FINNINGLEY QUARRY EXTENSION Finningley Proposed 56 Hectare
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FINNINGLEY QUARRY EXTENSION Finningley Proposed 56 hectare Extension Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment December 2013 FINNINGLEY QUARRY EXTENSION Finningley Proposed 56 hectare Extension Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment December 2013 Prepared by: Sarah Brooks CMLI Brooks Landscape Architecture Tel: 07582 470459 Email: [email protected] Prepared for: Lafarge Tarmac Southfield Lane Whitwell Worksop Nottinghamshire S80 3LJ © Sarah Brooks 2013 No part of this document may be reproduced by any means without the prior permission of the author. Finningley Quarry Extension - Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment BLA _______________________________________________________________________________________ FINNINGLEY QUARRY EXTENSION Finningley Proposed 56 hectare Extension Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment December 2013 CONTENTS 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Approach and Methods 1 1.3 Site Description and Development Proposals 4 1.4 Regulatory / Policy Framework 7 1.5 Baseline Conditions 12 1.6 Potential Effects and Mitigation 22 1.7 Significance of Landscape and Visual Effects 24 1.8 Summary 27 Appendix 1 Landscape and Visual Assessment Criteria Appendix 2 Landscape Impact Assessment Table Appendix 3 Visual Impact Assessment Table Appendix 4 Figures and Plates Figure 1 Landscape Context Figure 2 Landscape Character Figure 3 Visual Impact Assessment Plates 1 to 5 Viewpoints 1 to 10 _____________________________________________________________________________________ LVIA report (finala)/ December 2013 Finningley Quarry Extension - Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment BLA _______________________________________________________________________________________ 1.1 Introduction 1.1.1 A landscape and visual impact assessment (LVIA) has been undertaken as part of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to accompany a planning application by LafargeTarmac (the Applicant) for a 56 hectare (ha) extension to the existing Finningley Quarry sand and gravel pit (also referred to as the ‘Application Area’) near Doncaster. Finningley Quarry lies approximately 0.6km to the south-east of the edge of the village of Finningley and straddles Fiftyeights Road which defines the administrative boundary between Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council (DMBC) and Nottinghamshire County Council (NCC) (refer to Figure 1 Landscape Context). The planning application and associated Environmental Statement for the proposed extension will be submitted to DMBC and NCC as the Mineral Planning Authorities (MPA) for the Application Area. 1.1.2 The existing planning consents (references 1/32/02/00017 and 02/4515/P/MIN A) at Finningley Quarry allow for the extraction of sand and gravel from several dispersed phases of working and transportation to the processing plant and stocking areas which are located in the western part of the site. Consented Phases 28 and 30 have yet to be worked. The proposed extension comprises five distinct new phases (Phases 25, 26, 27, 29 and 31) which are located between the existing consented phases and it is anticipated that sand and gravel will be extracted in sequence from the proposed and consented (but as yet unworked) phases. Extracted material will continue to be transported to and processed at the existing plant site. A degree of landscape and visual intrusion therefore currently exists and forms the baseline for the assessment, and may change during the extended life of the quarry. Proposals for the quarry extension also include restoration and aftercare schemes which have informed the current LVIA 1.1.3 The LVIA considers both the landscape and the visual effects of the proposed development which are two distinct but related areas. Landscape effects may result from the physical changes brought about by development due to the loss or alteration of landscape elements such as trees, hedges or buildings, or the introduction of new elements, and may have consequent effects on setting and landscape character. Visual effects relate to changes to the views experienced by people within the landscape and the overall visual amenity (the pleasantness of a view). 1.1.4 The LVIA describes the existing site and proposed scheme, the landscape character and visual amenity context of the study area, and identifies the landscape policy framework relevant to the proposed development. The significance of future effects on the landscape character and visual amenity of the surrounding area is assessed in accordance with current guidance, and where necessary recommendations are made for mitigation measures to avoid, reduce or compensate for unacceptable adverse landscape and visual effects. The LVIA has been undertaken by a Chartered Landscape Architect with experience of similar assessments. 1.2 Approach and Methods Guidance 1.2.1 The assessment has been undertaken in accordance with the following published guidance and the methodology described in Appendix 1: _____________________________________________________________________________________ LVIA report (finala)/ December 2013 Page 1 Finningley Quarry Extension - Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment BLA _______________________________________________________________________________________ Guidelines for Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment, 3rd Edition (2013) (GLVIA3) Landscape Institute and the Institute for Environmental Management and Assessment Landscape Character Assessment: Guidance for England and Scotland (2002) Countryside Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage Terminology 1.2.2 A Glossary is provided at the end of the report. Some terms are used frequently throughout the report and are defined below (drawn from the CA/SNH and LI/IEMA guidance): ‘Landscape character’ is the distinct, recognisable and consistent pattern of elements in the landscape that makes one landscape different from another rather than better or worse, and which creates a particular sense of place; An ‘impact’ is the action arising from a proposed development whilst an ‘effect’ is the change resulting from an impact. An effect can be positive, negative or neutral; ‘Landscape receptors’ are elements of the landscape resource such as trees and buildings, or landscape character, with the potential to be affected by the proposals; ‘visual receptors’ are individuals / groups of people with views of the changes brought about by development; The ‘sensitivity’ of a landscape or visual receptor is the combination of the susceptibility of the receptor to the specific type of change occurring and the value attributed to that receptor; The ‘magnitude’ of a proposed change is the combination of the size and scale, geographical extent, duration and reversibility of the effects brought about by proposed development; ‘Mitigation’ is the avoidance or reduction of the adverse effects of development, or the provision of compensation to offset unavoidable adverse effects; and Finally, the ‘significance’ of an effect reflects both the sensitivity of the receptor and the magnitude of change likely to occur, and is a measure of the importance or gravity of the environmental effect. Significant effects generally result in change which is unacceptable. Consultation 1.2.3 A Scoping Request was submitted on behalf of the Applicant to DMBC and NCC in August 2012 and included a brief description of the existing landscape context of the Application Area and proposed approach to assessing the landscape and visual effects of the proposals. The resultant Scoping Opinion included comments from a range of statutory consultees which in relation to landscape and visual interests included the following key issues: the need to consider relevant national and local planning policy; the need to take account of local landscape character, and relevant management plans and strategies; the need to consider potential impacts on land to which the public has access; the need to consider the potential cumulative effect of the proposed extension and other existing and known proposed development on landscape and visual amenity; _____________________________________________________________________________________ LVIA report (finala)/ December 2013 Page 2 Finningley Quarry Extension - Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment BLA _______________________________________________________________________________________ the need to provide a detailed restoration plan illustrating the restored landform and the proposed afteruses, and to consider potential opportunities for overall wildlife gain and public access, specifically the creation of areas of new acid grassland and heathland. 1.2.4 No consultation with other stakeholders has been undertaken during the LVIA. Approach to the Assessment 1.2.5 The assessment follows a sequential approach whereby first the sensitivity of the landscape or visual receptor and the magnitude of change brought about by the proposed development are determined and then combined to determine the significance of an effect. The assessment criteria at Appendix 1 are used as guide to ensure a rigorous and transparent process to which professional judgement is ultimately applied. The findings of the assessment are fully discussed in the relevant sections of the report with any deviation from the stated criteria explained. 1.2.6 Appendices 2 and 3 comprise detailed assessment tables for the anticipated landscape and visual effects associated with the proposed extension and progressive restoration of the Application Area. The assessment refers to plans and photographs which accompany the report at Appendix 4. 1.2.7