AN application to open a puppy breeding unit in a Wye Valley hamlet has been turned down after nearly 900 people signed a petition objecting to it.

The scheme proposed for Old Dry Arch Cottage at the A4137/A40 Junction in Marstow near Whitchurch was “supported by inadequate and insufficient information to enable adequate assessment,” said Herefordshire Council planners.

They recieved 115 letters of objection, with residents complaining to councillors of “frequent, loud barking” already at the premises, which are inside the Wye AONB.

Applicant Mr L Hancock wanted permission for 18 dog kennels at the 85sq m site in the grounds of the cottage.

It would have included an isolation pen, two storage rooms, a kitchen and a reception area, and two external pen runs.

But planning officer Carl Brace said: “The area is a designated landscape and has a high level of protection regarding its character and appearance and further to this, the site adjoins residential properties.

“With no details or relevant supporting assessments or evidence of appropriate mitigation it is considered that the proposal would be likely to have a potentially unacceptable and significant harmful impact on the character and amenity of the Wye Valley AONB, highway safety, the residential amenity of surrounding properties, the River Wye Site of Special Scientific Interest and Special Area of Conservation and the wider environment.”

He added: “I’m aware of a change.org petition with 869 signatures against the application and a social media group also objecting.”

Natural England had also said further information was required about the possible effect on the River Wye Special Area of Conservation and Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Goodrich and Welsh Bicknor Parish Council said the building was too big for the site, and there would be insufficient parking and turning space.

“The number of kennels, if used for breeding bitches, could result in hundreds of additional vehicles attending the site, while the access onto the main highway has limited visibility due to the brow of the hill, steep banks, and high hedges in both directions,” said a spokeswoman.

Marstow Parish Council also objected, saying: “There is already frequent loud dog barking – often high pitched – from the present established business and residents fear this will only increase.

“The noises are constant and distressing to local residents and their families.”