Planners halt mineral water project

A FRAMFIELD man s dream of bottling and selling Uckfield s very own mineral water has been put on hold because of planning objections.

David Pursglove, of Paygate Farm, Palehouse Common, has accused Wealden District Council of being 'unhelpful and obstructive after being refused permission to build a water bottling plant in his back garden.

Mr Pursglove discovered the water source after spending 6,500 on drilling equipment and a geologist. He finally came across a cavern containing an underground river, and independent analysts have reportedly described the pure water as containing the perfect balance of 16 minerals, including fluoride.

This week Mr Pursglove, 57, claimed the council was wrong to reject his proposals for a bottling plant, adding that no-one from Wealden had even visited the site.

In a report to last week s area development control sub-committee, planning officer Douglas Moss recommended that the proposal to demolish a timber building and replace it with a similar-sized structure to house the plant should be refused. He said the site was outside a development boundary for any 'commercial development other than for agriculture, forestry or another existing rural activity .

He added that it had not been shown that there was an 'overriding and essential need for a bottling plant on the site, and feared that he believed the proposal would lead to more traffic in the area.

Mr Pursglove told the Express: 'Everyone round here is diversifying. All I want to do is bottle water. I ve tried to be fair and right but all that s happening is I m being slapped down. I ve made every effort to get somebody round to discuss it, I ve even written to all 19 members of the sub-committee, but nobody has ever bothered.

Mr Pursglove owns Pine Fabrics in Uckfield but has also been operating an upholstery business from his garden workshop for 15 years without a problem. Traffic would become less of a issue not more.

'All I m doing is trying to change from one business to another. There would only be two lorries coming from the site, both within highway limits. It would be less than it is now. I already have lots of people coming up here.

He added that regulations meant bottling of spring water had to be carried out on site to reduce the risk of contamination during transportation.

Wealden councillor for Framfield Jack Gore failed to persuade fellow members of the sub-committee to defer the application so that more could be found out about the proposal. He said: 'I hear that this man is producing very valuable mineral water. I wonder whether we are depriving him his human rights. Where else can we put it. The water is 120 feet down there, and he needs to get it out. I would like to hear more about its validity before we turn it down.

Mr Pursglove now plans to lodge an appeal against the decision.