Concerns have been raised about land clearance work by a former maternity hospital in Carmarthenshire where 25 houses are planned.

Residents in Glanamman claimed small trees have been cut down on land between the former Amman Valley Maternity Hospital and a stream to the east.

Carmarthenshire Council said it has received a complaint about a potential breach of planning control and was investigating. Dyfed-Powys Police has visited the site.

The landowner and applicant for the housing development, Thomas Bros, said the work involved cutting back growth after a few years of not doing so.

Glanamman resident Gareth Williams said the clearance activity by a digger began on August 21 and continued the following day, resuming again after the bank holiday weekend. Mr Williams, of Tirycoed Road, said: “It’s heart-breaking to see,” he said.

He said he had spoken to the contractor operating the digger, the council and also contacted Senedd members and Caerfyrddin MP Ann Davies, who he said responded with an hour to offer support.

He claimed that bats roosted in trees along the bank of the stream to the east of the former hospital.

Mr Williams is a member of Tirycoed Campaign Group, which has objected to the current and previous housing plans for the land. “We have been pretty vocal in our opposition,” he said.

Other residents have been emailing the county council with concerns about the clearance work.

A council spokeswoman said: “The council has received a complaint of a potential breach of planning control and is currently investigating the matter. Any further action will be considered in line with the findings of that investigation.”

The current planning application lodged with the council is to demolish the old maternity hospital and build 25 houses. The development would be accessed via a new lane off Tirycoed Road, requiring the demolition of two Tirycoed Road houses.

A design and access statement said the aim was to retain key ecological features and buffer zones, and a diagram shows a 10-metre tree buffer between the adjacent stream and easternmost extent of the development site.

The plans were submitted in August 2023 and have led to many objections, including from Cwmaman Town Council. The Welsh Government has placed what’s known as a holding direction on the application, meaning that while it’s being determined by the county council a decision cannot be issued until the Welsh Government has said whether it wishes to call the application in for its own determination.

Dyfed-Powys Police said an officer from its rural crime team visited the site on Friday, August 22, and that no evidence of criminal activity was found.

A spokeswoman for environment regulator Natural Resources Wales (NRW), which was also informed of the clearance work, said: “As this does not fall within the scope of the Forestry Act, it is a matter for planning enforcement and has been referred to the local authority.” The Forestry Act is the means by which NRW regulates tree felling.

A Thomas Bros representative said the area of land being cleared used to be cut back every year and that only a small tractor was needed then.

He said it hadn’t been accessed for some time and was therefore becoming overgrown. “All we doing is cutting back the annual growth,” he said.

He added that a lot of money had spent on reports accompanying the planning application and that it was now in the hands of the council to make a decision. The proposed houses, he said, would be aimed at first-time buyers.