NEVER obtained planning for their expansion by stealth from a well-respected dairy farm into an industrial-scale gas plant. Crouchland BioGas gets ROCs from Ofgem for their production of 'green energy' (their operations are hugely detrimental to Plaistow & Ifold Parish and neighbouring Parishes - so how green is that?). Crouchland then sells their ROCs. Companies such as SGN and SSE buy the ROCs to show their green credentials. Is no-one else incensed that a company REFUSED planning permission is essentially being given taxpayers money by Ofgem, a government department?

2015-05-21 12:33:40 +0100

Energy Firm SSE See Profits Soar After Bill Hike: SSE (also trading as Scottish Hydro, Southern Electric, Swalec and Atlantic.) own a 50% stake in SGN, the national gas distributor who signed a 20 year contract with Crouchland BioGas in March 2013. Crouchland BioGas offsets the cost of its operations through the receipt of Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) issued by Ofgem (a government department). Crouchland BioGas sell the ROCs which are purchased by energy companies such as SGN and SSE to show their green credentials. The cost of this absurdity ends up as a hidden charge on consumers energy bills!
Why are consumers paying for the green credential facade of energy firms?
Why is taxpayer money used to help fund Crouchland BioGas, an unapproved industrial plant?
Why is SSE, a national energy firm, condoning SGN's partnering with an unauthorised Crouchland BioGas?

2015-05-19 12:20:06 +0100

SGN to remind you - Crouchland BioGas is unapproved, inappropriately sited, it's had multiple environmental breaches (another as recent as the 13th May 2015) which points to inept or questionable management and highlights serious concerns over their risk management strategies and capabilities; they have high staff turnover if the number of advertisements published for new hires is anything to go by which calls into question which staff now have the appropriate certifications to manage this industrial plant and who actually is onsite with that expertise 24 x 7?

2015-05-18 14:29:54 +0100

The Environment Agency was called on Wednesday 13th May to Crouchland BioGas (Crouchland Farm, Rickmans Lane, Plaistow) to test pollution found in a stream leaving Crouchland. This stream runs under Rickmans Lane and into neighbouring farms. Farmers adjacent to Crouchland moved livestock from fields as a precaution. The EA have not yet confirmed details as to what the polluting substance is, if toxic, how it got into the watercourse......

2015-05-01 17:46:22 +0100

Crouchland BioGas have reported 'zero' Weekly HGV movements of digestate (the by-product of anaerobic digestion) for the period from 01 February 2015 to 29 March 2015. This is contrary to observations of Parish residents. View some of the many Crouchland Biogas ‘Farm Fuel’ HGV movements observed throughout March 2015.
https://ifolduk.wordpress.com/2015/04/29/crouchland-report-zero-hgv-movements-01feb2015-to-29mar2015/

2015-04-20 17:17:51 +0100

Crouchland Biogas are now transporting high volumes of digestate in ‘Farm Fuel’ HGVs through Pulborough district: A29; Lower Street, Pulborough; Mare Hill Road, A283; Greatham... Businesses and residents on those routes should be prepared for an onslaught of HGV traffic! Under normal circumstances, digestate delivery would be an expected farm activity in our rural areas. However this barrage of HGVs are from an industrial biogas plant which has had planning permission REFUSED. Crouchland have a huge amount of digestate to disperse from their lagoons. The digestate is a by-product of the biomethane gas they produce. They then tanker the gas to the Scotia Gas Networks (SGN) Portsmouth injection facility. This on top of the digestate deliveries equals HGV Hell! So why is SGN, a National Gas Supplier, continuing to aid Crouchland Biogas, an unauthorised industrial gas plant? Please share the link to this online Petition: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/p/ScotiaGas

2015-04-20 17:09:09 +0100

500 signatures reached