Dame Judi Dench has urged councillors to reject plans to expand a water bottling plant, saying it would destroy “a living, growing woodland created through patience, care and public spirit”. The planning meeting on Friday will decide on Harrogate Spring Water’s (HSW) proposals to expand its existing facility in the town.
North Yorkshire Council has received more than 1,000 objections to the scheme, which would involve removing hundreds of trees at Rotary Wood, a community woodland planted by children 20 years ago. The company says the facility will create more than 50 new jobs and plans to establish a new public wood with 491 trees, plus around 3,000 trees elsewhere.
In a letter to councillors, Dame Judi said: “Rotary Wood is not an empty plot waiting for a better use. It is a living, growing woodland created through patience, care and public spirit.” Other opponents include actors Dame Joanna Lumley and Sam West, and environmentalist Sir Jonathon Porritt, who accused HSW of contradicting its own forest policy.
HSW, owned by French multinational Danone, said only 500 trees would be impacted, not the 1,000 cited by campaigners. A spokesperson said: “We have committed to creating a new, publicly accessible two‑acre woodland... and delivering around 3,000 trees across the district — six times more than would be lost.”
Planning officers have recommended approval. The company emphasised its plans balance sustainable development with economic growth and environmental care.
