Sewage warning over housing plan

5:58pm Wednesday 14th May 2008

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HOUSEHOLDERS fear that their street will be overflowing with sewage if a new development gets the green light.

The proposal is for eight four bedroom houses and one six bedroom house on the land next to Hedsordene, Lower Road, Cookham.

Residents in Burnt Oak have been flooded with raw sewage four times since March 2007 and they fear that extra demand on the system will lead to further problems.

Stan Proffit, 77, a retired building services engineer said: "Our concern is that we have had a tremendous amount of problems with sewage in the past. The water gets into the sewage system and with nine extra houses it could get worse."

David Parr, retired, said: " In the past 18 months we have had overflowing of sewage three or four times. The sewage system is clearly not good enough for the existing demand which has been increasing over recent years as more houses are built."

Wife Shirley Parr said: "I don't think it's been thought through properly. We don't want to be affected again. There was no rain for a couple of months when the sewage problem happened. It was foul smelling raw sewage and we had to fight to keep it out of the front door with compost bags."

Mike Waller, managing director of Perfectfield developments, who have made the proposal said: "It's not a problem with capacity, it's a problem with blockages. There are no objections by Thames Water."

There are also concerns about safety on Cookham station's level crossing because of increased traffic.

Parish Cllr Derek Fry said: "The planning officer's report on the location was incomplete because there's no mention of the close proximity of the level crossing to the proposed development. I fear there could be a bad accident. It's such a compressed area. "

Bookseller Jean Hedger,Worster Road, said: "Vehicles have to wait on the railway line. It has always been a hazard for years and I think this will cause a further risk to safety. It's a dangerous enough situation now. "

However, Mr Waller, said the plans, which include a yellow box junction covering the crossing, will improve road safety and allow better access for vehicles to the houses: "Our proposal moves the entrance further away from the level crossing. It's going to be no comparison to what its like at the moment. There will be a two way road which allows refuse vehicles and emergency vehicles to enter the existing track is very narrow."

Network Rail spokesman Nathan Quigley said: "We are in dialogue with the planning authority to determine what impact the proposal will have on the level crossing with a particular emphasis on safety."

A decision will be made by the Royal Borough at a planning meeting on May 28.