Ancient Bramley apple trees at Coton Orchard have finally been granted a protection order in the wake of being destroyed by an off-road busway.
At a Planning Committee meeting of Liberal Democrat-controlled South Cambridgeshire District Council on Wednesday, councillors agreed to grant a tree preservation order (TPO) for 12 Bramley apple trees in Coton Orchard.
Of these 12 trees includes a handful of veteran trees and the Champion Tree, the second largest of its kind ever recorded in the UK.
Cllr Heather Williams, Leader of the Conservative Opposition at South Cambridgeshire District Council, submitted a second protection order application for these trees, after her initial application submitted on 5 March 2024 was rejected.
314 days later – almost four times longer than the 12 week council-set deadline – the application was referred to elected councillors at Planning Committee, who agreed to grant the veteran trees protection.
Coton Orchard is currently under threat from the £230 million Cambourne to Cambridge busway (C2C), which would destroy over 500 ancient trees in an ecological catastrophe to Cambridgeshire’s historical green space.
The busway is being forced through by the Lib Dem-controlled Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP).
Cllr Heather Williams said:
"I'm pleased and somewhat relieved that this application has finally come to a positive conclusion. It shows the importance of democratic engagement in the planning process, something that is very much under threat with local government reorganisation. But we must be clear that while this battle has been won after a near year-long slog, the war continues to save Coton Orchard."
