Alderney’s leading conservation societies say the island’s government is showing “a lack of respect” towards people concerned about changes to the greenbelt law.
The Building and Development Control Committee want to amend legislation which bans almost all development on the greenbelt so that plans can be approved if they are of strategic importance to the island.
The Alderney Wildlife Trust and the Alderney Society say there should have been more discussion with islanders.
A consultation period saw 320 letters sent to the BDCC, including letters sent on behalf of the nine hundred plus combined membership of the Alderney Wildlife Trust and the Alderney Society.
Last week the BDCC announced that it intended to press on with its project to amend Section 12 of the Building Law.
In a joint statement the Alderney Wildlife Trust and the Alderney Society said that they were “deeply saddened” by the treatment of the public’s concerns over changes to the greenbelt, claiming it represented a “lack of respect” towards residents.
It would seem that despite repeated public statements and private emails received by the organisations promising ‘some form’ of public consultation, the members of the Committee will not fulfill on this commitment and refuse to engage with those concerned in a meaningful manner, only offering surgeries where people can seek clarification on the proposals with no ability have a positive impact on them.
– ALDERNEY WILDLIFE TRUST AND THE ALDERNEY SOCIETY
The potential changes to the legislation will be voted on at a States Meeting on March 15th.
This article originally appeared on ITV News
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