Planning permission refused for two intensive livestock units in Norfolk

On 3 April 2025, the Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk (“LPA”) refused planning permission for the demolition of certain buildings and the construction of pig rearing units to house 14,000 pigs at Feltwell Farm and poultry sheds to house 714,000 chickens at Airfield/Methwold Farm. The applications for development led to significant local and national interest due to the environmental and climate impacts of the proposed development. The LPA had scoped climate out of the environmental impact assessment (“EIA”), prior to the Supreme Court’s judgment in R Finch v Surrey County Council [2024] UKSC 20, which considered the meaning of an effect of a project on the environment in the context of EIA. The planning officer recommended refusal due to the site’s proximity to a number of European protected sites and that the council had insufficient environmental information to consider whether the development would have significant effects on the environment, including on the climate.

WWF submitted a detailed objection, including a legal opinion setting out why the LPA’s decision to scope climate out of the EIA and the applicant’s assessment of greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions were unlawful and calculations setting out an estimate of the greenhouse gas emissions and ammonia attributable to the farms. WWF is concerned that the farms represent farming against nature, due to the significant negative impacts on the environment, biodiversity, and climate.

39 Essex Chambers' barrister Stephanie David was instructed by Jake White at WWF and was led by Estelle Dehon KC at Cornerstone Barristers.