Plans for two new wetlands have been approved as part of an expansive housing development.

The Staplegrove Urban extension, which is between Taunton Road and the A358 Pen Elm, was first granted planning permission in 2017 and has now received approval for two wetlands to the north of the site.

The development is anticipated to create hundreds of new accommodations, with 713 homes in Staplegrove West and 915 homes in Staplegrove East, as well as a new primary school.

The addition of the wetlands to the project comes in response to concerns over the levels of phosphates generated by the new homes, and will be designed to offset those phosphates.

This comes after a Natural England ruling that prohibits the net increase of phosphates on the Somerset Levels.

The sites for the wetlands will be on Langford Lane in Longfield and on Nailsbourne Road in Nailsbourne. The wetlands will prevent the phosphates from flowing into the Moors Ramsar site and onto the Somerset Levels.

Approval for the wetlands was granted by Somerset West and Taunton Council after an hour’s debate over the effectiveness of the plan.

Former Staplegrove representative for Somerset County Council, Rod Williams, said: "The principle of wetlands is accepted, but the implementation of the principle in this application does not command public support.

"These two wetlands seem enough to offset only the 173 homes of the first phase of Staplegrove West. On their own, they would offset only 10.6 per cent of the Staplegrove development.

"Does the council plan to create many more wetlands to offset the whole Staplegrove development? If so, how many and where will they go?”

Simon Fox, major projects officer for planning for Somerset West and Taunton Council, responded: "Over two growing seasons of the plants in the wetlands, more and more phosphates are removed - the plants absorb it and grow, and the silt is captured."

He added that the wetlands will primarily offset the phosphates for Staplegrove West, and that separate plans for the East site are likely to be submitted.

Councillor Dixie Darch, portfolio holder for climate change, added that there were other concerns around the wetlands.

She commented: "For local residents, concerns about flood risk are very high indeed, particularly for those whose properties adjoin the site. We are in new territory here.

"These wetlands may become commonplace in the future, but right now it feels like an experiment."

The approval was granted with eight votes to one.