Matters arising from the Parish Council meeting of the 19th June 2013

Fencing Along the Roadside Leading to Clapper Bridge

The Parish Council has received several complaints both verbally and via the website regarding the fencing which has been erected along either side of the road leading to Clapper Bridge.

The fence on the riverside serves no purpose to prevent access to the land alongside the River Lyhner as it was severely damaged in recent flooding and has not been repaired. Many people from the surrounding area consider this to be detrimental to an area of outstanding natural beauty together with being a Health and Safety hazard to both the public and animals.

The fence on the wooded side of the road prevents wild life, particularly deer, from accessing the river to drink. This fence has barbed wire along it’s top line and persons have witnessed deer trying to find a way back up into the woods. In desperation they have attempted to jump over the fence and the barbed wire has caught the stomach of the deer just in front of the rear legs and blood was seen to come from the wound.

The advice on the use of barbed wire is from advice given on The Crime Prevention Website:-

Power to require removal of barbed wire

Where on land adjoining a highway there is a fence made with barbed wire, or having barbed wire in or on it, and the wire is a nuisance to the highway, a competent authority may by notice served on the occupier of the land require him to abate the nuisance within such time, not being less than one month nor more than 6 months from the date of service of the notice, as may be specified in it.

The term ‘barbed wire’ has been interpreted to mean anything with spikes or jagged projections and this would include any made aggressive topping or addition to a wall or fence including carpet gripper, broken glass, nails and preparatory products such as plastic and metal spikes.

The term ‘nuisance’ has been interpreted to mean something that is likely to cause injury to people and animals using the highway and most highway authorities consider things that can cause injury lower than 2.4m to be a nuisance.

If you fall foul of this law you will be issued with a notice requiring you to remove the danger within a specific time period.

We must point out that the Parish council is not the “Competent Authority” in this instance and the only action it can and will take is to notify the landowners of the concern.

We shall also be copying the correspondence to Cornwall Council and the office of the Tamar Area Of Natural Beauty.

The Playground

It has come to the attention of the parish Council and the Village Hall that persons have been using the back of the storage shed as a toilet. We find this disgusting and the area is to be blocked off.

At the same time as finding the unofficial toilet the person investigating the smell found a dead pet black rabbit in the Village Hall bin. Again this is disgusting.

Andrew Harris