Nocton Dairies has withdrawn its revised proposal for a 3,770-cow dairy farm in Nocton Heath, UK, over an objection by the UK’s Environment Agency, which opposed the plans on the grounds that the facility would pose an unacceptable risk of pollution to groundwater. The site for the planned dairy was on Lincolnshire limestone – a “highly fractured” and unprotected aquifier supporting Waneham Bridge public water supply and providing water at the source of Dunston Beck.
Nocton notes, “The Environment Agency’s grounds are lack of information about risks posed to the aquifer underlying the site and uncertainty about the extent of the benefits associated with the change in land use. This precautionary stance and requests for new information reflect unfamiliarity with agriculture in general and the design of the modern dairy farm in particular. Despite our best efforts to address these concerns, including an additional investment of