A PROPOSAL to build six chicken rearing buildings near Canon Pyon has not gone down well with villagers.

James Verdin has submitted plans to house the units - each almost 100 metres long and 20 metres wide - on land at Knapton Green.

The use of the buildings, Mr Verdin says, is for the rearing of broilers.

If permission is approved, each unit would house up to 40,000 broilers - bringing the total number up to 240,000 for the whole site.

Susan Seaman, who lives opposite the land, said: "I have lived here for 44 years and, while I am used to agricultural smells, such an enormous development, completely out of keeping with an area in which residential development is banned, should not be locally acceptable, especially when the chicken units are mucked out.

"The proposal is nothing short of an industrial scale complex ."

A total of 49 objections were submitted to Herefordshire Council, including one from Birley with Upper Hill Parish Council.

Michael Hopkins, clerk to the council, said that the scheme will have an adverse affect on the surrounding area.

"The land has standing water during periods of heavy rain, which eventually soaks into the ground," he added.

"If this and other water from the site channelled into Honey Lake Brook, it will no doubt exacerbate the flooding problem on the A4110 and on some of the houses in Knapton Green."

Mr Hopkins added that the Parish Council was not convinced that the attenuation ponds would resolve the problem.

No date has been set yet for when the application will go before Herefordshire Council's planning committee.