Thousands of homes are proposed between the A38 and A379

The Council for the Protection of Rural England spoke out as a public inquiry opened into the plans are for 3,500 new dwellings at Sherford, South Hams and 2,900 houses, as well as employment development, at Broadclyst, near Exeter.

The four-week inquiry, which starts in Exeter, is the last chance for people to register their opposition.

The Devon branch of CPRE wants the Devon County Council plans to be withdrawn and replaced by more sustainable alternatives.

Business concerns

Jim Woollcombe, chairman of Devon CPRE, said: "The government's policy is to develop brown field sites first and green field last.

"And what the council has done is to produce a plan which got in under the wire.

"They are saying that this particular green field comes first, and that's wrong."

There is no option of development not happening. There is question of where it goes Planning consultant James Sharp

The CPRE and representatives of Plymouth's business community, including some developers, have also expressed concerns about the potential impact a new development would have on efforts to regenerate the city.

The CPRE said proposals for a new settlement in countryside at Broadclyst near Exeter were equally worrying.

It would be a dormitory settlement isolated from Exeter's economic centre, fostering car dependency and increasing congestion.

The CPRE said it would do serious harm to east Devon's countryside and the quality of life of those who live and work there.

But planning consultant James Sharp said: "There is no option of development not happening.

"There is question of where it goes.

"The new community has been found to be the most sustainable location for the development.

"There is a great deal of sense in putting all the large development together east of Exeter, near the airport where the expansion is taking place and the new community can add to that."