Minerals Topic Paper August 2013
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Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council Local Development Plan 2011 –2026 Minerals Topic Paper August 2013 www.npt.gov.uk/ldp Contents 1 Introduction 1 2013) 2 Background 3 3 Policy Context: National, Regional & Local 5 (August Paper 3.1 National Policy Context 5 opic T 3.2 Regional Policy Context 8 Minerals 3.3 Local Policy Context 10 - 4 Current Situation and Trends 13 LDP 5 Summary of Consultation Responses 21 Deposit 6 Issues to be Addressed 27 7 Objectives 43 8 Strategic Policy Development 45 9 Detailed Policy Development 51 Appendices A National Minerals Map of Wales 1 B Aggregate Safeguarding Map of Wales 3 C Mineral Operations in Neath Port Talbot 5 D Crushed Rock Landbank Calculations 9 E Marine Aggregate Dredging Licences & Applications 13 F Safeguarding of Coal Resources 15 G Petroleum Exploration Licences in Neath Port Talbot 17 Contents Deposit LDP - Minerals Topic Paper (August 2013) 1 . Introduction 1 Introduction 2013) 1.0.1 This topic paper is one of a range of papers prepared to offer more detailed information and to provide an explanation of the approach taken in the Local (August Development Plan (LDP) in relation to different topics and issues affecting the County Paper opic Borough. T 1.0.2 This paper specifically considers Minerals. Minerals - 1.0.3 A previous version of this paper was published at the Pre-Deposit consultation LDP stage in September 2011. The Pre-Deposit consultation was the first statutory stage of the LDP and set out the Council's overall Preferred Strategy. Following the Deposit consultation, the comments received have been taken into account and the topic papers have been amended accordingly. 1.0.4 The Deposit Plan consultation is the second statutory stage of the plan and allows a further period of formal public consultation. Comments received at this stage will be considered by an Independent Planning Inspector who will hold an Examination in Public into the Plan. If the Inspector considers the Plan to be 'sound' it will be recommended for adoption and once adopted it will supersede the current Neath Port Talbot Unitary Development Plan (UDP) and be the primary document for use in the determination of planning applications. 1.0.5 This topic paper can be read in isolation or in conjunction with the other topic papers and background papers that have been prepared to give a full picture of Neath Port Talbot(1). 1 1 The information contained within this Topic Paper is correct as of the date sent to print. oduction Intr . 1 - Minerals Topic Paper (August 2013) LDP Deposit 2 2 . Background 2 Background 2013) 2.0.1 Minerals are a natural and finite resource and are fundamental to ensuring the nation's prosperity and quality of life. Sands, gravels, crushed rocks, chalks and (August clays provide the construction industry with the raw materials to build and maintain Paper opic buildings, transport and other infrastructure. Coal, oil and gas are vital sources of T energy supply, which enable us to produce electricity and heat. Furthermore, minerals are an important element in the production of plastics, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals Minerals and glass, in the treatment of sewage and in the protection of the coast from coastal - erosion. LDP 2.0.2 If society is to maintain its current standard of living, it is essential that there Deposit is an adequate and steady supply of minerals consistent with the current policy emphasis upon the re-use and recycling of suitable waste materials and that we conserve the resources which we hold in trust for future generations. 2.0.3 Minerals can only be worked where they occur, a fact which often leads to conflict with other land uses and with environmental considerations since the geological processes which gave rise to mineral resources often also lead to the landscape features which are important to environmental quality and which society values. 2.0.4 The legislative background is contained in the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and the Environment Act 1995, which deals with the Review of Mineral Permissions. The Town & Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995 and Planning and Compensation Act 1991 sets out exemptions to the requirement for planning permission in respect of mineral working and associated development. 3 ound Backgr . 2 - Minerals Topic Paper (August 2013) LDP Deposit 4 3 . Policy Context: National, Regional & Local 3 Policy Context: National, Regional & Local 2013) 3.1 National Policy Context (August 3.1.1 Planning Policy Guidance for mineral extraction and related development in Paper Wales is set out in Minerals Planning Policy Wales 2000 (MPPW). This overarching opic T document is supplemented by two Minerals Technical Advice Notes (MTANs) and circulars. There are also many Minerals Planning Guidance Notes (MPGs) which Minerals continue to remain in force in Wales until superseded by relevant Minerals Technical - Advice Notes (Wales) – these include MPG2; MPG3; MPG4; MPG5; MPG7; MPG8; LDP MPG9; MPG10; MPG11; MPG12; and MPG14 although sections of these documents have been cancelled in Wales. Deposit Minerals Planning Policy Wales (MPPW) (2000) 3.1.2 MPPW sets out the overarching policy background to minerals planning in Wales. It sets out the land use planning policy guidance in relation to mineral extraction and related development. It includes all minerals and substances in, on or under land extracted whether by underground or surface working. It does not include marine aggregates. There are five key aims: To provide mineral resources to meet society’s needs and to safeguard resources from sterilisation and the identification of areas where working can take place in an environmentally acceptable manner; To protect areas of importance to natural or built heritage; To limit the environmental impact of mineral extraction; To achieve high standards of restoration and after-use; and To encourage efficient and appropriate use of minerals and the re-use and recycling of suitable materials. Minerals Technical Advice Note 1 (MTAN1) – Aggregates (2001) 5 3.1.3 MTAN1 sets out Welsh Government (WG) policy for the provision of aggregates in more detail. The MTAN covers hard rock (Limestone and Sandstone) and land won Sand and Gravel. 3 . Policy Context: National, Regional & Local Deposit 3.1.4 It sets out detailed advice on the mechanisms for delivering the policy for aggregates extraction by mineral planning authorities and the aggregates industry. LDP The overarching objective in planning for aggregates provision is to ensure supply - Minerals is managed in a sustainable way so that the best balance between environmental, economic and social considerations is struck, while making sure that the environmental T and amenity impacts of any necessary extraction are kept to a level that avoids causing opic demonstrable harm to interests of acknowledged importance. Paper (August Minerals Technical Advice Note 2 (MTAN2) – Coal (2009) 2013) 3.1.5 MTAN2 sets out detailed advice on the mechanisms for delivering the policy for coal extraction through surface and underground working by Mineral Planning Authorities (MPAs) and the coal mining industry. Principally, MTAN2 requires the LDP to incorporate a strategy for the sustainable management of the coal resource within the area. National Minerals Map of Wales & Aggregate Safeguarding Map of Wales 3.1.6 Mineral planning in Wales has in the past been hampered by a lack of information with regard to the type and extent of mineral resources(2) at both a local and national scale. In response to these concerns, the British Geological Survey (BGS) was commissioned by the WG in 2009 to provide a comprehensive, relevant and accessible information base to enhance the sustainability of mineral resources for all MPAs across Wales. 3.1.7 The two outputs of the commission – the ‘National Minerals Map of Wales’ and ‘Aggregate Safeguarding Map of Wales’ – depict the location and extent of mineral resources across Wales and will facilitate the conservation and safeguarding of land-won primary aggregate resources. 3.1.8 The ‘National Minerals Map of Wales’, published in 2010, provides spatial information on all mineral resources in Wales at a national level. The information is essential in allowing each authority to visualise the extent and distribution of mineral resources in their area and to relate them to other forms of land-use such as urban areas or designated environmentally sensitive areas. Taken from the National Minerals 6 Map of Wales, Appendix A depicts the type and extent of mineral resources across Neath Port Talbot. 2 Mineral resources are defined as 'natural accumulations of minerals, or bodies of rock, that are (or may become) of potential economic interest as a basis for the extraction of a commodity'. 3 . Policy Context: National, Regional & Local 3.1.9 In relation to coal, the ‘National Minerals Map of Wales’ divides the resource into three zones, within which coals of potential economic interest for opencast 2013) extraction may occur: (August Primary Zones – these areas constitute the main targets for opencast coal Paper extraction and have been much exploited; opic T Secondary Zones – these are areas in which the coals are generally thinner and Minerals less concentrated in distribution; nevertheless, the zones are an important resource - and its coals have been exploited and continue to be worked, albeit on a smaller LDP scale; and Deposit Tertiary Zones – these areas may contain smaller areas of thin coal. 3.1.10 The 'Aggregate Safeguarding Map of Wales', published in