MORE concern has been expressed over the oil strike on farmland near Winchester.
Pentez Oil has discovered the largest land-based oilfield in Britain for the past 20 years at Matterley Farm, near Alresford.
The find is within the proposed boundary of the South Downs national park.
The committee for the East Hampshire Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) has voiced fears over the impact of extraction. Alison Tingley, project officer for the East Hampshire AONB, said: "Although there has been some environmental impact caused by the exploratory process, this will be nothing compared with the movement of millions of barrels of oil over many years."
There will now be a three-month testing period to establish the viability of oil extraction.
If a planning application is submitted, the AONB will be looking carefully at all aspects of impact on the environment, and especially the route chosen for access, before making its representation to the planning committee of Hampshire County Council.
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