CAMPAIGNERS against the Old Hutton gas-fired power station are gearing up for another battle after new plans for the controversial development were submitted to South Lakeland District Council.

The original power station application, which caused a public outcry, was rejected by the council's planning committee in January.

The reasons for the rejection focused on the fact it was a development in a rural area and that and that a development of this size would spoil the visual aspect of the landscape.

That application included plans for a gas-fired power station and a battery storage facility.

This time, the battery storage facility has been dropped. The number of stacks has reduced from 11 to four and in height from 15 to 12 metres. The generators for the power station are also to be housed in concrete rather than in containers as proposed in the first plan.

The power station is still listed as a peaking plant with limited operating hours annually.

Campaigners who strongly opposed the previous application have said that they will do so again, and since the proposal for the power station still raises the same issues, their arguments will remain the same.

At an extraordinary public meeting organised by New Hutton Parish Council on Tuesday night, parish clerk Arthur Robinson said: "This is a much stronger application than the previous one. We have to start from scratch again in opposing it.

"As this is a new application, all the thousands of letters of objection submitted against the previous plan are no longer relevant."

The meeting voted unanimously to strongly object to the proposals. However, it was emphasised the need for all the public who were opposed to the previous application to fight this one with as much vigour.

"In my mind the main issues with this development still stand," said chairman Martyn Welch. "It is unsuitable for this area.

"I am worried that people may be punch drunk from the last one and won't turn up to meetings for this one. We really need everybody to turn up."

Cllr Pat Bell added: "We need to get people as involved as they were in protesting the last application."

SLDC councillor Hazel Hodgson, who represents Kendal Rural, which includes Old and New Hutton, said: "If this power station were ever to go ahead it would be a total blight on the area.

"There isn't a single person here that wants to see this power station put there.

"It would only be two fields away from a primary school, which would mean fumes were constantly over the school.

"I can't see this coming to light. We are already allocating funds towards protests. Everybody is dead against it."

David Stephenson, who lives at Old Hutton, said: "I am surprised Statera are resubmitting the application given the overwhelming opposition and the vote against it.

"It was refused on the basis of it not being in line with the SLDC policy on the use of renewables.

"A gas-fire power station flies directly against the policy and process of SLDC in terms of the development programme.

"There is going to be opposition to this on that basis, and on the fact that it damages the landscape and is a flood risk, among other things. The simple fact is this is a fossil fuel burning power station right next to two national parks."

In the planning documents, energy company Statera outlined its development is permissible in spite of the SLDC core strategy on developing in rural areas.

This is because the development would be for 'infrastructure' purposes, whereas the core strategy is primarily there to prevent the building of urban structures such as housing estates and factories in rural places.

In its justification for the proposal, it added: "The proposed development accords with the Government’s national planning policy."

The application says the power station would be "providing reliable electricity generation capacity to support the shift towards a low carbon, reliable electricity supply.

"The facility will provide for the need for efficient and flexible supply to meet peak energy demands within the local power network," it said. "This should be afforded significant weight in the assessment and determination of this application."