A new independent community survey has revealed that 86% of Harrogate residents disagree or strongly disagree with the proposed Harrogate Spring Water bottling plant expansion.
This contradicts recent claims that the project enjoys broad public support.
The survey, conducted by Suffrago and completed by almost 500 residents within 24 hours (survey link here), provides one of the clearest indications yet that the vast majority of the local community does not back the development.
This comes after a company-commissioned poll of just 200 people was promoted by the York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce as evidence of “strong local support.” The Suffrago findings, with more than double the respondents and independent of corporate influence, tell a very different story.
The survey also highlights widespread concern over the loss of Rotary Wood, a community-planted woodland recognised as an Asset of Community Value, and frustration that basic environmental evidence—including the required lighting and noise assessments—is still missing from the application.
A spokesperson for Pinewoods Conservation Group, said:
“This new independent survey confirms what the community has been saying for years — local people do not support this destructive and legally questionable expansion.
"The claim of ‘strong local backing’ simply doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. Our residents value Rotary Wood and Harrogate’s green spaces far more than they value more lorries, noise, and lost biodiversity. With key surveys still missing and planning conditions unmet, this application should not even be on the table.”
A spokesperson for Suffrago added:
“We wanted to give residents a genuine, unbiased voice - and in less than 24 hours, hundreds of people responded. The result is clear: Harrogate overwhelmingly opposes this development.”
Pinewoods Conservation Group and Suffrago are urging North Yorkshire Council to take these findings seriously and to ensure transparency, legality, and community representation in any final decision.
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