CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save hundreds of trees on a site the size of 60 football pitches on the outskirts of Newton Abbot are preparing a ‘show of force’ for a council meeting next week.

‘Save Our Trees’ protesters plan to lobby members of the Teignbridge Council planning committee when they meet on Tuesday, January 27, to decide on the future of the woodland.

Belgian-based global mining giant Sibelco is resisting a proposed Tree Preservation Order (TPO) on the area known as Zitherixon at Kingsteignton. It is also known locally as Rackerhayes.

Sibelco is a major employer in the Newton Abbot and Kingsteignton area, with its ball clay extractions employing up to 200 people and contributing an estimated £15million a year to the local economy.

The area around Kingsteignton holds some of the largest deposits of high-quality ball clay in the world.

It is used for making items such as toilets, washbasins and tiles.

But a council report says there is an ‘imminent risk’ that trees will be felled if there is no TPO in place, and that would cause ‘irreversible harm’.

Sibelco says it already has permission to extract ball clay from the site, and can remove trees as part of the process as long as it plants replacements elsewhere. It says the TPO would impede lawful mineral extractions.

But the council says it has the power to protect the trees, and its power is not over-ridden by mineral extraction permissions.

The Newton Abbot Fishing Association, whose members fish in the currently-disused clay workings at Rackerhayes, says a blanket TPO would hinder its efforts to maintain the trees around the site for safety.

The council argues that a TPO does not prevent essential safety works.

There have been 170 emails in support of confirming the TPO, while the local ‘Save Our Trees’ group has held a public meeting to outline its campaign.

Newton Abbot’s Liberal Democrat MP Martin Wrigley raised the issue in the House of Commons before Christmas, pointing out that the desire to get at the ball clay deposits should not over-ride local people’s concerns around the environment.

A provisional TPO was served on the area last August, but that will expire on February 21 if it is not renewed.

Council officers are recommending that the planning committee should renew it with no modifications.

A report to the committee says: ‘The purpose of the TPO is not to sterilise mineral resources or frustrate lawful operations, but to prevent avoidable or premature woodland clearance that would result in a significant and irreversible loss of public amenity.

‘The order provides a necessary level of control to ensure that any tree removal is justified, proportionate, and aligned with wider planning and environmental objectives.

‘It represents a balanced and lawful response to a credible risk of woodland loss, ensuring that mineral interests and amenity considerations are properly weighed rather than one overriding the other.’

The woodland is between Newton Road and Exeter Road on the banks of the River Teign.

The site was last used for mineral extraction more than 130 years ago, since when it has regenerated naturally.

‘The woodland now represents a strong example of natural regeneration and contributes significantly to biodiversity, landscape character, and recreational value,’ says the council report.

‘The amenity value of the woodland is exceptionally high.

‘The TPO serves a critical role in safeguarding both the woodland and the associated country park, ensuring that their long-term retention and management are properly controlled in the public interest.’