Forest residents fear holiday park water impact

Residents of a forest fear plans to build a holiday park could risk drying up a spring they rely on for water.

Forestry England has put forward plans to build a £36m holiday park with 70 cabins inside Hamsterley Forest near Bishop Auckland, County Durham.

The Hamsterley Forest Action Group (HFAG), which includes a number of people living in homes in the woods, said plans to tap the spring for the park could "rob residents of fresh water supplies".

Forestry England said an assessment found a new borehole would not "materially affect neighbouring" private water supplies and it remained committed to the project.

Potato Hill Spring provides water to 11 properties on Holdings Road as well as taps for livestock, with no mains water in the area.

HFAG said the spring sometimes dried up in the summer and Forestry England's plans to use it to supply water to bunk houses and camping guests would exacerbate the problem.

Andrea Bainbridge, a forest resident and HFAG member, said the prospect of being left without access to water was "a massive concern" and warmer temperatures had already had an impact on their supply.

"We don't have a reservoir, we are totally reliant on springs and the flow in the summer has been dramatically reduced in recent years," she said.

"There's nothing in the plans to say if Forestry England has a plan for if something goes wrong and we lose our water supply."

Forestry England said: "A hydrogeological assessment advises that abstraction effects for [the borehole] will be localised and will not materially affect neighbouring private supplies.

"All existing and future supplies are regulated by the Environment Agency."

HFAG also said Forestry England's response to objections about the holiday park contained mathematical errors which would affect calculations for water extraction, waste disposal and traffic.

Forestry England's document claimed its cabins would see an average occupancy rate of 90%, which it said was the equivalent of 288 out of a possible 356 people.

However, 90% of 356 is actually 320.

"If they can't work out how much 90% is, how can we rely on what they say about how much water they are going to extract?" Bainbridge said.

Forestry England said the occupancy data had been "prepared by experts" and considered the "maximum potential use of the site", which was "standard practice for technical assessments".

The campaigners also claimed traffic estimates for the project included errors, specifically around the nearby C31 road.

A report claimed the number of vehicles using the road increased in 2024 but MFAG said the route had actually been closed since 2023 due to subsidence.

Forestry England said road closures had been considered in its traffic data and no concerns had been raised.

"We remain committed to delivering the benefits outlined in the Hamsterley Forest Masterplan to ensure it remains fit for the future and balances the needs of visitors, wildlife, and the local community," it said.

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