Campaigners are claiming victory in the battle to save a “secret seaside”.
A planning inspector has thrown out an appeal over plans to drain picturesque Cupwith Reservoir above Slaithwaite.
Families, ramblers and wildlife lovers flock to the tranquil shores on the moors off New Hey Road.
But owners Dartmouth Estate wanted to carry out engineering works which would have reduced the amount of water in the reservoir.
Kirklees Council refused permission and Dartmouth appealed. But now planning inspector Karen Ridge has sided with campaigners, dismissing the appeal.
A second application, thought to be identical, was submitted to the council but Pat Jones, chairman of Cupwith Reservoir Action Group, believes victory has been achieved.
“The inspector has come down on our side and says exactly what we say,” she said.
“The inspector agrees that this is somewhere where you can enjoy the environment and it should not be destroyed.
“We know the second application is still undecided, but surely the inspector’s decision means the second application should fall as well?”
Cupwith has a beach-like water’s edge but is little known outside the local area.
Campaigners said if it was drained it would become little more than a “muddy puddle” and wildlife would be lost.
Ms Ridge, in her decision report, described Cupwith as an “attractive feature in its own right and a “positive enhancement to this scenic landscape”.
She added: “The comments in the letters of objection at application and appeal stage give an indication as to the value which is placed on the landscape by local people and walkers and the contribution which the reservoir makes to the landscape character.
“In the words of one objector the site is a ‘moorland destination’ in itself.”
The landowner claims work is needed to comply with an enforcement notice from the Environment Agency.
But the inspector said the agency notice sets out alternatives which did not affect water volume.
