Chapter 9
Energy, Minerals and Waste

EMW1	Prudent Use Of Resources (Part 1 Policy)
Energy
EMW2	Renewable Energy Infrastructure
Minerals
EMW3	Protection of Mineral Resources
EMW4	Proposals For Mineral And Aggregate Developments
EMW5	Onshore Oil And Gas
Waste
EMW6	Waste Management Strategy (Part 1 Policy)
EMW7	Waste Management Facilities
EMW8	Landfill Sites
EMW9	Recycling Facilities

 

Introduction

9.1 This chapter deals with a number of topics which are at the heart of the debate about sustainable development. In each topic aspirations or targets have been set out at a national level. Regional and Merseyside frameworks to achieve these are at various stages of preparation.

 

9.2 Each topic raises complex local environmental issues which may need to be assessed against benefits at local, regional and national level. All policies of this chapter must be read together and in conjunction with:

 

• Policy CS2 ‘Restraint on Development and Protection of Environmental Assets’;

   

• Policy CS3 ‘Development Principles’;

   

• Policy DQ2 'Renewable Energy in Development'; and,

   

• Policy EP1 ‘Managing Environmental Risk.

   

9.3 These policies provide the environmental and amenity criteria against which proposals for renewable energy infrastructure, mineral extraction, waste management and disposal facilities will be assessed. Such proposals may also need to be accompanied by an Environmental Impact Assessment¹.

 

Explanation

9.4 A major contribution can be made to reducing reliance on fossil fuels and nuclear energy through:

 

• concentrating development within the built-up area and making better use of existing infrastructure, especially transport systems; and

   

• ensuring that development minimises energy use through the careful location and imaginative design of developments.

   

9.5 Non-renewable resources such as minerals and fossil fuels should be used in a sustainable manner, which means minimising their use and increasing recycling to produce secondary aggregates^G.

 

9.6 Using renewable sources of energy, and laying out sites to make the most of the heat from the sun and natural light can reduce the need for fossil fuels and nuclear energy. Other aspects of design such as the type of materials used and good insulation can also reduce energy use.

 

9.7 The use of secondary aggregates will be encouraged as this can reduce the need for aggregate and mineral extraction. Secondary aggregates can be provided through the reuse and recycling of building materials (e.g. bricks, slates and cobbles).
Implementation

 

9.8 A guide will be prepared to recommend good practice in some of the areas set out above.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

Policy wording changed from promoting energy efficiency to encouraging development that is energy efficient.

 

Policy Links

None.

 

Renewable Energy Infrastructure

9.9 Renewable energy refers to those energy flows that occur naturally and repeatedly in the environment, for example energy from the sun and from the wind. It also includes exploiting wood as a fuel. Increased use of renewable energy reduces harmful emissions to the environment.

 

9.10 The Government proposes that 10% of the UK electricity requirements should be met from renewable energy sources by 2010, and 20% by 2020. Revised regional targets are being prepared for the amount of energy that is supplied from renewable sources.

 

9.11 The North West coast, including Liverpool Bay, is likely to be a location for major offshore renewable energy projects. Wind turbines are already an established feature in Sefton within the Port and a windfarm off-shore at Burbo Bank, Blundellsands is being constructed.

 

Explanation

9.12 Local initiatives to harness renewable energy resources will be supported. However, the benefits and potential impacts of each proposal will have to be considered case by case. Renewable energy schemes should only be developed where they will be of most benefit and cause least harm, although some impact will be unavoidable. Potential impacts on the environment may be acceptable if they are minor, or are outweighed by wider benefits, such as national need for energy from non-fossil fuels which will contribute to reducing emissions of harmful gases or substances.

 

9.13 Renewable energy projects may consist of many different elements. It is important to know if any specific proposal forms part of an wider project. A project overview is therefore required which identifies all significant impacts.

 

Implementation

9.14 Supplementary guidance will be prepared setting out what will be required.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

Policy changed to explain the wider impacts which will be assessed.

 

Policy Links

GBC6 Landscape Character

 

Background documents

Planning Policy Guidance Note 22 ‘Renewable Energy’, 1993

 

Minerals

Mineral Protection and Extraction

9.15 Sefton contains some high value minerals and aggregates, so it is essential that their extraction is carefully managed. Minerals can only be worked where they occur. Development which sterilises known winnable resources or could harm long term national mineral assets will not be permitted.

 

9.16 Construction activity in Merseyside and Sefton has meant that the area has become a net importer of minerals and some aggregates. As Merseyside and Sefton are not self-sufficient in the supply of minerals, consideration needs to be given to promoting the use of recycled and secondary aggregates. These represent a potential source of materials for construction, thereby helping to conserve primary materials and reducing the volume of waste produced.

 

Aggregate Minerals

9.17 Workable deposits of sand and sandstone are located in areas of valuable landscape and underlie high grade agricultural land. The Shirdley Hill Sands near Melling (figure 9.1) are an example of an area of thin silica sand which may be important for industry. Silica sand is an asset of national importance and should not be used for aggregate^G purposes.

 

Inter-tidal Special Industrial Sands

9.18 The main mineral deposits of industrial interest in Sefton are special industrial sands and aggregates. A proportion of the silica sand won from the Horse Bank off the coast at Southport is used for special industrial purposes. Such sands are of considerable importance in the national context and the Horse Bank sands are of national importance to the glass industry. The Horse Bank is located within two sites of international nature conservation importance (Special Protection Area and Ramsar). Following a public inquiry (February 2002), permission has been granted for the continued sand extraction from the Horse Bank for a further period of ten years subject to the implementation of the agreed Environmental Management Plan.

 

Oil and Gas Exploration

9.19 Preliminary exploration has taken place for oil and gas both on and off-shore. The presence of oil in Sefton has been known for many decades and a small well in Formby Moss has produced oil in the past. A considerable amount of geological work has been undertaken in the area, both on and off-shore within Liverpool Bay.

 

 

Explanation

9.20 Minerals policy should conserve minerals as far as possible, whilst ensuring an adequate supply to meet the needs of society. Proposals for any development should not lead to proven or potential reserves being sterilised. Such resources will therefore be protected from changes in land use that cannot be reversed. The extraction of minerals before development takes place will only be permitted where an operations statement, restoration and aftercare plan have been agreed.

 

Implementation

9.21 Through the development control process.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

No changes made as policy needs to safeguard resources.

 

Policy Links

None.

 

Explanation

9.22 This policy covers the sequence of events involved in the extraction of minerals:

 

1. exploration and appraisal;

    

2. winning and working;

    

3. processing and handling;

    

4. the restoration of sites to a suitable after-use once operations have ceased; and

    

5. the aftercare of a site.

    

9.23 In some instances developers may only need to seek planning permission for certain parts of the sequence. For example, where exploration and appraisal is permitted development, permission only needs to be sought for the winning and working, processing and handling of minerals. In this instance, section 2 of the policy will apply. Minerals should only be extracted where the resource is of an adequate quantity to meet market demand and of the appropriate quality or grade to satisfy the need. High quality resources should not be used to satisfy a demand for minerals which could use a resource of a lower grade. This will ensure that finite resources are not depleted unnecessarily.

 

9.24 All applications for mineral and aggregate development need to be accompanied by an operations statement. (The types of issues that need to be covered are set out in figure 9.2).

 

9.25 A restoration and aftercare plan is required to achieve sensitive restoration and aftercare practices that will ensure that the site is restored to an appropriate beneficial use. Sites should be left in a condition that maintains or enhances their value to the immediate environment, local communities and surrounding area. (The issues to be covered by the restoration and aftercare plan are set out in figure 9.3).

 

9.26 Aftercare conditions relating to the management and maintenance of the site will be for a minimum period of five years. The period of aftercare will be agreed between the authority and the developer and may extend beyond five years to ensure that the site can be successfully returned to beneficial use.

 

9.27 Where an Environmental Statement is required or where material planning objections are not outweighed by any planning benefits, applicants will also need to demonstrate that there is market demand for the resource.

 

9.28 Proposals for marine won aggregate dredging are subject to the 'Government View' procedure operated by the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG). The international nature conservation importance of the Sefton coast is dependent on physical processes, especially sediment transport. Where an application is made for a license (issued by the Crown Estate) for marine aggregate extraction under the Government View procedure, the Council will request and encourage an assessment to be undertaken. The assessment should be of the cumulative effects of the proposed dredging on sediment transport and on the other physical processes that may have impact on the sites of international nature conservation importance on the Sefton Coast.

 

9.29 In considering proposals for the extraction of minerals, including aggregates, the following factors will be taken into account:

 

• how the proposal will assist Merseyside’s contribution to the North West’s regional share of providing minerals;

   

• how the proposal will assist Merseyside’s contribution to the North West’s regional share of providing aggregates, as set out in Draft Minerals Planning Guidance Note 6;

   

• the need to maintain a landbank of permitted reserves² for both minerals and aggregates within the Merseyside and Greater Manchester area;

   

• how the proposal will affect the supply of minerals within and outside the region.

   

9.30 The North West Regional Aggregate Working Party (NWRAWP) is one of a number of similar working parties throughout England and Wales that collect data on the production of aggregates. Membership is drawn from the constituent mineral planning authorities, central government departments and representatives from the extractive industry. They produce annual reports which summarise the aggregate monitoring statistics and planning applications in the North West.

 

Implementation

9.31 Through the development control process.

 

 

Sustainability Appraisal

Policy changed to clarify meaning of ‘adequate’.

 

Policy Links

RSS policies -
ER8 Minerals Extraction;
ER9 Land Won Aggregates.

 

Background documents:

North West Regional Spatial Strategy, 2003; Minerals Planning Guidance Notes 1,6 & 7: ‘General Considerations and the Development Plan System’, 1996, ‘Guidelines for Aggregates Provision in England’, 1994, ‘The reclamation of Mineral workings’, 1996, Draft Minerals Planning Policy Guidance Note 6, ‘Draft National and Regional Guidelines for Aggregates Provision in England, 2001-2016’, 2002

 

Explanation

9.32 Applications for oil and gas exploration, appraisal and development will be considered as a mineral operation. Exploration will be supported subject to individual proposals being acceptable in environmental terms, and the potential impact on renewable energy sources within the region.

 

9.33 The need for land-based oil and gas development must be proven. It will be assessed in the context of national energy policy and targets for increasing the amount of energy from renewable sources.

 

9.34 The overall strategy is required to ensure that any proposal will not lead to sporadic or piecemeal development of oil or gas resources which could have harmful environmental effects. The strategy will need to be agreed with the Council. A Restoration and Aftercare Plan should also be agreed with the Council to ensure that land is restored to an adequate standard.

 

Implementation

9.35 This policy will be implemented through the development control process.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

No changes made as a policy dealing with this issue is needed.

 

Policy Links

None

 

Waste

9.36 The policy approach to waste management follows the waste ‘hierarchy’. The waste hierarchy is a tool which ranks different waste management options according to their impact on the environment. Waste reduction is the most environmentally beneficial option, followed by re-use, recycling or composting, energy recovery, then finally disposal. Treated municipal waste will only be sent to landfill as a last resort, although it is acknowledged that it will be the only alternative for certain commercial wastes and will be relied on heavily for disposing of municipal waste in the short to medium term.

 

9.37 There should be facilities to deal with waste in a range of ways, without having to rely on landfill, e.g. recycling and recovery, and treatment of biodegradable waste. However, significant landfill capacity will be required in the short and medium term given the long timescales for new waste management facilities to be developed.

 

9.38 In the North West region, 75% of all waste is currently disposed of to landfill sites and capacity for further landfill is now limited. The EC Landfill Directive requires that the amount of biodegradable^G waste being disposed of to landfill sites should be reduced. The National Waste Strategy sets targets to comply with this.

 

9.39 A Waste Management Technical Report has been produced in response to both the EC Directive and the National Waste Strategy. The report and the subsequent consultation process will be used to produce a Regional Waste Strategy. A medium term waste strategy for Merseyside is already emerging.

 

9.40 The aim of that document will be to reduce dependency on landfill sites by promoting a reduction in the amount of waste produced and increasing the re-use, recycling, composting and recovery of waste. A joint Merseyside Municipal Waste Management Strategy has been developed, which seeks to reduce the annual rate of growth of municipal waste, recycle and compost 44% and develop waste treatment facilities to manage the remaining waste. There will be an increasing demand for new types of facilities for managing waste and the materials collected separately for recycling. These will have significant implications for the use of land.

 

9.41 In Sefton, 81% of municipal waste is disposed of to landfill - 19% is recycled or composted. The Council has set targets to recycle or compost 35% of Sefton’s waste by 2010 and 40% by 2020. This will involve a change to how household waste is collected. These targets are in line with proposed Government targets to recycle or compost 40% of household waste by 2010 and 50% by 2020, taking account of the maximum potential recycling performance in Sefton’s densely populated urban areas.

 

9.42 Additional waste treatment facilities will need to be developed within Merseyside to manage its municipal solid waste which amounts to nearly 900,000 tonnes per year. It is not possible to categorically state the number of new facilities that will be required in Sefton to deal with municipal waste, in order to reduce dependency on landfill. However, estimates for Merseyside are shown in figure 9.4 below. Sefton will need to contribute its share of these facilities alongside the other Merseyside districts.

 

Figure 9.4 Estimated number of facilities and residual landfill requirements for Municipal Waste in Merseyside – to 2020

 

Capacity of Composting Facilities required (tonnes per year)	120,000
Capacity of Material Recovery Facilities required (tonnes per year)	350,000
Capacity of Thermal Facilities required (tonnes per year)	400,000
Residual Landfill Capacity requirement (‘000s cubic metres)	6750

Source: Regional Waste Strategy, North West Regional Assembly, September 2004.

 

9.43 In addition to the requirements for municipal waste, there is a requirement for the industrial and commercial sectors to minimise waste produced and their dependency on landfill. North West landfill capacity is running out and at current rates of use will be exhausted in five years. The development of Regional Spatial Strategy and the joint Merseyside Waste Development Plan Document will provide further clarification on the potential number and broad locations of new facilities that may need to address the landfill capacity requirement for all types of waste.

 

9.44 It is likely that both the municipal and the industrial and commercial sectors will apply for planning permissions at locations where there is market demand. The Council is already receiving more planning applications for non-municipal waste management facilities.

 

Explanation

9.45 The National Waste Strategy sets out the principle of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) on which waste management decisions should be based. This promotes the waste management approach, or mix of approaches, that provides the most benefits or the least damage to the environment as a whole, at acceptable cost in the long term as well as the short term.

 

9.46 The National Waste Strategy outlines the key factors which need to be taken into account when determining fit with SEA:

 

• the waste hierarchy - which advocates that in order of preference waste should be reduced, re-used, processed to recover material and/or energy and, as a last resort, the residual amount disposed of to landfill;

   

• the proximity principle - that waste should generally be disposed of as near as possible to where it has been produced;

   

• regional self-sufficiency - the general aim in managing waste should be that each Region deals with its own waste.

   

Implementation

9.47 This policy will be implemented through the development control process.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

No changes made as location of facilities is covered by other Plan policies.

 

Policy Links

RSS policies -
EQ4 Principles Governing a Regional Approach to Sustainable Waste Management
EQ5 A Regional Approach to Waste Management
EQ6 Waste Management Facilities

 

Background documents

PPS10, Planning for Sustainable Waste Management, ODPM 2005; PPS10 Companion Guide, DCLG, 2006; National Waste Strategy, DETR, May 2000 and consultation for revision 2006; Regional Waste Management Technical Report, North West Regional Assembly, July 2001. North West Regional Assembly Draft Regional Waste Strategy, July 2003.

 

Explanation

9.48 The waste management facilities include; recycling (including civic amenity ‘bring sites’), reclamation and waste transfer stations, recyclate processing facilities, along with open and ‘in vessel’ composting, waste water treatment and energy from waste³ facilities. These have similar requirements to other industrial uses. Such facilities usually require high numbers of deliveries and collections and involve noisy operations, and are therefore acceptable in principle within industrial areas.

 

9.49 Recycling, reclamation and waste transfer stations will not be acceptable in locations where they are likely to have a detrimental impact on existing industries, particularly food manufacturing and high technology activities. It is therefore preferable that recycling, reclamation and waste transfer stations are, wherever possible, located adjacent to each other, providing that such uses are compatible with other policies in the Plan.

 

9.50 If the Borough is to achieve its composting targets, additional facilities will be required. Open composting must be undertaken away from occupied premises at a distance to be agreed by the Council and the Environment Agency. It may therefore be acceptable for aerobic composting⁴ to take place on a small scale within the countryside e.g. on farms, so long as any associated structures do not affect the openness of the Green Belt (refer to Policy GBC2). Composting may also be acceptable in association with landfill sites.

 

9.51 Open air composting facilities not only require planning permission, but they also require a waste management licence (or an exemption from licensing) issued by the Environment Agency. Due to the production of bio-aerosols⁵ during aerobic, open air composting, the Environment Agency will not normally issue a licence if open air composting facilities are located within 250 metres of a workplace or the boundary of a dwelling, unless an assessment has been carried out which proves that facility will not pose a safety risk to adjacent uses.

 

9.52 Any composting process that involves catering and/or kitchen waste from householders must be carried out in line with the latest government guidance and legislation. This usually requires composting within enclosed vessels. This is necessary to avoid the risk of spreading infectious diseases such as Foot and Mouth.

 

9.53 The amount of waste that is recycled and recovered can be increased by incorporating sorting, storage and collection facilities, and technologies that allow energy and nutrient recovery, as part of waste management operations. Incorporating these types of practices and technologies into waste management facilities can help to ensure that waste is managed in a sustainable manner.

 

9.54 Where such technologies and working practices are not incorporated within proposals, applicants must demonstrate why these methods are not technically or economically viable.

 

9.55 To make sure that the environmental effects of waste management facilities are fully considered, proposals must be accompanied by an Operations Statement (figure 9.5) and, where appropriate, a Restoration and Aftercare Plan (figure 9.6).

 

Implementation

9.56 This policy will be implemented through the development control process.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

Minor changes to policy wording for clarity.

 

Policy Links

EDT5 Primarily Industrial Areas;
GBC2 Development in the Green Belt.
GBC6 Landscape Character
EP1 Managing Environmental Risk
AD1 Location of Development.

 

 

Explanation

9.57 Even if more waste is recycled or re-used there will still be a need for landfill^G sites to dispose of residual waste. Possibilities for further landfill^G sites in Sefton are limited for a number of reasons: nearness to where people live, the presence of aquifers^G and other important water resources, the quality of agricultural land, extensive areas of nature conservation value and the extent of the Green Belt.

 

9.58 Proposals for landfill sites should include:

 

• the means for energy recovery within the landfill operations, this will typically be through methane collection^G, extraction and burning;

   

• temporary restoration scheme which may include temporary composting activities.

   

9.59 Temporary restoration schemes are needed because when filling stops, it takes time for material to break down biologically and to settle. A temporary restoration scheme will therefore need to include details on how any damage caused as the site settles can be rectified before the site is finally restored.

 

Implementation

9.60 This policy will be implemented through the development control process.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

No changes made as policy must be read alongside Policy EMW6 ‘Waste Management Strategy’.

 

Policy Links

None

 

Explanation

9.61 It makes sense to include recycling facilities within retail and other major developments which have their own car parks and generate a large number of trips. This will make the most of opportunities for recycling close to people’s homes, and in locations that are accessible by cycle, foot, or car. It also encourages a journey which is combined with other purposes.

 

Implementation

9.62 This policy will be implemented through the development control process.

 

Sustainability Appraisal

No changes needed.

 

Policy Links

None

 

Background documents

None

 

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¹ Under the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment)(England and Wales) Regulations 1999

 

² This refers to unimplemented planning permissions for extracting materials.

 

³ Energy from Waste involves energy from waste by burning. This can include incineration with energy recovery, or newer technologies such as pyrolysis, anaerobic digestion and gasification.

 

⁴ The biological breakdown of organic matter in the presence of oxygen.

 

⁵ Bioaerosols are micro-organisms and/or other tiny biological particles suspended in air (an aerosol of tiny biological particles). Respirable and generally invisible.

 

⁶ Water that has become contaminated by percolating through waste, or other materials used in waste management operations

 

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