100 rally against Lake District visitor attraction plans

Organised by the landscape charity Friends of the Lake District, speakers addressed the crowd who gathered to oppose plans for an Elterwater Quarry Experience that would include a zip wire and ropes course.

Zip World has teamed up with Burlington Stone to deliver the project, which would allow exploration of parts of the cavern previously inaccessible for a unique 'heritage-based adventure experience.

READ MORE: UNESCO advisors call for halt to Elterwater Quarry plan

Concerns were raised around an attraction of this type being situated inside a national park and World Heritage Site, and the impact of additional traffic on the small rural community.

Among the guest speakers was Bill Birkett, a writer, photographer, rock climber, and mountaineer, who grew up in Langdale and whose father was a slate quarryman.

Mr Birkett said: "This development doesn’t do anything for the local community and is totally inappropriate.

"It demeans the history of this area and the quarrymen who worked there. I’m a local and the associated traffic is also a huge problem.

"Commercial developments like this are not what we need. Zip wires are fine for Alton Towers but not for here."

The initial scheme was refused permission due to the travel plan, which describes how visitors are intended to get to the attraction.

Issues were also raised about the impact of traffic and parked cars on sustainability, the landscape, and the tranquillity and enjoyment of the area.

Quarry owners Burlington Slate Ltd and Zip World submitted the application with an amended travel plan but Friends of the Lake District still believe it will cause significant additional traffic in Elterwater.

Friends of the Lake District CEO Michael Hill said: "The rally was an important opportunity for people who care about the tranquillity of this beautiful part of the Lake District to make their voices heard.

"It was great to see around 100 people brave the rainy conditions."

The plans have been submitted to the Lake District National Park Authority and will be examined by their planning committee shortly, with dates to be confirmed.

Friends of the Lake District said it shared concerns expressed by ICOMOS, the official advisor on the World Heritage Site designation, which has asked for the planning approval process for this attraction, and similar proposals, to be suspended.

This is until a strategy is in place to determine what tourism uses are compatible with the area’s special attributes.

Andrew Hudson, CEO of Zip World, said: "We have listened carefully to the feedback from the Lake District National Park Authority development committee in September, and used it to adapt our plans.

"Our new submission is centred on an enhanced travel plan to encourage the use of walking, cycling, public or shared transport and low emission vehicles to reach our site. It also highlights our proposed ticketing strategy that ensures visitor numbers do not exceed the on-site parking allocation, with financial incentives for those who use non-car travel to reach the experience.

"Combined with an improved visitor management plan, we are confident that this ticketing system and travel plan will allow us to easily manage and accurately predict visitor numbers at all times.

"Once visitors reach the site, they will be part of a unique experience that celebrates the mining heritage of Elterwater while triggering high value inward investment to the Lake District."