The community of East Nottingham village, Thoroton and its surrounding villages have joined together to oppose the building of a second mega industrial chicken farm within 500 metres of the village under mounting health fears, in the midst of Covid-19.
Residents, including some who have lived in the village for over forty years, as well as parents from nearby village schools, are fearful of an increased risk of respiratory conditions such as pneumonia if the building of another mega industrial chicken farm is granted.
Research published on BioMed Central has shown that there is an 11 percent increased risk of pneumonia from living near poultry farms. Given the current pandemic, Thoroton villagers, who are predominately over sixty, with some who are considered vulnerable, are fearful that an additional farm would subject villagers to increased air pollution from 8.2 Million chickens a year in the radius of the village.
The additional mega industrial chicken farm would mean that together with an existing factory farm in neighbouring village of Flawborough, village residents of Thoroton, Scarrington, Alverton, Hawksworth and Orston would all be at an increased risk of developing pneumonia.
The historic village of Thoroton, which has conservation area status and featured in the Doomsday survey was also home to Ethel Gordon Fenwick. Ethel Fenwick was the UK’s first state registered nurse and Founder of the Royal British Nurses Association.
Christine Williams, who has been a Thoroton resident for 32 years, said, “This is a very real and grave concern for all village residents. It is totally irresponsible to agree to an industrial chicken farm of this scale, adding to existing mega chicken farms, when we are going through a pandemic that directly affects people’s respiratory systems.”
She adds, “We are very proud of our village heritage with Ethel Gordon Fenwick whose life was dedicated to people’s health …if we don’t all fight this mega industrial chicken farm from being granted, I don’t think we would be honouring her memory.”
Residents from the surrounding villages have been stating their objections to Rushcliffe Borough Council with the deadline for consideration set for the end of October.
