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13
Sept 2022
Harrogate Spring Water ‘finalising’ latest expansion plans
Harrogate Spring Water has said it is finalising the latest expansion plans for its bottled water plant – more than a year and half after previous proposals were rejected following widespread opposition in the town.
The firm held a consultation on plans for its Rotary Wood site this summer and said it would now provide a further update “in the coming weeks”.
That same phrase was used by the Danone-owned company in January 2021 when it said new designs would be revealed “in the coming weeks” after its larger expansion plans were refused by Harrogate Borough Council.
Twenty months on, there is no new application from the firm.
Harrogate Spring Water was first granted outline permission to expand in 2017, however it failed to get approval for final designs which were 40% larger than original plans and would have seen more trees chopped down at Rotary Wood which was planted by children 16 years ago.
The company later announced it would revert back to its original plans and has now released a new statement this week.
A company spokesperson said:
Read more:
- Residents unconvinced about Harrogate Spring Water’s expansion
- Hot Seat: Harrogate Spring Water’s new boss faces old dilemma
More than 400 objections were lodged against the larger expansion plans which councillors claimed put “profit and plastic before impact on the environment” as they voted for refusal in January 2021.
Harrogate Spring Water previously made a commitment to replace felled trees at a rate of two to one and has since said it is looking at ways to “achieve net biodiversity gain” at its site.
Harrogate Spring Water's headquarters.
It also said the expansion would create 30 jobs and that there is “potential” to make Rotary Wood more accessible to the public.
Speaking earlier this year, the company’s managing director Richard Hall said:
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