THE Environment Agency have criticised Monmouthshire County Council for ignoring their pleas to defer planning approval for new homes on the Rockfield Road development in Monmouth.

In a letter to the County Council's new Chief Executive Elizabeth Raikes the Agency's Area Manager for South East, Dr Alun Gee, has said it is "disappointing" to note that the County's Planning Department continues to approve planning applications for the site despite requests from the Agency for deferment.

"The Agency has written to Monmouthshire County Council's Planning Department on a number of occasions highlighting concerns regarding the adequacy of the surface water drainage arrangements," he said.

"We have requested that no further development be allowed to proceed until such time as it has been clearly demonstrated that flooding or the risk of flooding is not exacerbated in the vicinity as a result of this development proceeding.

"Flooding has occurred recently in the vicinity of Watery Lane/Rockfield Road and although it has not been established that the development at the Rockfield Road site was linked to this flooding, I trust you will share our concerns."

Dr Gee said that the Agency had no objection in principle to the construction of 500 houses plus a school on the site, as originally approved by the Council.

"However, the manner in which the development is being allowed to proceed on a fragmented basis is of concern," he said.

The recent flooding which hit the area is likely to have originated from minor watercourses and streams such as the Watery Lane brook. Although the Agency has a general supervisory role with respect to flood defence matters, in this instance it is the local authority which is the relevant Land Drainage Body, responsible for ensuring that the drainage systems are adequate.

"At the present time the Agency has not received any information concerning the adequacy of the surface water drainage system serving the whole development site, although a meeting with officers of your Council and the developer has now been arranged to discuss these concerns," wrote Dr Gee.

He asked Ms Raikes to investigate the matter and asked for her assurance that no further development or amendments to current planning permissions would be approved by the Council until surface water issues were agreed by the Agency and the Council's Engineers.

Planning permission was originally given for 500 houses plus a school on the site, but campaigner Mr Andy Tomlin of Watery Lane says it now looks as it 630-650 homes will be built on the site.

"At the moment about a quarter of the houses on the estate are occupied. When they are all lived in there will be three times as many people using the local roads," he said.

He has been dealing with the Environment Agency for some time and shares their concern about drainage on the site exacerbating existing problems.

"I have been following the articles in The Monmouthshire Beacon about possible routes to avoid the flooding, but all that is is Sellotape or Elastoplast to stick over the problem. What we need is a solution to the flooding," he said.