PLANS for an underground gas storage plant in mid Cheshire have been approved.

County, town and parish councillors had previously raised concerns about INEOS Enterprises' plans for the Stublach site - which would see a compression station built at Stublach Grange Farm just over half a mile from Lach Dennis and Lostock Green homes - but Cheshire County Council's development regulatory committee gave the plans the green light yesterday, Tuesday.

John Halstead, chairman of Residents Against the Plant (RAP), said: "The application has been approved and we are obviously very disappointed.

"The facts were put fairly and we had our say but the most popular reason for approving it was the national need for gas. This was disproved by two separate inspectors in an inquiry in 2003."

John also said concerns about health and safety are not being rated highly enough.

He added: "It will have to involve the Health and Safety Executive.

"The main reason given for supporting the application was national need and, on the evidence available to them, there are no health and safety reasons for rejecting it.

"This is disappointing as a lot of accidents have occurred in salt cavity storage operations."

Cty Clr George Mainwaring said he feels sorry for residents living near the site, which has a potential storage capacity of 540 million cubic metres.

He added: "I am, as the local council member, disappointed with the decision.

"It was made by members who decided the national need for gas was urgent and they felt this outweighed all other concerns.

"The subject may still be called in as it is a diversion from the structure plan. The land was scheduled for agricultural use not industry.

"I am worried about what this decision means for the value of property and there is also the fear factor following what happened at Buncefield.

"I appreciate the concerns with having such a volatile plant within the area."

INEOS chiefs hope to construct eight of the 28 storage cavities by 2009. The plant could be more than three times the size of EON.UK's planned Byley facility.