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20
Aug
‘My livestock would starve’: Nidderdale farmer concerned over winter gritting routes
North Yorkshire Council has published plans for its annual gritting routes, including decisions to be made on requests for amendments.
Members of the public can submit requests for new routes to be considered, giving their reasoning – and three requests have been made for the Harrogate district.
One was made for Warsill Road, near Pateley Bridge, where a farmer from Fewston keeps their sheep.
The farmer expressed concern that in bad weather they can’t check up on their flock, which they do “religiously as my flock is basically the equivalent of my children”.
They highlight that it is also a legal requirement for farmers to check livestock every 24 hours.
The applicant added:
In January this year I was unable to check the flock for two weeks due to inaccessibility, which caused me a great deal of stress - and I did lose some of my girls which hurt both emotionally and financially.
Another application, also made by a farmer, was made for the area of road from Norwood Hall to Norwood Bottom near Sandwith Moor.
The farmer stated that there were four areas of Lower Norwood Road where the road is dangerous and impassible due to sheet ice, meaning they were unable to feed their livestock when the temperatures dropped below freezing.
They added:
I’m unable to get to my stock at the end of this road, so they would starve if we had a prolonged cold spell this winter.
The third request was made by a local resident for the area of road from Hartwith Bank and Brimham Moor Road in Summerbridge.
They highlighted that it is a school route for the council’s own transport, saying it was “dangerous” and “the roads need to be safe for our children”.
They also expressed the opinion that the companies employed by the council to carry out gritting didn’t have the experience to grit country roads properly.
The applicant added:
The National Trust encourages more and more traffic, especially in scenic conditions, and this results in stuck cards and more problem on our lanes.
The council officer recommended each of the requests be declined because “the current level of treatment is in line with the council’s policy”.
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