MEON valley residents, angered by a failure by the South Downs National Park to address their concerns over a ‘nitrate capture’ scheme have confirmed they are seeking a Judicial Review of the “deeply flawed” proposal.

“Because of a failure by the South Downs planning committee to respond in a meaningful way to widespread concerns over the future of the River Meon we are having to resort to legal means to halt their plans until proper consultation procedures have been followed,” said Mark Rogers, chairman of Warnford Parish Meeting.

Villagers say a scheme to create an artificial wetland near the source of the river by digging out 30,000 tonnes of earth and planting reed beds to filter nitrate run-off from cattle has no guarantee of success and poses a severe threat to the Meon’s ecology, according to a newly-formed action group which includes councillors, farmers and riparian owners.

Mr Rogers added: “We have no objection to such schemes in existing wetlands downstream where there is adequate flow, but Whitewool entails the digging out of a 19-acre site without any guarantee of adequate water supply, which is why planning permission is required.”

An independent hydrologist has been appointed by the group to review reports submitted by Whitewool Farm to support its planning application. The applicant’s river flow measurements were taken in winter months when the Meon flows are much higher compared to the spring, summer and autumn.

Mr Rogers said members of the SDNP planning committee to whom he had written expressing residents’ concerns had been ignored. A response from Tim Stanley, director of planning, had been “wholly inadequate.” Richard Ferguson, SDNP development management officer, had failed to respond to repeated emails over several weeks from the action group which was baffled by the SDNPs “arrogance” in not even having the grace to respond to its emails.

Hugh Lumby (Con. Upper Meon Valley, Winchester City Council) said there had been a fundamental “failure to consult” by the SDNP and other bodies that have left local residents no option but to take legal action.

“It would appear that villages in the upper reaches of the Meon are to be deprived of river flow for the private profit of Whitewool Farm and for a remote construction project of no benefit to the area,” Mr Rogers said.

The idea behind the Whitewool Farm plans is to offset nitrate run-off. It is part of a new idea whereby wetland reed bed owners sell ‘credits’ to housing projects which have been on hold for several years because of an EU directive that poisonous nitrate emissions must be reduced before more construction can go ahead.

Ruth Childs, SDNP landscape officer, objected to the scheme over serious doubts as to its viability, but her “objection”, later changed to “neutral”.

A recent stormy meeting of the West Meon Parish Council heard villagers accuse it of failing to publicise the application when it passed the scheme without objections. The council claimed it was “too late” to respond to villagers’ concerns following growing local anxiety.

Keith Jacobs, a West Meon resident, asked chairwoman Angie Trenchard to explain why no one in the village had even known the application was up for approval “compared with the amount of publicity habitually given to other planning proposals.”

Others at the meeting questioned why Ms Trenchard had failed to respond to requests to review the planning application. Ms Trenchard claimed that her emails had not worked and the council did not have the retrospective ability to pass on villager’s widespread concerns over the scheme.