Planning for the Protection of European Sites: Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA) / Appropriate Assessment (AA)
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Planning for the Protection of European Sites: Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA) / Appropriate Assessment (AA) Evidence Gathering / Baseline Report (Update 1) (May 2009) Gloucestershire Minerals & Waste Development Framework 1 Contents Page Section 1: Introduction 3 International / European Sites – An Introduction 3 An Updated Report 3 Background to Evidence Gathering for HRA 4 Updated List of Consultees 5 Other Plans and Projects 6 HRA Reports: Methodology 7 Section 2: European sites in Gloucestershire and within 15km of its administrative boundary 9 Rodborough Common 9 Dixton Wood 11 Wye Valley and Forest of Dean Bat Sites 13 River Wye 16 Wye Valley Woodlands 19 North Meadow and Clattinger Farm 22 Cotswold Beechwoods 24 Bredon Hill 27 Walmore Common 29 Severn Estuary 31 Avon Gorge Woodlands 37 Section 3: Conclusion and Contact Details 39 Appendix 1: Original Evidence Gathering / Baseline Report: List of Consultees and Responses 40 Appendix 2: Indicative Locations of Waste Management Facilities in Gloucestershire 44 Appendix 3: The Spatial Distribution of Active Mineral Sites in Gloucestershire 45 1 European sites in and within 15km of Gloucestershire’s boundary 2 Section 1: Introduction International / European Sites - An Introduction The EU Natura 2000 network provides ecological infrastructure for the protection of sites which are of exceptional importance in respect of rare, endangered or vulnerable natural habitats and species within the European Union. These sites, which are also referred to as „European sites‟ consist of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Offshore Marine Sites (OMS). Note: there are no OMS designated at present. Ramsar sites (Internationally Important Wetlands) are treated as it they were European sites in accordance with the Government‟s policy statement of November 2000 and the DEFRA Circular 01/2005 (paragraph 5). The European sites in Gloucestershire or within a radius of 15km of its administrative boundary are: Rodborough Common SAC – (Stroud) Dixton Wood SAC – (Tewkesbury) Wye Valley and Forest of Dean Bat Sites SAC – (Forest of Dean, Monmouthshire) River Wye SAC – (Forest of Dean, Monmouthshire, Herefordshire, Powys) Wye Valley Woodlands SAC – (Forest of Dean, Monmouthshire, Herefordshire) North Meadow and Clattinger Farm SAC – (Wiltshire) Cotswold Beechwoods SAC – (Stroud, Cotswold, Tewkesbury) Bredon Hill SAC – (Worcestershire) Walmore Common SPA, Ramsar – (Forest of Dean) Severn Estuary SPA, SAC, Ramsar – (Stroud, Forest of Dean, South Gloucestershire, Monmouthshire, Bristol City, North Somerset, Newport, Cardiff, Vale of Glamorgan) Avon Gorge Woodlands SAC – (City of Bristol) The purpose of Appropriate Assessment (AA) of land use plans is to ensure that the protection of the integrity of European sites is a part of the planning process at a regional and local level. (Note: AA is a later stage within a process called Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA) or sometimes referred to as Habitats Directive Assessment (HDA). The requirements for AA of plans or projects is outlined in Article 6(3) and (4) of the European Communities (1992) Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (“Habitats Directive”). The Directive applies a precautionary principle, and plans can only be permitted once it has been shown that there will be no adverse effect on the integrity of the European sites in question. It is possible that plans may still be permitted if there is a lack of viable alternatives and there are imperative reasons of overriding public interest as to why they should go ahead. Previous rulings show that these cases are rare and in this scenario compensatory measures will need to be implemented to ensure the overall integrity of the site network. An Updated Report This report is an Evidence Gathering / Baseline Report. It updates the previous Evidence Gathering / Baseline Report which was consulted on for 5 weeks from the 6th November 2006 to the 4th January 2007. This original report as well as other HRA documents related to the Gloucestershire Minerals & Waste Development Framework (MWDF) can be viewed on-line at: www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/hra This updated report will inform a HRA Screening Report which will assess policies and sites in the Gloucestershire Waste Core Strategy (WCS) Site Options document which is due to be consulted on in August / September 2009. Why is there a need for an updated HRA Evidence Gathering / Baseline Report? Below are a number of reasons: The original HRA Baseline Report was consulted on when both the WCS and the Minerals Core Strategy (MCS) did not contain sites. Following the consultation on Gloucestershire‟s WCS Preferred Options (31st January to 13th March 2008) Government Office for the South West (GOSW) recommended that strategic sites for the management of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) should be included in the WCS. Up to this point 3 the Waste Planning Authority (WPA) had been following guidance in Planning Policy Statement 12 (PPS12 - 2004) that Core Strategies should not include sites, and as advised by GOSW. However a revision to PPS12 was published in June 2008, and this states (at Para 4.6) that Core Strategies may now contain sites for strategic development proposals. Gloucestershire County Council has accepted that the WCS will now need to include strategic sites in order to proceed to adoption. As the WCS is now considering strategic sites, the HRA will have to consider the potential range of waste technologies that could be employed on these sites. In considering potential sites and technologies consultees will have the opportunity to address the issue of potential in-combination effects. Note: these issues are merely being „flagged up‟ to consultees in this report, the HRA Screening report on the WCS Site Options documents will contain the detail with regard to site locations, waste technology ranges and associated buffer zones (in consultation with Natural England) from European sites. Technical / definitional points need updating e.g. candidate SACs are now confirmed SACs and the Severn Estuary is now a confirmed SAC as well as an SPA and Ramsar site. The original 2007 HRA Evidence Gathering / Baseline Report provided information on sites in and close to Gloucestershire. For the purposes of this report „close to‟ has been defined as within a 15km radius of Gloucestershire‟s administrative boundary. This means that an additional site has been added namely: Avon Gorge Woodlands SAC which (according to digital GIS buffering measurements) is just within 15km of the extreme south west of Gloucestershire, i.e. the estuary at Beachley Point. Local authority changes, e.g. Wiltshire and Swindon are now both unitary authorities. Housing figures for Gloucestershire and other baseline data needs to be updated. An updated report gives consultees a fresh opportunity to make comments on any changes to relevant plans, projects and programmes that have occurred since early 2007 e.g. housing requirements for Gloucestershire need updating. These changes can then be reflected in HRA Screening Reports and AA Reports (if required). Background to Evidence Gathering for Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA) The Gloucestershire MWDF Sustainability Appraisal (SA) Framework (comprising the SA Context Report and the SA Scoping Report)* contains a large volume of environmental data and specifically details the sites and species protected under the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) and the Birds Directive (79/409/EEC). Thus the evidence gathering process for HRA started with, and is linked to the SA Framework process. *All original and updated SA Reports are available at the following website address: www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/sa The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) Draft Guidance on HRA/AA (August 2006) states (on page 8) that it would be best practice to collect information for HRA/AA, especially in relation to: 1. European sites within and outside the plan area potentially affected; 2. The characteristics of these European sites; 3. Their conservation objectives; and 4. Other relevant plans or projects. In accordance with this guidance the following (above) information (1 – 4) was presented for scrutiny by Natural England as the statutory consultee in November of 2006. It was also presented to the following: Authorities in which the site is located; Authorities whose plans and projects may potentially have an impact on European sites; and Organisations that have particular environmental interests in the listed European sites. Consultees were sent the report via email or they received a printed copy where the email address was not available. The report was also made available to all stakeholders and member of the public on Gloucestershire County Council‟s website. The original consultation list for the 2007 HRA Evidence Gathering / Baseline Report is contained in Appendix 1, along with the consultation responses. 4 Updated List of Consultees The following is the slightly amended list of consultees. It takes into account some recent changes to Local Authorities and the need to include all sites which are within 15km of Gloucestershire‟s boundary. Authorities in Gloucestershire District / Borough / City European Site Cheltenham Borough Council / Cotswold District Council Cotswold Beechwoods SAC Forest of Dean District Council Wye Valley & Forest of Dean Bat Sites SAC River Wye SAC Severn Estuary SAC, SPA/Ramsar Wye Valley Woodlands SAC Walmore