Sea Scoping – Cover Note
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SEA SCOPING – COVER NOTE Cover Page PART 1 To [email protected] SEA Gateway Team Scottish Government Area 2 H (South) Victoria Quay Edinburgh EH6 6QQ PART 2 A SEA Scoping Report is attached for the plan entitled Aberdeenshire Local Development Plan 2021 The Responsible Authority is: Aberdeenshire Council PART 3 Contact Name Pier Blaxter Job Title Team Leader – Policy Planning Contact Address Woodhill House Westburn Road Aberdeen AB16 5GB Contact tel no 01467 532685 Contact email [email protected] Signature P. Blaxter Date 12 January 2019 Contents Cover Page ................................................................................................................ 1 1 Interim Environmental Report Non-Technical Summary ................................ 4 1.1 Purpose of this Environmental Report and key stages ................................. 4 1.2 Previous Steps .............................................................................................. 4 1.3 The Context of the Strategy .......................................................................... 5 1.4 Baseline/Evolution, Characteristics of Areas & Environmental Problems ..... 6 1.5 Assessment of Effects .................................................................................. 7 1.6 Broad Mitigation Measures ........................................................................... 9 1.7 Monitoring ................................................................................................... 12 1.8 How to Comment on the Report .................................................................. 12 2 Outcomes from ALDP 2012, ALDP 2017 and related PPS .............................. 13 2.1 Outcomes from ALDP 2012, ALDP 2017 and SDP 2014 ............................ 13 2.2 Significant baseline changes since the ALDP 2012 .................................... 18 3 The Main Report – Purpose of this Environmental Report and key facts .... 20 3.1 SEA activities to date................................................................................ 22 4 Outline and objectives of the Main Issues Report ........................................ 23 4.1 Background ............................................................................................... 23 4.2 Proposed Strategic Development Plan Spatial Strategy ...................... 23 4.3 ALDP Settlement Strategy ....................................................................... 25 4.4 ALDP Vision and Objectives .................................................................... 25 4.5 ALDP Policies and Supplementary Guidance ....................................... 26 4.6 ALDP Site Allocations ................................................................................ 39 5 The Context of Aberdeenshire Proposed ALDP (MIR) ................................... 40 5.1 Relationship with other PPS and environmental protection objectives ............................................................................................................. 40 5.2 Relevant aspects of the current state of the environment .................. 44 5.3 Likely evolution of the environment ........................................................ 44 5.4 Environmental problems .......................................................................... 47 6 Assessment, General difficulties, Mitigation and Monitoring ...................... 52 6.1 Assessment of the ALDP 2021 Main Issues Report .................................. 52 6.2 General difficulties, weakness and limitations ....................................... 52 6.3 Characteristics of Areas likely to be significantly affected .................. 53 6.4 Cumulative Effect Assessment ................................................................ 59 6.5 Habitats Regulations Appraisal ............................................................... 60 6.6 Proposed Mitigation Measures ................................................................ 60 6.7 Monitoring ................................................................................................. 73 7 Next Steps ........................................................................................................ 82 7.1 Proposed Consultation Timescale .......................................................... 82 7.2 Anticipated Milestones ............................................................................ 82 8 Appendices ...................................................................................................... 83 Appendix 8.1 Analysis of Consultations ................................................................ 83 2 Appendix 8.2: Other Relevant Plans and Environmental Protection Objectives ............................................................................................................... 92 Appendix 8.3: Baseline ......................................................................................... 105 Appendix 8.3.1: SEA Topic - Air ........................................................................ 105 Appendix 8.3.2: SEA Topic - Water .................................................................. 107 Appendix 8.3.3: SEA Topic - Climatic Factors................................................. 121 Appendix 8.3.4: SEA Topic - Soil....................................................................... 125 Appendix 8.3.5: SEA Topic - Biodiversity, Flora and Fauna ........................... 130 Appendix 8.3.6: SEA Topic - Landscape ......................................................... 137 Appendix 8.3.7: SEA Topic - Material Assets................................................... 142 Appendix 8.3.8: SEA Topic - Population .......................................................... 145 Appendix 8.3.9: SEA Topic - Human Health .................................................... 147 Appendix 8.3.10: SEA Topic - Cultural Heritage ............................................. 151 Appendix 8.3.11: Maps ..................................................................................... 153 Appendix 8.4: Assessment of the ALDP’s vision, spatial strategy and policies ................................................................................................................... 163 8.4.1 Vision ......................................................................................................... 163 8.4.2 Spatial Strategy ......................................................................................... 166 8.4.3 Policies and supplementary guidance .................................................. 169 Appendix 8.5: Assessment of the Main Issue Report bids and existing ALDP sites ......................................................................................................................... 261 Table 8.5.1: Assessment of Site-specific Allocations and Bids – Banff and Buchan ............................................................................................................... 261 Table 8.5.2: Assessment of Site-specific Allocations and Bids – Buchan ...... 293 Table 8.5.3: Assessment of Site-specific Allocations and Bids – Formartine . 342 Table 8.5.4: Assessment of Site-specific Allocations and Bids – Garioch ..... 398 Table 8.5.5: Assessment of Site-specific Allocations and Bids – Kincardine and Mearns ........................................................................................................ 448 Table 8.5.6: Assessment of Site-specific Allocations and Bids – Marr ........... 510 Appendix 8.6: Cumulative Effect Assessment .................................................... 555 9 Acronyms ....................................................................................................... 571 3 1 Interim Environmental Report Non-Technical Summary 1.1 Purpose of this Environmental Report and key stages We (Aberdeenshire Council) have written this Interim Environmental Report (“the report”) for the Aberdeenshire Local Development Plan 2021 (ALDP) under the Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005. The process taken to write this report is called Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). The reason for undertaking SEA is to address all the effects that a plan, programme or strategy (PPS) is likely to have on the environment. The overall aim of the process is to protect the environment. Throughout this SEA process we have taken the views of others into account before coming to final decisions. The key stages of this SEA are pre-screening, screening, scoping, the environmental report and the post-adoption statement. At the third stage, we scope a plan to set out how much information should be in an environmental report and how long we will consult with others on the report. In the environmental report, during the fourth stage, we show how we assess the effects of a plan on the environment; how we could address those effects through a process called mitigation; and how we will monitor any significant effects of the plan on the environment. When we address the concerns of everyone through consultations before adopting the plan, we must inform everyone about what difference the SEA process and their views have made to the final plan. And we do this through a post-adoption statement as the last stage. This is the fourth stage, we have prepared an Interim Environmental Report, which accompanies the Main Issues Report. 1.2 Previous Steps Screening Screening determines if a plan, programme or strategy should be subject to SEA. However, the Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005 requires that the