AN OUTDOOR pursuits centre in Churchill is submitting plans which could allow quad biking and clay pigeon shooting to take place at the venue. Previously, Avon Ski and Action Centre had been denied a certificate from North Somerset Council which would hav

AN OUTDOOR pursuits centre in Churchill is submitting plans which could allow quad biking and clay pigeon shooting to take place at the venue.Previously, Avon Ski and Action Centre had been denied a certificate from North Somerset Council which would have made it exempt from planning permission to run the activities.Councillors voted against giving it the certificate at a planning meeting in February, because it could not prove they had been taking place for more than 10 years. Concerns were also raised by locals about the noise created by the centre. Since then, the centre's planning agent, Nigel Salmon, has conducted a noise survey and commissioned an ecology report to assess the impact of outdoor sports activities on the site. He said: "The new application will concern quad biking, clay pigeon shooting, 4x4 driving, and some non-motorised activities such as grass sledging and BMX riding."Our submission to the council will include controls on the intensity of these activities, the locations where they occur and the hours in which they take place."This will strike a balance for residents who live in the locality."However, some residents are still not keen on the plans. Mike Simeone, who lives next door to the ski centre, said: "We do not want the Mendips made into a theme park."The issue will now go before council planning officials.