Minerals Planning December 2019

Herefordshire Authority Monitoring Report 2019 Section 5: Minerals Planning HEREFORDSHIRE LOCAL AGGREGATES ASSESSMENT 2019 (Incorporating Jan to Dec 2018 survey data) Table 1: Headline mineral monitoring indicators 2019 Change Change Sand & gravel from Crushed rock from Herefordshire previous (million tonnes) previous (million tonnes) year year 2018 sales 0.192 Not available - ▲ 3 year 0.158 Not available - average ▲ Production Production 10 year 0.115 Not available - average ▲ Reserves 2.476 Not available - ▼ Landbank (using 10 21.5 years Not available - year sales ▼ average) Landbank Not (using 3 15.6 years previously Not available year sales reported average) Minimum landbank 7 years 10 years required Landbank The picture of Herefordshire crushed rock sales and permitted reserves cannot be published due to commercial sensitivities. Only one quarry is operational at the time of writing. Due to the openness of This Local Aggregates Assessment the operator, it is possible to Informative provides proportionate estimates of understand a reasonable level of detail sales, reserves and landbanks of about reserves, supply and potential crushed rock. demand within Herefordshire. 2 Executive Summary Sand and gravel The three-year average sales have increased since last year. Taking into account both 10-year and 3-year sales averages, the sand and gravel landbank stands above the seven years required by the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). Assessment of future demand indicates that there will be a need for additional reserves of sand and gravel to become operational before the end of the Minerals and Waste Local Plan (MWLP) period (2031). Whichever method of demand forecasting is used, the only currently active quarry must cease operations by 2026, therefore provision is made in the emerging MWLP that will seek to address this, and increase resilience, through the allocation of new sites and areas of search. Crushed Rock Data on sales and reserves provided though the annual surveys cannot be published for reasons of commercial confidentiality. It has therefore been aggregated, with that of other mineral planning authorities in the West Midlands, and proportionate estimates of Herefordshire’s sales have been made. Herefordshire relies significantly on imports of crushed rock. Should this level of reliance continue, it is anticipated that there are likely to be sufficient reserves to meet demand over the plan period. If the county were to become self-sufficient in production, then demand may outstrip the available permitted reserves. Of the two operational crushed rock quarries, one is required to cease operations by 2027. There may therefore be a need for additional reserves of crushed rock to be permitted up to 2031 and allocations and areas of search are being produced through the emerging MWLP. Recycled Aggregates Recycled aggregates could have an increasingly important role to play in reducing the reliance on imports of aggregates in Herefordshire in the future. Forecasts for potential arisings of recycled aggregates over the plan period indicate that, whilst increases are likely to make a useful contribution to the supply of aggregates, the amounts will fall well short of the predicted tonnages required to meet estimated demand calculated by reference to the Core Strategy housing trajectory. 3 1.0 Introduction 1.1.0 Mineral resources in Herefordshire are limited in range, primarily consisting of aggregates for use in construction and a small amount of building stone. Aggregates comprise sand and gravel, crushed rock and secondary or recycled materials gained from quarry waste operations. 1.1.1 Herefordshire is not a significant producer of minerals, with only a small number of operational quarries. With few operators in the sector, much of the data on sales is restricted for reasons of commercial confidentiality. 1.1.2 National policy guidance requires Herefordshire to maintain an adequate and steady supply of aggregates during the current plan period to 2031. The West Midlands Aggregate Working Party (WMAWP) has agreed to use a ten-year rolling average as the principal indicator for aggregates production, together with an assessment of local information. This is consistent with national policy guidance. 1.1.3 The purpose of the LAA is to establish whether there is a shortage or surplus of supply and provides evidence for determining the level of provision of minerals aggregates to be made in Herefordshire’s Minerals and Waste Local Plan. 1.1.4 The first section of the report considers the 2019 survey returns data on the supply (sales) of aggregates in Herefordshire. It then goes on to consider local information on development trends, to provide a forecast for demand and the future need for additional aggregate mineral resources. A summary of the results of this year’s survey is illustrated in the table of headline performance indicators, in Table 1 above. 2.0 Assessment of Aggregates Supply 2.1.0 Sand and Gravel 2.1.1 Throughout Herefordshire, there are superficial sedimentary deposits of glacial tills, sand and gravels. River deposits, found in the river valleys of the Wye, Lugg and Arrow, and glacial deposits, present in the north and west of Herefordshire, are the main areas where sand and gravel is found. 2.1.2 In 2018 there were three permitted sand and gravel quarries in Herefordshire: Wellington Quarry Upper Lyde Quarry Shobdon Quarry 2.1.3 However, only Wellington Quarry was operational during 2018. Due to the openness of that operator, it is possible to understand a reasonable level of detail about sand and gravel reserves, supply and potential demand within Herefordshire. 2.1.4 Indications show that at Upper Lyde quarry, the required section 278 highways works and planning permission conditions have been discharged. However, no quarrying operations had commenced at the time of preparing this LAA. Shobdon remains mothballed. 2.1.5 The latest available data indicates that, at 0.192 mt, sand and gravel production in Herefordshire in 2018 was above both the 10-year average (0.115 mt) and the 3-year (0.158 mt) rolling average for sand and gravel sales. 4 Table 2: Sand & Gravel in Herefordshire 2009 – 2018 10-year Year 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Average Sales Sand & gravel 0.125 0.111 0.07 0.081* 0.086* 0.098 0.102 0.133 0.15 0.192 0.115 sales (mt) 2.1.6 Figure 1 below shows the gradual upward trend of annual sand and gravel sales in Herefordshire over the past ten years. (* in Table 2 and the 2012 and 2013 datasets in Figure 1 refer to figures extrapolated from combined data with Worcestershire.) Note that from 2012, apportionment has been based on 10-year average of sales. Figure 1: Comparison of Herefordshire’s sand and gravel sales, annual apportionment and 3- year sales average 2009-2018 0.3 0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 0 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Annual Sales mt Annual Apportionment mt/10-yr average 3-year average sales 2.1.7 Sales destinations: aggregates monitoring data indicates that the market area for sand and gravel produced in Herefordshire is predominantly local and it is all transported by road. Sales within Herefordshire account for just under 58% of the total. Much of the sand and gravel produced in Herefordshire, which is transported outside the county is destined for the adjoining counties of Worcestershire (21%), Shropshire (14%) and Gloucestershire (6%), see Figure 2. Only a very small proportion is exported to the region’s largest markets in the West Midlands conurbation (less than 0.1%), due to the availability of more proximate and higher quality materials closer to this area. Similar trends are expected to continue in the foreseeable future. 2.1.8 The MHCLG Annual Monitoring Surveys 2005, 2009 and 2014 provide data on sales destinations, imports and consumption of sand and gravel in Herefordshire. Table 3 reproduces this information. The initial drop in sales, import and consumption in 2009 can be explained by the economic recession, which began around 2008 and led to a significant reduction in construction and other economic activity. More recent data shows that sales of Herefordshire’s sand and gravel have been steadily increasing since economic activity has grown post-recession (see Figure 1). 5 Figure 2: Sand and gravel sales by destination 2018 (tonnes) Remainder South Wales SE Wales NE Wales Remainder West Mids Worcestershire Warwickshire Shropshire Herefordshire Gloucestershire Avon Oxfordshire 0 20000 40000 60000 80000 100000 120000 Table 3: Herefordshire sales, principal destinations, imports and consumption of sand and gravel 2005, 2009 and 2014 Year 2005 2009 2014 Tonnes Sales Destination Herefordshire 156,000 111,000 69,000 Elsewhere in West 49,000 5,000 24,000 Midlands Elsewhere 11,000 6,000 4,000 Unknown 19,000 0 0 Imports Land-won sand and 121,000 63,000 83,000 gravel Marine sand and 12,000 4,000 1,000 gravel Consumption Land-won sand and 603,000 174,000 153,000 gravel Marine sand and 12,000 4,000 1,000 gravel 2.1.9 About half of Herefordshire’s consumption is met by imports of sand and gravel from outside the county. The need for mineral operators to obtain the correct specification for 6 market products, such as ready-mix concrete, can dictate some of this movement where such materials are not available from local deposits. 2.1.10 Landbank: the NPPF seeks a minimum landbank of seven years for sand and gravel provision. With permitted reserves in Herefordshire standing at 2.476 tonnes in 2018 and a ten-year average annual sales figure of 0.115 million tonnes, this gives a landbank of 21.5 years for sand and gravel under current conditions.

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