AGENDA ITEM 5.1 DR/01/17 committee DEVELOPMENT & REGULATION date 27 January 2017 MINERALS AND WASTE DEVELOPMENT Proposal: For the northern quarry void and plant site including the restoration of the northern quarry void using inert materials to agriculture and nature conservation interest with new public rights of way, the installation and operation of an inert waste recycling facility in the plant site for the production of secondary aggregate followed by the restoration of the plant site to nature conservation interest and the creation of an area of biodiversity compensation habitat Location: Land at Sandon Quarry Molrams Lane, Sandon Ref: ESS/08/16/CHL Applicant: Brett Aggregates Limited Report by Acting Head of County Planning Enquiries to: Terry Burns Tel: 03330 136440 The full application can be viewed at www.essex.gov.uk/viewplanning Reproduced from the Ordnance Survey Map with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, Crown Copyright reserved Essex County Council, Chelmsford Licence L000 19602 1. BACKGROUND & SITE Sandon Quarry is a former sand and gravel site situated South East of Sandon Village and separated from it by the A12T. Access to the quarry complex is taken off a junction with Church Street and Molrams Lane, these being a slip road onto the A1114. The A1114 itself is some 650 metres north west of its own access with the A12 (T) and A130. From the junction entrance an internal haul road runs eastwards for some 650 metres, crossing both formerly worked mineral land (part agriculture and part now designed to accommodate an area of biodiversity compensation habitat associated with the southern void workings referred to below) and the A12 (T) to then access the site areas identified above. The Sandon Quarry complex can be considered to comprise a number of discrete areas these being referred to as: • Northern quarry void – the subject of this application, and situated between the A12 (T) and Sandon Brook. This area is a former quarry extraction void that was then used for some silt disposal and is now partially filled with water. There is a 2 metre high soil bund extending around the north western perimeter of the void and a 5 metre high stockpile located adjacent the voids north eastern perimeter. Adjacent the A12 (T) the void perimeter is at about 27 – 28m Above Ordnance Datum (AOD) with water level maintained at around 10 m AOD. The base of the void is between 4 – 8 m AOD. Side slopes are described as generally between 1 vertical (v) and 2-4 horizontal (h). Steeper slopes are located predominantly on the north, northeast and south. The applicant confirms that there have been signs of historic instability of the slopes and that during construction of the A12 (T) slope failure resulted in extensive slope remediation works and underdrainage provision. The applicant confirms that records from the Resident Engineer for the road construction indicated drainage measures being constructed from a bench about 19m AOD to below the base of the quarry floor which is anticipated has been partially filled to below -3m AOD and water levels of between -2m AOD to +2m AOD. • This void is designated as a Local Wildlife Site (LoWS) due to its invertebrate interest and associated habitats established post mineral extraction. Land immediately to the north of the void and within the application boundary comprises grassland that was previously worked and restored. Within this grassland area, some ponds have previously been created for nature conservation translocation associated with the southern void permission. Water levels within the northern void are maintained, given proximity of the A12 (T), by pumping from the southern void into the eastern arm of the Sandon Brook that flows through the complex. • Southern Void – A former quarry void separated from the northern void by the main site haul road. This area is subject to an extant permission for the infilling with inert materials under ESS/30/11/CHL with restoration scheduled to be completed by December 2017. The restored land would then accommodate agriculture and woodland together with public rights of way. • Former processing plant and stockpiling area. Situated east of Sandon Brook and accessed via a bridge on the site access road. This area comprises some redundant plant, hardstandings two ponds formerly used for water management and the site security caravan. The land previously accommodated mineral stockpiling, silt lagoons as well as a concrete batching plant. The above three areas are located within a generally agricultural landscape of hedgerows, fields and mature trees. The Sandon Brook which flows south to north approaches the Sandon complex from the south and at this point comprises an eastern and western arm. The eastern arm of the Sandon Brook approaches the quarry complex from the south east and forms the eastern boundary of the southern void then crosses through the application land dividing the northern void area from the processing plant area. The brook then continues north forming the north eastern boundary of the northern void area before exiting the application land and joining the western arm of the brook just before Woodhill Road. The western arm of Sandon Brook first encounters the Sandon Complex when if flows beneath the haul road near the site entrance onto Molram's Lane then flows north east to flow beneath the A12(T) emerging the other side to form the north western boundary of the northern void. The brook then continues north to join with its eastern arm. At its closest point the eastern arm of the Sandon Brook lies 30 metres from the eastern edge of the northern void. Between the two void areas is situated the site weighbridge and portacabin style site office and car parking area. Further north framing the complex beyond the nature conservation ponds and some fields is Woodhall Road linking Sandon Village with Danbury. Immediately east of the processing plant area lies a small industrial estate that separates the plant area from Mayes Road that provides a link between Woodhall Road and Butts Green located south east of the quarry complex. A number of residential properties lie either side of Mayes Road separated by fields and hedgerows from the quarry complex. Sandon Hall (c 250 m south of southern void) set in its own grounds forms the quarry complex’s southern boundary. Nearest properties are some 120 metres to the north west beyond the A12 in Sandon. Sandon Lodge (c180 m) and Bridge Farm (c200 m) are located north and north east off Woodhall Road. Bridge Cottage (20 m to south) and Brookside Diary (c40 m north) are located adjacent the site entrance on Molrams Lane. The complex is affected by a number of public rights of way: Right of Way 232_7 passes through the site following the western bank of the eastern arm of the Sandon Brook crossing the haul road and continuing southwards to the east of the southern void and past Sandon Hall. Public Right of Way 232_5 approaches the Sandon complex from the west follows part of the site haul road before linking at the A12(T) overbridge with Right of Way 232_26 which follows the western boundary line of the A12(T) northwards to link with Sandon Village. Public Right of Way 232_5 continues over the bridge before turning southwards before skirting around Sandon Hall. Planning History The Sandon Quarry complex has a long mineral and waste planning history. Still of relevance is an Interim Development Order (ref no: IDO/GHL/2/92A) known as an IDO. This Order covered most of the worked out site and also extended over the land identified as the plant processing area. The IDO permits mineral extraction until 2042 with restoration through infilling with inert materials to restore the land back to a grazing and amenity afteruse. The status of the land affected by the IDO is referred to in planning terms as currently being dormant. Of the two void areas the applicant confirms that the northern void has no restoration commitment and therefore there is a necessity, given the proximity of the A12 (T), for continual dewatering to maintain water levels below natural ground levels. Currently water levels in the northern void are maintained by pumping from the southern void (so allowing natural flow through the intervening strata) and discharging into the eastern arm of the Sandon Brook. Planning approval for infilling the southern void with restoration to agriculture and woodland under ESS/21/92/CHL was subsequently varied by ESS/30/11/CHL which extended the restoration date until 31 st December 2017. Traffic associated with the southern void development are subject to a HGV routeing agreement such that vehicles approaching from the south on the A1114 “ uses the northbound off slip and turns right into Southend Road to cross over the A1114 before travelling south down Molrams Lane and turning left into Sandon Quarry. Traffic arriving at Sandon Quarry from the north on the A1114 leaves on the southbound off slip before turning right onto Molrams Lane and immediately left into the site. All traffic leaving the site turns left onto the southbound slip road to the A1114. Vehicles leaving the site and needing to travel north use the A1114/A12(T)/A130 junction to turn around and travel north on the A111 4”. There are a number of ancillary permissions related to site fencing as well as the siting of a security caravan within the complex. The Essex and Southend Waste Local Plan Adopted September 2001 identifies the Sandon quarry as Site LNI.2 and WM6 these designations encompass the whole of the complex east of the A12 (T) (the present application footprint plus the southern void).