THE multi-million pound gas plant planned for the edge of Thornton-le-Dale is to get a thumbs down from the North York Moors National Park Authority tomorrow.

The scheme, by Moorland Energy Ltd, aims to build the plant in Hurrell Lane, about half a mile from the village.

But Mark Hill, the park’s head of development management, says in a report to its planning committee: “The plant would have a harsh and inappropriate industrial character and appearance on the very edge of the National Park, which would seriously erode the landscape.”

Moorland Energy has lodged an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate after North Yorkshire County Council failed to make a decision over the scheme.

Several packed public meetings have been held in Thornton-le-Dale opposing the plant, which villagers fear will tarnish its image as one of North Yorkshire’s most popular tourist centres, and its economy.

Mr Hill said the application by Moorland Energy amounted to several thousand pages.

“There is little doubt that if the sour gas reserves which lie beneath that National Park could be exploited in a sensitive manner, this would be in the national interest in terms of security of gas supply,” Mr Hill says in the report.

But, he adds: “The benefit to the UK gas supply security is modest and is not considered sufficient to outweigh the harm to the setting of a nationally protected landscape.”

Mr Hill said that residents in Thornton-le-Dale were worried.

“They clearly feel that the location of a potentially dangerous ‘control of major accident hazard’ plant, 1,000 metres from a village of 3,000 people, represents poor land use planning, and insufficient information or explanation has been provided to allay public perceptions of harm from the consequences of a catastrophic accident.”

He said the company had provided insufficient justification to show that a “far less harmful alternative site” next to the existing power station at Knapton, could not be developed to explore the gas reserves by either processing and feeding into the national grid or by burning to generate electricity, either jointly or alongside the Knapton gas-powered electricity generation station at Knapton.

The Health and Safety Executive had expressed concerns about potential risks to and from the existing gas transmission pipeline in the Thornton-le-Dale area.

Moorland Energy, however, says there would be a “negative impact” on tourism from the plant and there would be “an overall benefit” over a 20-year period.