News relevant to the village is somewhat light this week, so here are some stories that are almost on our doorstop. Remember that you can buy your News Telegraph at The Sycamore or read it on-line.
p4 & P5 – “This fiasco over fungi is a marriage made in hell – Not much fun-gi! “- Sir Richard at Tissington Hall hits the headlines twice in his dispute with the National Park over rare mushrooms which are stopping Ashbourne & Tissington’s tourist industry – the dispute is over planning permission for a marquee for weddings on his grass, which may harbour these rare fungi.
P4 “MP demands action against illegal road racers on A515” & “Black Spot claims another rider’s life”. Concerns are being expressed by our MP about the speed safety measure on the A515. We have all seen the multitude of signs that adorn the roads warning motorists of bikers, but Patrick McLoughlin wants to know what Peak Park are doing to tackle the problem. Also on the A5012 near Via Gellia, a biker was killed on Sunday.
p9 “Overall crime is down in Dales – but burglaries rocket in last 12 months”. Supt Paul Rouse says “That the statistics prove that Derbyshire really is a relatievely safe place to live. However I would advise people not to become too complacent.”
PARWICH.ORG 
I have not looked at the paperwork for the Tissington Hall planning application but ‘rare fungus’ seems to be cropping up in a number of applications.
Last year the Peak Park Planning Service recommended refusal of permission for an Antony Gormley exhibition in the gardens at Chatsworth on the grounds that there might or might not be a rare fungus in lawn. When experts visited they saw no evidence that there was, but could not rule out its presence because it was the wrong weather. (At Chatsworth they had planned to keep any turf removed and replace it after the exhibition, but this was also rejected as it was not known whether or not this would impact on the fungus that might or might not be there.)
It is worrying if applications can be rejected on the basis of an argument that has no supporting evidence. Does this mean that if anyone is thinking of a planning application that might effect any lawns, they should be inviting specialist botanists to observe any fungi over several years in advance?