COUNTRYSIDE campaigners have backed families opposing plans to build thousands of houses on Tyneside green belt land.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England has warned Newcastle Council that plans to allow a new estate to be built on green belt land will turn the Ouseburn into “an open sewer”.

Newcastle and Gateshead are currently consulting on a joint planning document which sets out where more than 31,000 new homes can be built over the next two decades.

The contentious joint core strategy proposes building 6,500 houses at Callerton Park – land currently designated as Green Belt between Throckley, Darras Hall and Woolsington.

North East campaign member Professor Howard Elcock said the CPRE’s concerns extended past just preserving the countryside.

Prof Elcock said: “The proposal for this massive development on Callerton Park is unacceptable not only because the houses are not needed, and it represents the loss of 3% of the entire Tyne and Wear green belt, but also because it will increase flooding risk and sewerage hazards in the entire Ouseburn Catchment Area.

“The existing sewers to the north and west of Newcastle cannot handle the present volume of sewage and at times of peak load raw sewage is released into the Ouseburn.

“Further major developments at Callerton Park, where the Ouseburn rises, and at Newcastle Great Park will increase the problem. The Ouseburn will become an open sewer unless radical action is taken to improve the drainage in this area.

“And it will be a huge commuter settlement with people travelling to work in the city centre and other Tyneside employment centres. The impact of the resultant traffic on the already congested A69, B6918 and A1 will be tremendous.”

He added: “We believe that the councils are planning for too many houses. Their estimates are based on regional strategy figures which were based on 2006 growth forecasts and job creation which just haven’t materialised.

“Meanwhile Durham and Northumberland are planning to build houses based on past trends of people moving out of Tyneside. Unless all the councils get together and sort themselves out, there’ll be some serious double-counting going on.”

Last night Henri Murison, cabinet member for quality of life at Newcastle City Council, said: “Vibrant debate is an essential part of any consultation process and it is really important that we hear views and opinions from across the community. We have not ‘made up our minds’ and our commitment to listening is genuine.

“The council is not building houses in the green belt. We are suggesting a range of sites where houses can potentially be built in future. Nothing is predetermined.

“We do not expect every site in our proposals to be developable and we will listen carefully to your views, each one of them. That is why this is a genuine listening exercise, unlike previous consultations.”