Minerals and Waste Issues Document
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LEICESTERSHIRE MINERALS AND WASTE LOCAL PLAN Issues Document November 2013 Contents CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................1 MINERALS AND WASTE LOCAL PLAN ..............................................................................................................1 CURRENT LOCAL DEVELOPMENT DOCUMENTS ...............................................................................................1 THE SCOPE AND NATURE OF THIS DOCUMENT ..............................................................................................3 WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?.....................................................................................................................................3 2. WHY ARE THE MINERALS AND WASTE CORE STRATEGIES BEING REVIEWED? .....................................................................................................................................................4 3. SPATIAL CHARACTERISTICS, SPATIAL VISION AND STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES ....................................................................................................................................................7 SPATIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE COUNTY.................................................................................................7 SPATIAL VISION..............................................................................................................................................11 STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES ................................................................................................................................11 4. PROVIDING FOR MINERALS ......................................................................................................14 HOW MUCH AGGREGATE SHOULD LEICESTERSHIRE PROVIDE?...................................................................14 WHERE SHOULD FUTURE SAND AND GRAVEL OPERATIONS BE LOCATED IN THE COUNTY?.......................22 WHERE SHOULD FUTURE CRUSHED ROCK OPERATIONS BE LOCATED IN THE COUNTY?............................25 DO THE POLICIES RELATING TO OTHER MINERALS EXTRACTED WITHIN THE COUNTY NEED AMENDING?28 WHICH MINERAL RESOURCES WITHIN THE COUNTY SHOULD BE PROTECTED FROM STERILISATION?.....34 5. PROVIDING FOR WASTE ..............................................................................................................40 HOW MUCH WASTE NEEDS TO BE MANAGED?...............................................................................................40 WHERE SHOULD FUTURE WASTE MANAGEMENT FACILITIES BE LOCATED?.................................................52 SAFEGUARDING WASTE MANAGEMENT SITES ...............................................................................................54 6. DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT ..................................................................................................56 DO THE EXISTING POLICIES ASSIST IN ACHIEVING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT? ..................................56 DO THE EXISTING POLICIES MEET THE CHALLENGE OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND FLOODING? .....................58 DO THE POLICIES AIMED AT PROTECTING RESIDENTIAL AMENITY AND OTHER SENSITIVE LAND USES NEED AMENDING? ...........................................................................................................................................61 DO THE POLICIES AIMED AT PROTECTING THE NATURAL AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT NEED AMENDING? ..64 DO THE POLICIES RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION NEED AMENDING?.......................................................66 7. RECLAMATION....................................................................................................................................70 DO THE POLICIES RELATING TO THE RECLAMATION AND FUTURE USE OF MINERAL WORKING AND LANDFILL OPERATIONS NEED AMENDING? ....................................................................................................70 APPENDIX 1: WASTE DATA..................................................................................................................78 APPENDIX 2: LIST OF POTENTIAL WASTE SITES FOR SAFEGUARDING .................109 APPENDIX 3: CURRENT MINERALS AND WASTE CORE STRATEGY AND DEVELOPMENT CONTROL POLICIES .............................................................................................116 GLOSSARY....................................................................................................................................................118 i Introduction 1. Introduction Minerals and Waste Local Plan 1.1 Leicestershire County Council is responsible for minerals and waste planning in the administrative area of Leicestershire (outside the City of Leicester). The Council is proposing to review its current planning policies dealing with mineral extraction and waste management. 1.2 Local Plans are to be produced by all local planning authorities. They should address the spatial implications of economic, social and environmental change and set out the opportunities for development and clear policies on what will or will not be permitted and where. 1.3 The ‘Development Framework’ was the previous terminology used for Local Plans before the introduction of the Localism Act 2011. The previous system had advocated the preparation of a portfolio of development plan documents and other local development documents, but the preparation of a single local plan document is now the preferred approach. 1.4 The Leicestershire Minerals and Waste Local Plan will eventually replace the Leicestershire Minerals Core Strategy and Development Control Policies Development Plan Document (DPD), the Leicestershire and Leicester Waste Core Strategy and Development Control Policies DPD (both of which were adopted in October 2009), together with remaining saved policies in the Leicestershire Minerals Local Plan (1995) and the Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland Waste Local Plan (2005). 1.5 Leicester City Council has commenced preparation of a new Local Plan for the City of Leicester and decided to deal with mineral and waste planning issues within the City in that document. This enables the County Council to address minerals and waste issues within the County in one plan. Current Local Development Documents 1.6 The adopted Minerals and Waste Core Strategies include a spatial vision, spatial strategy, strategic objectives, and core policies which set out the key principles to guide the future winning and working of minerals and the form of waste management development in the County. The Development Control Policies set out the criteria against which planning applications for minerals and waste development will be considered. A monitoring framework is included to examine the efficacy and effects of the core strategy and development control policies. 1 Introduction 1.7 The DPDs seek to address the need to provide protection to the environment and the amenity of local residents, whilst ensuring a steady supply of minerals and provision of waste management facilities in accordance with Government policy and society’s needs. They aim to maximise the use of alternative materials in order to reduce the reliance on primary-won minerals, and to significantly increase levels of reuse and recovery of waste and move away from landfill as a means of disposal, having regard to sustainability objectives. They also provide controls relating to the beneficial reinstatement of land following mineral working and landfill operations. 1.8 Other local development documents prepared by the County Council include: A Statement of Community Involvement (SCI), which sets out the standards to be achieved by the County Council in involving the community in the preparation, alteration and continuing review of all development documents and the determination of planning applications. The SCI was formally adopted on 26th January 2007. Leicestershire County Council’s Minerals and Waste Development Scheme (MWDS), which sets out details regarding all of the Development Plan Documents that the Council is preparing, and in particular the proposed timetable for each DPD. A revised MWDS was approved in 2007 and the timetable subsequently updated in 2010. (A programme for the preparation of the Minerals and Waste Local Plan will be drawn up following the current consultation exercise.) An Annual Monitoring Report, which the County Council prepares to review actual plan progress compared with the programme set out in the Development Scheme; assesses the effectiveness of policies in meeting targets; and considers whether policies need adjusting or replacing and if so determines what action should be taken. 1.9 To ensure that development plan documents are prepared with a view to contributing towards sustainable development, they must be subject to appraisal. In addition, the provisions of European Directive 2001/42/EC must be complied with; this requires formal strategic environmental assessment of certain plans and programmes. 1.10 The DPDs are therefore accompanied by a Sustainability Appraisal (SA), which evaluates the social, environmental and economic effects of the strategies and policies of the development plan documents from the outset of the preparation process. This also incorporates a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), as required by European Directive 2001/42/EC, which assesses the development plan documents for any likely significant effects on the environment that may occur. 1.11 The County Council had also proposed to produce two other documents related to