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PLANNING & REGULATION COMMITTEE –
4 APRIL 2005

ADDENDA

 

4. Petitions and Public Address

Speaker

Item

Matthew Green, Chairman Pusey Parish Meeting

Sarah Hanrahan, MacFarlanes speaking on behalf of Mr Loudon (Objector)

Alexander Maddon, Managing Director, Agrivert (Applicants)

 

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) Item 7. Glebe Farm, Hinton Waldrist

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5. County Council Planning Applications

Further consultation responses and revised recommendations

Applications O.21/04 & O.22/04

The Committee are RECOMMENDED to defer making a decision on these two applications because difficulties relating to the provision of the proposed ‘spine road’ have yet to be resolved before they can be properly considered. These issues affect the timing of the provision of the ‘spine road’ which is the best planning and highways solution to the access problems which are preventing the school from full occupation.

The applications will be brought back to the Committee when these matters have been resolved.

Application No. S.02/05 (Valley Road Primary School, Henley)

South Oxfordshire District Council – No objections subject to conditions requiring protection of existing retained tree during construction and replacement of two trees to be removed elsewhere within the site..

Comments of the Head of Sustainable Development

Condition covering tree protection is included in the main report. The landscaping condition can be strengthened with the requirement to include replacement tree planting.

RECOMMENDATION

As main report.

Application No. V.02/05 (Grove CE Primary School)

Councillor Zoe Patrick (Local Member)

I would like to give my wholehearted support for this application for a temporary classroom at Grove Church of England Primary School. The school has been working hard to obtain a grant and has succeeded in achieving funding for a foundation unit for early years which will benefit all children of Grove. This building will bring this project to fruition and is essential to realise the school's development plan.

Julie Carr, the headteacher has been working extremely hard to improve standards at this school which some years ago had been under special measures. Her drive and determination have been an inspiration to the staff and pupils. I am sure that once this scheme goes ahead it will add to the facilities and opportunites available for those attending and working in the school and will benefit the whole community.

I think it is worth adding the condition regarding the sewerage and drainage works, because having spoken to the headteacher, and understanding residents from North Drive's concerns, this work will be necessary especially in wet weather/flooding conditions.

Further consultation responses and revised recommendation:

Vale of White Horse District Council – no objection.

Comments of the Head of Sustainable Development

No further comment.

RECOMMENDATION

As main report.

6. Continued Use of Former Chalk Quarry For Construction and Demolition Waste Recycling at Playhatch Quarry, Dunsden Green Lane, Playhatch Application No P05/E0024/CM

Additional Representations

A letter from Howard Crews, 1 Playhatch Cottages, Playhatch is attached (download as .doc file).

  • Understands that the company would not accept a temporary permission due to commercial reasons, therefore urges members to refuse the application.
  • Opening hours are too long and the District Environmental Health Officer (EHO) was not made aware of the Parish or residents concerns. More appropriate opening hours would be 9am to 4pm weekdays only, no Saturday, Sunday or bank holiday working.
  • A condition should be added to limit the total number of waste vehicle movements per week to a maximum of 30 and that the applicant logs these trips and reports them to the liaison committee.
  • Asks Members to request that the Parish Council are consulted on the heads of terms for the legal agreement.

Comments of the Head of Sustainable Development

The EHO is aware of the nature of the development and has advised that noise can be controlled adequately. He did not advise lessening the hours. The hours proposed on condition 8 are the standard ones for this form of development. Traffic generation is proposed to be limited to that experienced from this site in the recent past. There is not a history of complaints about this level of traffic.

Recommendation

No change to the recommendation in the report.

Alterations are proposed to the following conditions as a result of consultation with the applicant. Additions are shown in bold.

Condition 2

Remove the words "for the duration of development and aftercare period hereby approved". (These words are not required as permanent development is sought).

Condition 3

This has been deleted as it is duplicated in the routeing agreement.

Condition 4

No development shall take place until signs are erected at the exit of the site and at the exit point of the roundabout where the B4155 joins Dunsden Green lane to advise vehicles accessing the site to travel at a maximum speed of 10mph. A scheme shall be submitted to the Waste Planning Authority which shall detail the wording and dimensions of the signs. Any scheme that is approved shall be implemented. This scheme and the speed at which the vehicles are required to travel at shall only be revised with the prior written consent of the Waste Planning Authority.

Condition 6

The gates shall be coloured green to match as closely as possible the surrounding vegetation. In the event that a substantiated objection on highway safety grounds is received then a scheme for relocating the gates further within the site shall be submitted to the Waste Planning Authority. Any that is approved shall be implemented within 1 month of the approval of the details.

Condition 7

No more than 70,000 tonnes of construction and demolition waste shall be processed at the site per calendar year. Records of traffic movements shall be made available to the Waste Planning Authority in a form and frequency to be agreed by the waste Planning Authority in writing before development commences.

Condition 8

With the exception of necessary works arising from emergency situations and unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Waste Planning Authority, lorries shall not enter or leave the site, plant and machinery shall not be operated and operations shall not take place other than between 0700 and 1700 hours Monday to Friday and 0700 to 1300 hours on Saturdays and at no time on Sundays and Bank Holidays and Saturdays immediately following Bank Holidays.

Plant maintenance can take place between 0700 and 1900 on weekdays and between 0700 and 1300 hours on Saturdays but at no time on Sundays and Bank Holidays and Saturdays immediately following Bank Holidays.

Condition 14

No hydraulic breakers shall be used on the site. (Hydraulic breaker is the correct name for this kind of machine. Hydraulic breakers create a particularly penetrating noise).

Condition 15

All Crushing, screening and other stone size reduction operations to be carried out at such location within the site that operations and equipment are not visible from the extent of the quarry boundary defined in blue on drawing P099m/06 below a height of 1.4 metres above ground level. Stockpiles should not be higher than immediately adjoining land levels.

Paragraph 43

The applicant points out that paragrapg 43 is wring in so far as it says the current legal agreement requires sweeping of the road. The agreement was only for the clearance of drains along Dunsden Green Lane. However, some form of road sweeping may now be appropriate and is proposed for the amended legal agreement.

Recommendation

No change to the recommendation in the report.

7. 5,000 M2 Bunded Hardstanding for Open Windrow Composting Site at Glebe Farm, Hinton Waldrist Application No HIN/18975-CM

Additional Representations

Councillor Judith Heathcoat (Local Member Faringdon Division)

As the local member representing both Hinton Waldrist and Pusey I find that I am representing a dichotomy of view.  As you will know the Parish Council of Hinton Waldrist support the application with certain provisos, which I know the Clerk has forwarded to OCC, whilst the Parish of Pusey is wholeheartedly against the project!  As the local member I would advise that as long as I can receive confirmation that there are no environmental issues, with regard to smell/pollution, no large quantities of lorry movements to affect the local roads and their safety, nor instability to the rural make-up of the area, I would support the development.  I would sincerely hope that the Composting Site is well screened. 

Hubert Beaumont, Chairman (VOWH District), Campaign to Protect Rural England, Stanford House, Stanford in the Vale, Faringdon, SN7 8LE.

We strongly object to the siting of this facility and fully support the detailed objections made by the Vale of White Horse District Council, Pusey Parish Council and Local Residents. We would also add that the junction with the A420 is already dangerous. Slow moving vehicles leaving the site would present an additional hazard when joining the A420.

Local resident

Whilst concerned on the general environmental impact of this proposed development, in a space which I understand to be classified as AONB, I am particularly perturbed on three specific grounds:

  1. Guidelines indicate, as I understand it, that a site should first be identified according to criteria, covering industrial sites, previously developed land, and redundant farm buildings, and only after an exhaustive search of such sites should greenfield sites be considered.
  2. A waterway adjoins the site, which potentially could cause contamination.
  3. There will be considerable impact of traffic within the village of Pusey.

In view of the above, I would be grateful if you could advise me what actions have been taken to identify alternative sites, indicating what sites in the areas have been considered and rejected.

At the same time could you please provide me with a list of all the Council Members sitting on the Committee or Working Party responsible for making the decision on this application.

Comments of the Head of Sustainable Development

The site is not located in the AONB but an Area of High Landscape Value identified in the Vale of the White Horse Local Plan. All other points in this letter have been fully dealt with in the committee report.

Recommendation

There is no change to the recommendation in the report.

Local resident

  1. The increased volume of traffic resulting from the routing of the site’s traffic along the A420 will be dangerous for the children living in the village of Pusey. The additional traffic resulting from the movement of the waste is also likely to cause additional congestion and hazard between the B4508 and the A420.
  2. The land, being green land or virgin arable land, does not comply with the Government’s guidelines for choosing a suitable site for composting.
  3. There is a serious possibility that the odour, noise and dust which will result form the functioning of the composting site will cause nuisance and contamination, particularly to the residents of Pusey, who are likely to be seriously affected by the odour of decomposing waste especially during the summer months when the weather is warmest and the site’s activity will take place.
  4. The area of natural beauty will be spoiled not only for the residents of Pusey but for the many other people who benefit from it.
  5. It is possible that the new EU requirements for water management which are shortly to be introduced, will not be satisfied.

Comments of the Head of Sustainable Development

In relation to the EU requirements I would comment that this is the responsibility of the Environment Agency to control. All other points have been dealt with fully in the committee report or later in this addendum.

Recommendation

There is no change to the recommendation in the report.

Changes to conditions are recommended due to very recent considerations.

Condition 3

No green waste shall be brought to the site or compost exported from the site or machinery operated except between the following times: 0800 to 1700 Mondays to Fridays and 0800 to 1230 Saturdays and at no time on Sundays and Bank Holidays and Saturdays immediately following Bank Holidays.

Propose that the following conditions be attached to any grant of planning permission.

No retailing of compost shall take place directly from the site.

Reason: The rural site is not one where retailing is appropriate.

Policy: OMWLP W3 OSP G2, EN1, EN2, EN4

If there has not been any composting activity for a period of six months, as determined by the Waste Planning Authority, then the site shall be cleared of any plant, machinery and other material and the site should be restored to agricultural use within a further six months.

Reason: To provide for the restoration of the site if operations cease.

Policy: OMWLP W3 OSP G2, EN1

Issue

There are objections to the development on the grounds that it does not comply with the provisions of PPG 10 (Planning and Waste management). One objector said paragraph A50 of PPG 10 states that particular care should be taken to avoid locations for new waste management facilities that may be incompatible with existing land use. Examples of appropriate sites are degraded, contaminated or derelict land or industrial sites.

Comments of the Head of Sustainable Development

PPG 10 does state that waste management facilities might be located within or adjacent to the appropriate sites mentioned above and to other sites such as mineral workings and landfill sites (paragraph A51). However, it also states (in paragraph A53) ‘where composting is to be undertaken primarily for agricultural purposes it may be appropriate to locate facilities for this on suitable farmland.’ The current proposal is to produce compost mainly for use on Glebe Farm and, therefore, the application complies with PPG 10.

Recommendation

No change to the recommendation in the report.

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