Development for Coal Bed Methane
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THIS REPORT RELATES STIRLING COUNCIL TO ITEM 3 ON THE AGENDA PLANNING & REGULATION PANEL ECONOMY, PLANNING & REGULATION 28 NOVEMBER 2013 NOT EXEMPT DEVELOPMENT FOR COAL BED METHANE PRODUCTION, INCLUDING DRILLING, WELL SITE ESTABLISHMENT AT 14 LOCATIONS (ONLY SITES D, E AND G WITHIN STIRLING COUNCIL AREA), INTER-SITE CONNECTION SERVICES, SITE ACCESS TRACKS, A GAS DELIVERY AND WATER TREATMENT FACILITY, ANCILLARY FACILITIES, INFRASTRUCTURE AND ASSOCIATED WATER OUTFALL POINT NEAR LETHAM AT LAND 230 METRES SOUTH OF POWDRAKE FARMHOUSE, POWDRAKE ROAD NEAR AIRTH, PLEAN - DART ENERGY - 12/00576/FUL 1 SUMMARY 1.1 In August 2012, Dart Energy submitted a planning application for the above proposal. This application is part of a larger proposal for which the applicants submitted a similar application to Falkirk Council at the same time. 1.2 When neither application had been determined by early summer this year, the applicants elected to appeal to Department of Planning and Environmental Appeals (DPEA) against the non-determination of the planning applications by the respective Planning Authorities. 1.3 Once the Appeal had been lodged the Reporter advised that the Councils work with the appellant to produce a joint statement explaining what technical matters could be agreed and which remain unresolved. The objective behind this requirement was to minimise the areas of disagreement between the parties such that the Appeal Inquiry sessions can concentrate on any outstanding areas of dispute. 1.4 The joint statement requires to be lodged by 29 November 2013. This report seeks to resolve: (a) the Panel’s position on the joint statement which has been produced; and (b) the Panel’s view on the planning application such that Officers can advise DPEA of Stirling Council’s position in the forthcoming Appeal. 2 OFFICER RECOMMENDATION(S) The Panel agrees: 2.1 to note and adopt the findings of the joint statement (Appendix 1 - to be tabled on the day of the meeting) and to advise the Directorate of Planning and Environmental Appeals accordingly. 2.2 that in light of the content of the joint statement, Officers attend the forthcoming Appeal articulating that Stirling Council opposes the grant of planning permission on the basis that there are outstanding matters in respect of the environmental effects on hydrological and gas emission receptors where there has been insufficient information forthcoming and on that basis, the precautionary principle applies. 2.3 to advise DPEA that there are no objections on planning policy grounds to the matters subject of the Appeal but that it is noted that licences will require to be sought by the appellants from the appropriate regulatory authorities with regards to the matters of drilling and construction of boreholes, abstraction of water and discharge of water. 3 CONSIDERATIONS The Site 3.1 The site is located at Letham Moss, approximately 450 metres north of Stenhousemuir, in a generally flat agricultural landscape. The wider site straddles the M876 motorway, with the majority of it to the north and within the Falkirk Council Local Authority Area. 3.2 The three well sites within the Stirling Council area (G, D, E) are to the west of the application area, north west of Letham Moss. Well site G and the Gas Delivery and Water Treatment Facility will be accessed from the road passing Powside and Powdrake Farm and the road north of Powbridge will be used to access sites D and E. The Proposal 3.3 The proposal seeks full planning permission for development for coal bed methane production. The extraction of coal bed methane in this process requires drilling, well site establishment at 3 locations in Stirling (of 14 total) discrete locations and interconnection services, site access tracks and a gas delivery and water treatment facility. The initial drilling stage will require a larger area and will have more equipment present on site. However, the production phase will have a much smaller land take, with a lot of the equipment being removed at this stage. According to the applicants, the production phase is expected to last up to 30 years. The sites will largely be unmanned. Drilling operations are anticipated to typically take approximately 90 days per horizontal borehole and 14 days per vertical production borehole. Prior to connection to the Gas Delivery and Water Treatment Facility, production well sites typically accommodate a water storage tank, a generator, water and gas pipework and valves, a 14 metre high gas vent stack approximately 10 centimetres in diameter and a car park area. Once connected to the established Gas Delivery and Water Treatment Facility, the generators, water storage tanks and the gas vent would be removed. 3.4 The Gas Delivery and Water Treatment Facility is the largest aspect of the application within the Council area in terms of surface land take and extends to just over 4 acres. Development of the facility will consist of an office building, water treatment plant, compressors, a control room, ancillary buildings, hardstanding, bunding, car parking and various equipment including generators. It is likely that although the site will operate continuously, only a small handful of staff will use the site as a base during office hours. 3.5 The application site includes borehole trajectories under the ground at a depth of around 1kilometre and all access tracks. The boreholes themselves are indicative of the general direction of boring. The bores will compromise 6- inch holes and are shown wider on the plan than they actually will be so they show up on a map of useful scale. Previous History 3.6 There is no previous history of relevance in the Stirling Council area. Development Plan Policy Policy Considerations 3.7 As the technology employed in the extraction of coal bed methane is relatively new and evolving, there is little in the way of direct policy guidance for this extraction technique in the current Development Plan. However, there are a few general principles against which such an application could be considered. National Planning Framework (NPF)2 3.8 NPF 2 was published in 2009 and seeks to guide spatial development to 2030 promoting the Scottish Government’s central purpose of promoting sustainable economic development. It highlights there is a growing imbalance between energy supply and demand and states that coal bed methane in Central Scotland could, its estimated, account for 10% of Scotland's gas demand for the next 25 years. It is clearly seen as important fuel source and one where it recommends that Authorities should work together on to create a consistent planning policy framework. Scottish Planning Policy 3.9 Scottish Planning Policy was published in 2010 and states in relation to on shore gas and coal extraction that the aim is to maximise the potential of Scotland's oil and gas reserves in an environmentally acceptable manner as part of a strategy for achieving safe, secure and indigenous energy supply'. In assessing such development, it advises that factors to consider include noise, pollution, natural and historic environment heritage, landscape and visual impacts and traffic impacts. Further, in advising that end products are transported by pipeline and not road, it states that conditions should be attached to the restoration of such sites. Drilling impacts on neighbouring properties are also highlighted as an issue to be considered. Each of the items referred to in the Scottish Planning Policy are all issues that are covered in the Environmental Statement (ES) considered as part of the application. Clackmannanshire and Stirling Structure Plan, March 2002 3.10 SD1 Key Principles of the Plan relate to the sustainable development criteria which sit above all policies throughout the Plan. It is considered that the application complies with this policy in that full account has been taken of impact on the environment through the undertaking of the Environmental Statement and as such all the criteria in the policy are tested through this robust process. The same can be said of ENV1 Nature Conservation, which seeks to ensure the protection and conservation of wildlife, wildlife habitats and other natural features. 3.11 The main relevant policy in this document is Policy ENV 10 Minerals - which provides general principles applicable to all mineral development. The following provides a narrative on each of these criteria: - • Economically important mineral resources will be protected from permanent development. Alternatively, working of minerals in advance of development will be encouraged. • Sites should be close in proximity to the strategic transport network and where possible to rail transport • Cumulative impacts (including impacts on local communities) of proposals will require to be addressed • Restoration proposals will require to be agreed in advance of operations and to be progressive. Preferred after uses for all the sites will be those incorporating ecological enhancement. Restoration bonds will require to be lodged. • Community and/or environmental benefits will be sought if appropriate. • The recycling of materials will be encouraged to help conserve mineral resources. 3.12 Of these criteria in this policy, several are not relevant for this particular mineral extraction process as they would be for say, coal. Starting with criteria 1, the mineral resource is being utilised and the remaining coal is not being sterilised. The site does not have the same necessity of being near a strategic transport network as there is less movement required for this resource than they would be for solid fuel. Transport connections are still important in terms of the movement of construction traffic and staff, however, this is not as important as it would be for daily movements of substantial volumes of coal. 3.13 Cumulative impacts are relevant as there are already seven well heads operated by the developer in the area in the Falkirk Council area.