An international heritage body has condemned plans for an underground zip wire attraction in the Lake District as a “theme park” that imperils the area’s “tranquil and contemplative” quality.
The owners of Elterwater slate quarry in the Langdale valley want to create an immersive heritage attraction by opening up caverns, some of which are inaccessible or were once mined.
Original plans for a rollercoaster-type ride into the caverns have been dropped but a proposal on a “significantly reduced scale” is still being fiercely fought over.
The proposals include a plan for a “challenging, stimulating and unique” cavern explorer experience using zip wires to get people to various viewpoints.
Lake District planners are due to meet next week to discuss the proposals, which have attracted 1,393 objections from individuals and interest groups including the Friends of the Lake District and the Wainwright Society.
Planners have also consulted with bodies including the International Council on Monuments and Sites (Icomos), an advisory body to Unesco, which in 2017 gave the Lake District its much-cherished world heritage site status.
The Icomos view on the Elterwater proposal is stinging. It described the attraction as being “of a type that would transform the quarry or part of it into a theme park and would trivialise the experience of an important aspect of the Lake District’s heritage”.
It would also draw traffic to the valley “and a type of audience that will contribute to the disruption of its tranquil and contemplative character”. The envisaged use of the caverns was more “adventure tourism” than “cultural heritage interpretation”, Icomos said.
Critics fear that saying yes to the proposal could put the Lake District’s world heritage status at risk in the future.
Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, said the plans had been met with vocal opposition over “very legitimate concerns” that roads around Langdale would not be able to cope with the extra traffic.
“But this absolutely scathing response from Unesco – the body who awarded the national park world heritage site status just six years ago – towards the proposals should really set alarm bells ringing for all of us who care about the Lake District.”
The applicants, Burlington Slate, said the experience would be “safe and enjoyable”. It said: “The proposed experience at Elterwater will provide a blend of heritage-based adventure through the caverns and offer a unique immersive experience within an underground mine that dates back to the middle of the 19th century.”
The plan would be for a series of steel staircases and platforms and “gravity driven routes” which would allow visitors to “slowly traverse” the caverns.
“Participants are attached via a harness to an overhead safety system fixed to the cavern walls and roof using simple and inconspicuous pins (not dissimilar to what was used in the mid-19th century to help fix miners to the cavern walls).”
Burlington Slate’s partner on the project is Zip World, which has adventure sites across the UK.
Planning officers are expected to recommend that members of the Lake District national park’s development control committee approve the plans when they meet in Kendal on 6 September.
Officers have said no unacceptable effects, including transport and parking, had been identified.
In terms of the impact on the environment and cultural heritage there would be “low level harms to intangible attributes due to changes in activity. However, any harms arising would be outweighed by public benefits, in particular public access.”
An online petition called “Save Langdale (Lake District) from a rollercoaster theme park”, objecting to what were understood to be the previous plans, attracted almost 89,000 signatories.
