NOISY neighbours may scupper plans for 225 new houses on the edge of Wellington, or possibly reduce the number of homes which can be built.

Carden Group wants permission to build 225 homes on 31 acres of agricultural fields in the triangle between Taunton Road and Nynehead Road, behind the Cadeside caravan and motorhome site.

Although residents would be entirely dependent on Wellington for local facilities, their homes will actually be in West Buckland parish.

But, environmental health officer Matthew Hill has now advised Somerset planners the scheme runs up against some strong noise issues.

Mr Hill said the site would border the Poole industrial estate, which also contains Wellington’s household waste recycling centre (HMRC) and a former municipal tip where climate warming methane gas is currently being extracted to prevent it leaking into the atmosphere.

He said noise consultants BY Acoustics had identified a gas engine used for the landfill methane extraction as ‘very noisy’.

This meant it was likely ‘a significant portion of the application site’ could not be used for residential development.

Carden was therefore proposing to meet the cost of a new and quieter engine but there could still be a buffer zone where housing could not be built.

Mr Hill said BY Acoustics also advised housing should be avoided near the north of the site because of other noise from Poole industrial buildings.

More work was needed to determine how much of the site was affected, but a buffer zone at least 165-feet deep could be needed.

A 200-foot buffer zone was also suggested for another part of the site, but even that might not be enough without further mitigation measures.

Noise from the Paddington to Penzance main railway line and the B3187 road to Chelston meant acoustic ventilation could be required on some properties, and six feet tall close boarded fences for some gardens.

Mr Hill said the BY Acoustics report was useful in providing an outline of potential sources of noise which could affect the proposed development.

However, he said: “It has not fully assessed the potential levels of noise on the site and more detailed assessment is needed.”

Mr Hill said it could be that ‘some areas shown as housing on the site plan will not be suitable for residential development’.

He said: “Without this more detailed assessment, it is not possible to confirm that the areas outlined for residential use will be suitable for use.”

Carden Group is not a housing developer and describes itself as ‘investors in strategic land for residential and commercial development’ with a focus on buying freehold land with future development potential.

It is working with Pegasus Group, which is currently fighting on appeal for planning consent to develop 250 houses on farmland to the south of Wellington’s A38 relief road.

The Pegasus application is particularly controversial because it would be the first time the A38 boundary had been breached and campaigners fear it would set a precedent leading to the whole of the southern side of the road being developed as far as Chelston.