Former Powergen Site, Bulls Bridge, Hayes in the London Borough of Hillingdon Planning Application No.13226/APP/2012/2185
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planning report PDU/0257b/01 31 October 2012 Former Powergen Site, Bulls Bridge, Hayes in the London Borough of Hillingdon planning application no.13226/APP/2012/2185 Strategic planning application stage 1 referral (new powers) Town & Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended); Greater London Authority Acts 1999 and 2007; Town & Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008 The proposal Aggregate recycling plant, ashphalt storage and wet waste (gulley recycling) plant, post remediation of the site and construction of ancillary offices for staff. A weighbridge and stack is also proposed at the site. The applicant The applicant is FM Conway Ltd and the agent is First Plan Strategic issues The principle of the proposed redevelopment and waste use is acceptable in this preferred industrial location (PIL) and supports the waste, employment and design policies in the London Plan. Further work is needed in respect of noise, air quality, climate change, transport and CIL. Recommendation That Hillingdon Council be advised that while the application is generally acceptable in strategic planning terms the application does not comply with the London Plan, for the reasons set out in paragraph 74 of this report; however possible remedies set out in this paragraph define how these deficiencies can be addressed. Context 1 On 20 September 2012 the Mayor of London received documents from Hillingdon Council notifying him of a planning application of potential strategic importance to develop the above site for the above uses. Under the provisions of The Town & Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008 the Mayor has until 31 October 2012 to provide the Council with a statement setting out whether he considers that the application complies with the London Plan, and his reasons for taking that view. The Mayor may also provide other comments. This report sets out information for the Mayor’s use in deciding what decision to make. 2 The application is referable under Category 2B of the Schedule to the Order 2008: page 1 Category 2B 1. Waste development to provide an installation with capacity for a throughput of more than— (b) 50,000 tonnes per annum of waste; produced outside the land in respect of which planning permission is sought. 3 Once Hillingdon Council has resolved to determine the application, it is required to refer it back to the Mayor for his decision as to whether to direct refusal; take it over for his own determination; or allow the Council to determine it itself. 4 The Mayor of London’s statement on this case will be made available on the GLA website www.london.gov.uk. Site description 5 The site is bounded by Grand Union Canal Paddington Branch to the east, the Great Western railway to the north, Yeading Brook to the west and the access road to the canal to the South. Part of the site also lies underneath the A312 flyover, known as The Parkway, which is part of the Transport for London Road Network (TLRN). Access to the Parkway is from Bulls Bridge Roundabout, via North Hyde Gardens/Road, which is less than 1km away from the site. This will remain the main access to the site. 6 Hayes & Harlington rail station is located approximately 1.6km west of the site, providing services into central London, Reading/Oxford and Heathrow. This station will also benefit from Crossrail services from 2019. There are no London Underground services within a reasonable walking distance of the site. This site is served by 2 bus routes (195 and E6) providing services between Hayes and Hounslow or Ealing. The nearest bus stop is 700m away from the site on North Hyde Road. As such, the public transport accessibility level (PTAL) of the site is 1 (based on a scale of 1 to 6 where 1 is lowest and 6 is highest) which equates to a very poor level of accessibility to public transport. 7 The site is approximately three hectares and has been cleared. Three metre high bunds surround the site which prevent views into the site, with exception to the flyover to the west. The railway line to the north is also on an embankment of approximately five metres above the site level. 8 The proposal site is located within the Hayes Industrial estate Preferred Industrial Location (PIL) and is designated as an Industrial and Business Area within the Hillingdon UDP Proposals map. The site is on the eastern boundary of the London Borough of Hillingdon within the Hayes and East Drayton business corridor. The site is also designated in the draft West London Waste Plan as a site with the potential for development for waste management facilities (Appendix 5, Map reference: site 244, Yeading Brook, Bulls Bridge, Hayes, Hillingdon). This development is also in close proximity to the Heathrow/Southall Opportunity Area. 9 The site is in close proximity to Minet Country Park, a nature conservation area of Metropolitan Importance and the Bulls Bridge Conservation Area, which includes the Grand Union Canal and the listed Bulls Bridge. This lies east of the site and contains a number of leisure moorings. There are no residential properties bordering the site as yet. 10 The site is in close proximity to the Southall Gas Works site where residential development has been approved. 11 There is a separate proposal for a coachworks along the canal, south east of the application site. This will have a separate access point via North Hyde Gardens, but this continues along the page 2 southern boundary of the Conway site after the left hand turn which will provide the access road to the application site, thus providing a separate access. The coachworks proposal is an entirely separate operation. Details of the proposal 12 The applicant is proposing the phased construction of: an aggregate recycling plant, which will be up to 10.5 metres in height; asphalt storage and production plant of approximately 27 metres in height; a wet waste plant, also 9 metres in height; administrative offices for staff, which will be approximately 11.4 metres in height; a 30 metre stack and a weighbridge, which will be approximately 7.55 metres. 13 It is proposed that the aggregate recycling plant will process approximately 300,000 tonnes per annum of waste material extracted from road works. Some of this material will be used within the asphalt plant which would have a production capacity of 300,000 tonnes per annum. The majority of the aggregates used in the asphalt production process would therefore be sourced from the recycling plant. 14 The wet waste plant will recycle up to 20,000 tonnes per annum of gulley waste. This tarmac and gulley waste is being is therefore being diverted from landfill. 15 The site will have storage, parking and circulation routes for the vehicles making the deliveries. The site will also contain a weigh bridge. 16 The applicant will be recycling roadworks waste and has contracts with numerous London Boroughs, TfL, LOCOG and some private sector companies. Currently the company is seeking to establish an operating centre similar to its other two plants in Dartford and Erith at this west London site with a view to potentially managing west London contracts within this centre rather than transporting the material to the other two plants. 17 The applicant is exploring the possibility of transporting some of the waste material to the site by barge along the canal. It is in discussion with British Waterways. Case history 18 On 31 July 2012 a pre-planning application meeting was held at City Hall to discuss this proposal. A site visit was also made prior to this meeting on 24 July 2012. 19 Various permissions have been granted at this site. The most recent application in November 2008 was for B1, B2 and B8 buildings. This has not been implemented. Strategic planning issues and relevant policies and guidance 20 The relevant issues and corresponding policies are as follows: Waste London Plan; the Municipal Waste Management Strategy; PPS10 Employment London Plan; Industrial Capacity SPG Urban design London Plan Tall buildings/views London Plan page 3 Ambient noise London Plan; the Mayor’s Ambient Noise Strategy; Air quality London Plan; draft Early Minor Alteration to the London Plan; the Mayor’s Air Quality Strategy; Climate change London Plan; Mayor’s Climate Change Adaptation Strategy; Mayor’s Climate Change Mitigation and Energy Strategy; Mayor’s Water Strategy; Sustainable Design and Construction SPG Transport London Plan; the Mayor’s Transport Strategy 21 For the purposes of Section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, the development plan in force for the area is the Hillingdon Council Unitary Development Plan amended with saved policies, 27 September 2007 and the 2011 London Plan. 22 The following are also relevant material considerations: The National Planning Policy Framework and Technical Guide to the National Planning Policy Framework The Hillingdon Core Strategy, which was submitted to the Secretary of State on 31 October 2011. This has undergone Examination in Public. The Draft West London Waste Plan (Issues and Options stage, April 2009). The Proposed Submission draft of the Plan is to be consulted on next year (although it has been agreed in a joint Boroughs meeting on 11 May 2012). Waste 23 The London Plan aims to ensure London is 100 per cent waste self sufficient by 2031. London Plan waste policy focuses on minimising the level of waste generated, increasing re-use, recycling and composting of waste and generating energy from non-recycled waste in the most environmentally friendly way possible in order to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and to support the development of low carbon waste infrastructure in London.