Habitats Regulation Assessment Scoping Report
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Hambleton District Council Local Plan Habitats Regulations Assessment Scoping Report January 2016 Summary The Habitats Directive1 seeks to protect the integrity of Natura 2000 sites and requires a Habitats Regulations Assessment to be undertaken to assess the implications of the plan or project on Natura 2000 sites, which includes Special Areas of Conservation (SAC), Special Protection Areas (SPA) and RAMSAR sites. The key principle is to adopt the precautionary approach and to preserve the integrity of sites. The sites identified for inclusion in the assessment are: SAC North York Moors Strensall Common River Derwent North Pennine Moors North Pennine Dales Meadows SPA North York Moors North Pennine Moors Teesmouth and Cleveland Coast Ramsar Teesmouth and Cleveland Coast The Hambleton Local Plan will allocate land for housing and commercial development to meet the growth of the District up to 2035. Introduction 1 The Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora (Habitats Directive) (Directive 92/34/EEC) Requirement to carry out an assessment under the Habitats Regulations Articles 6 (3) and 6 (4) of the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora (Habitats Directive) (Directive 92/43/EEC) require an assessment to be undertaken for plans and projects that are likely to have a significant effect, alone or in combination with other plans and projects, on one or more European sites (Special Protection Areas and Special Areas of Conservation). Article 6(3) states: ‘Any plan or project not directly connected with or necessary to the management of the site but likely to have a significant effect thereon, either individually or in combination with other plans and projects, shall be subject to appropriate assessment of its implications for the site in view of the site’s conservation objectives. In light of the conclusions of the assessment of the implications for the site and subject to the provisions of paragraph 4, the competent national authorities shall agree to the plan or project only after ascertained that it will not adversely affect the integrity of the site concerned and, if appropriate, after having obtained the opinion of the general public’ The Habitats Directive was transposed into UK law through the Conservation (Natural Habitats & C) Regulations 1994. However the Regulations were amended on a number of occasions and in 2010 the changes were consolidated through the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010. Paragraph 61 sets out requirements for undertaking an appropriate assessment where a plan ‘is likely to have a significant effect on a European Site or a European Offshore Marine Site (along or in combination with other plans or projects). The Regulations clarify that European sites include both terrestrial and marine Special Protection Areas (SPAs), Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), Sites of Community Importance (SCIs), potential SACs (pSACs) and potential SPAs (pSPAs). Ramsar sites (which support internationally important wetland habitats listed under the Ramsar Convention) are also included in the sites protected through these regulations. For the purposes of this assessment the sites will be collectively referred to as Natura 2000 sites. The 2010 Regulations have subsequently been updated by the Conservation of Habitats and Species (Amendment) Regulations 2012, however the protocols for carrying appropriate assessment remains the same. Stages of the Habitats Regulations Assessment As shown below the HRA involves these stages; the screening, appropriate assessment and assessment where no alternatives exist. The stages of the Habitat Regulations Assessment are sequential and it is only necessary to proceed to the next stage if likely significant effects cannot be ruled out. STAGES of HRA Table 1.1: Stages in HRA Stage Task Stage 1: This stage aims to identify the likely impacts of the plan on Natura 2000 sites, either alone or in combination with other projects and Screening /or plans. The impacts are examined to establish whether they are likely to be significant. If it can be demonstrated that significant effects are unlikely then no further assessment is required. Stage 2: If likely significant effects cannot satisfactorily be ruled out, then a full appropriate assessment is required. This aims to examine the Appropriate conservation objectives of the site and to assess whether or not Assessment the plan, alone or in combination with other projects and/or plans will result in adverse effects on the integrity of the site, as defined by the conservation objectives and status of the site. Where it cannot be demonstrated that there will be no adverse effects on the site, it is necessary to devise mitigation measures to avoid, where possible, any adverse effects. Stage 3: If impacts remain after stage 2, alternative solutions must be proposed. These may be alternatives such as considering Assessment of alternative locations, proposing different scales of development, alternative or even doing nothing! If there are no suitable alternative solutions solutions that would maintain site integrity it will be necessary to proceed to an additional stage. Additional In rare cases, if no suitable alternatives exist and the plan must Stage to be still go ahead with a negative impact on a Natura 2000 site, undertaken ‘imperative reasons of overriding public interest’ (IROPI) and / or only where no grounds of human health, public safety or primary benefits for the alternatives environment must be demonstrated. These reasons can include exist and certain social or economic reasons consistent with European adverse Commission guidance. impacts remain If the need to progress the plan is demonstrated through an IROPI test, compensatory measures must be demonstrated to maintain and enhance the Natura 2000 network and offset the impact of the plan, Hambleton Local Plan Hambleton District Council are preparing a new Local Plan which will set out how much land should be provided to accommodate new homes and jobs that are needed within Hambleton up to 2035 and where this should be located. The Issues and Options consultation is the first stage in the development of the Local Plan, which will be prepared under the provisions of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) Regulations 2012. The purpose of the Issues and Options document is to give an indication of the scope of the plan in terms of the issues it will address and to obtain views about where growth should take place. The Issues and Options consultation seeks to obtain the views of local people of the issues which the Local Plan should address and on some of the options for further spatial development. The levels of development will be informed by ongoing studies including the Strategic Housing Market Assessment and Employment Land Review and therefore at this stage is it not possible to assess the possible impact of the plan on Natura 2000 sites. For this reason this scoping report sets out how the Habitats Regulation Assessment will be undertaken and the European sites which will be considered. A further assessment will be carried out on the impacts to inform the emerging Preferred Options for the Local Plan. The timescale for the preparation of the Local Plan is illustrated below 2016 • developing the evidence base • issues & options consultation DEVELOPING THE • preferred options/draft Plan PLAN consultation 2017 • submission Local Plan PROPOSED consultation PLAN • formal submission 2018 • Examination TESTING in Public THE PLAN • final adoption Strategic Environmental Assessment and Sustainability Appraisal Strategic Environmental Assessment and Sustainability Appraisal is required to be carried out as part of a plan preparation under separate legislation and is used to inform decision making throughout the production of the plan. Habitats Regulations Assessment differs from this process in that it requires certain standards to be met under the Habitats Regulations and specifically relates to impacts upon the Natura 2000 network. Both assessments will inform the Hambleton Local Plan2. Consultation In accordance with the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010 consultation on this scoping report will take place with Natural England and any comments received will inform the emerging Preferred Options document. Screening Assessment The purpose of the screening stage of the assessment is to examine whether there are likely to be any significant effects upon the integrity of the Natura 2000 sites. In order for a plan to have an affect on these sites there has to be a link between the habitats and species for 2 The HRA will also be utilised to inform the SA process which the site has been designated and the changes that the Local Plan may cause. As part of establishing what effects are likely to be significant, it is useful to consider whether there may be a pathway for impacts to occur between policies and development sites and Natura 2000 sites and whether, if a pathway exists, a significant effect is probable. There is no formal guidance on when to apply the screening requirement although current best practice advises that it should be carried out as early as practicable during the plan- making process. The draft guidance ‘Planning for the Protection of European Sites: Appropriate Assessment (DCLG, 2006) says that the screening process forms part of a test to identify whether a plan option is likely to have significant effects on a European site. As set out in the the Assessment of Regional Spatial Strategies and Sub-Regional Strategies Under the Provisions of the Habitats Regulations: Draft guidance (issue 2) David Tyldesley and Associates for English Nature, August 2006 the following issues should be considered through the Screening Stage: Identify the sites, the reasons for designation, the condition of Natura 2000 vulnerabilities Identifying other plans and programmes which may have an impact on sites Identifying possible effects of the plans on the Natura 2000 sites Assessing the significance of effects of plan policies against the conservation objectives of the Natura 2000 sites.