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.