Woodland in the Borough is set to return to its former glory
Scorey’s Copse has been replanted after unauthorised tree works
A woodland area in the Borough is set to return to its former glory – thanks to enforcement action by Eastleigh’s Planning Enforcement team.
Scorey’s Copse has been replanted after unauthorised tree works carried out on trees covered by a Woodland Tree Preservation Order at the Copse in Horton Heath in April 2021. Following the incident the Council took immediate enforcement action that meant all site preparation works were stopped and that no further engineering works could be carried out without the consent from the Local Planning Authority.
A Tree Replacement Notice was served requiring over 600 trees/whips to be planted. It also required the tree waste to be removed and the site restored to its previous levels and to a condition which would enable the woodland soils to recover.
Following the failure to comply with the Enforcement Notice, the Council successfully prosecuted the landowner in February 2022. The prosecution was brought by the Council under the Town & Country Planning Act 1990 and the owner pleaded guilty at Southampton Magistrates’ Court to breaching the Tree Preservation Order by unlawfully felling a number of trees including Oak, Ash, Birch, Hawthorn and Poplar within Scorey’s Copse.
The judge fined the owner £50,0000 plus he was also ordered to pay the Council’s costs of £17,841 and a victim surcharge of £190 – a total in excess of £68,000, securing Eastleigh Borough Council it’s largest ever fine and costs.
With replanting at the site now complete, with 50 oak trees being installed – as well as 625 *whips* or bare tree roots also put in place, the newly planted trees are now subject to the Woodland Tree Preservation Order (TPO) that covers the site. Therefore, any works to the trees in the future would require the approval of the Council.
The council’s cabinet lead for the environment, Cllr Rupert Kyrle, said: “This was a long and difficult case for the council’s planning and enforcement team and it is to their great credit that it has now been successfully resolved.
“The judge fined the owner of the land £50,000 which secured Eastleigh Borough Council its largest ever fine, as well as ordering him to pay costs.
“It sends out a clear message to landowners that we will vigorously pursue those who break environmental laws and protections that benefit all of us in the borough, including our precious wildlife, and the council will also make every effort to ensure that the affected environment is then restored.”