- Environmental lawyers at Richard Buxton Solicitors have advised the Council that the original planning permission may have lapsed due to unmet ecological conditions, making any new decision potentially unlawful.
- Campaigners are warning that North Yorkshire Council’s plan to approve Harrogate Spring Water’s factory expansion could destroy up to 1,000 trees, even as national conservation bodies warn the UK is set to miss its tree and biodiversity targets.
Campaigners warn UK government is failing on trees as a swathe of woodland could be lost in Harrogate factory expansion.
A new national report, published in October by the Woodland Trust, National Trust, Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) and the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA), has warned that the UK Government will miss its climate and biodiversity targets unless urgent action is taken to properly support tree growing and nature recovery. The report stresses the essential role trees play in sustaining biodiversity, mitigating climate change and enhancing wellbeing.
Yet at the same time, North Yorkshire Council is recommending the approval of final details to let a major factory expansion by Danone owned Harrogate Spring Water go ahead – despite plans indicating that up to 1,000 trees will be cut down with no guarantees for nature. The woodland was planted by local school children.
The campaign to save the trees and local wildlife habitat is being led by Pinewoods Conservation Group alongside community group Save Rotary Wood, with the support of CPRE, Friends of the Earth and the Green Party.
The planning proposal is due to be decided at a committee meeting on Tuesday 28 October, even though no fully agreed ecological mitigation plan is in place and no lighting strategy has been submitted – leaving bat protection and wider ecological impacts still uncertain.
This has been a nine-year battle for the community and for nature – the in-principal approval was originally issued in 2017, meaning the stronger tree and nature protections under the Environment Act 2021 do not apply.
Environmental legal specialists Richard Buxton Solicitors, acting on behalf of campaigners, have formally advised North Yorkshire Council that the outline permission may have lapsed due to key ecological conditions not being met in time, and that proceeding without clarification could be unlawful.
A spokesman for Pinewoods Conservation Group, said:
At a time when national experts are sounding the alarm that the UK is set to fail on its tree-planting and biodiversity promises, we are about to allow the destruction of a thriving and much-loved woodland.
You cannot claim to be tackling the climate crisis while cutting down hundreds of trees that are already locking in carbon, supporting wildlife and improving community wellbeing.
This is not ‘progress’ – it is environmental backsliding dressed up as development.
North Yorkshire Green Party Chair (interim) Arnold Warneken added:
We are in a climate emergency, with major flooding in Harrogate – and trying to plant trees as quickly as we can – and both national and local government appear to be letting this quietly slip by.
This is madness.
To read the full challenge:
The campaign has also drawn political support, with the Green Party and local independent councillor Mike Schofield writing to the Secretary of State to request intervention by the Planning Inspectorate, but this was declined.
Campaigners are now calling on North Yorkshire Council to halt approval until legal concerns are addressed, modern environmental standards are applied, and a genuine nature-positive solution is secured.
Pinewoods Conservation Group, backed by CPRE, Friends of the Earth and the Green Party, is urging a halt to the project until modern biodiversity standards are applied and a credible nature recovery plan is secured.
A Harrogate Spring Water Spokesperson said:
Harrogate Spring Water has followed process and made all the relevant submissions within the timeframes stipulated for the Reserved Matters Application.
Harrogate Spring Water also released a press release on 21 October 2025 that made the following claims:
- A poll of 200 people showed that 71% of Harrogate residents, who expressed an opinion, have a positive impression of Harrogate Spring Water’s plans.
- The York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce has reaffirmed its strong support for Harrogate Spring Water’s facility expansion plans
As a publisher, we exercised due-diligence in verifying those claims.
We made contact with the York and North Yorkshire Chamber requesting confirmation if they supported the plans. They did not confirm as a chamber that they supported, but HSWL’s PR agent subsequently said: ” The President of York & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce has praised the proposals as “bold and forward-looking” – support from one individual can not be interpreted as support from a member oganisation, without a vote.
Clarity was requested on how the poll was conducted, and we put an open question to HSWL and received as below – we felt that gave insufficient clarity to give any credibility to the claim of support.
Question: Please can you explain a little more on how the poll of 200 people was undertaken ? Response: “This was an online survey carried out from 02.06.2025 – 09.06.2025, the survey was available outside and inside of working hours during this time.”
Cllr Micheal Schofield said:
In 2024 the voting population of Harrogate according to an AI search was approximately 77970.
The voting population of the Harlow & St George’s Division was approximately 6490 in May 2022. (That figure was achieved by using the turnout of 2713 individuals at a turnout of 41.8% in the 2022 election)
A sample of 200 people in Harrogate equates to 0.26% . If the sample of 200 people were to be from the Harlow and St George’s Division then that would equate to approximately 3%.
In my opinion, it is hardly a substantial number of participants.
The application will be heard at the Planning Committee on 28 October 2025 – from 2pm. It has Planning Officer recommendation for approval.
However, planning approval would not allow work to start as the land is owned by North Yorkshire Council, so there would need to be a process of releasing the land as a Community Asset.
To read the Planning Officer Report:
