The County Durham Plan Habitat Regulations Assessment of the County Durham Plan Preferred Options September 2012 Contents 1. INTRODUCTION 3 2. METHODOLOGY 6 3. OVERVIEW AND OUTCOMES OF 29 INTERIM SCREENING STAGES 4. POLICIES SCREENED INTO THE APPROPRIATE ASSESSMENT 39 STAGE 5. NATURA 2000 SITES 42 6. STAGE TWO - APPROPRIATE 90 ASSESSMENT 7. AVOIDANCE AND MITIGATION 112 MEASURES 8. MONITORING, NEXT STEPS AND 128 CONCLUSION APPENDICES A. CONSULTATION 132 B. COMPONENT SSSI'S AND 153 CONDITION STATUS C. BRIDGING ASSESSMENT 157 DETERMINATION OF SITES D. SCREENING OF MINERAL SITES 179 Habitat Regulations Assessment of the County Durham Plan Preferred Options Contents E. SCREENING OPINION OF 244 POLICIES F. NATURA 2000 SITES (WEST 398 DURHAM) AND PROW G. EC ADVICE ON AA MITIGATION 402 MEASURES H. POLICY CHANGES AS A RESULT 404 OF HRA PROCESS I. ABBREVIATIONS 408 Habitat Regulations Assessment of the County Durham Plan Preferred Options Introduction 1 The County Durham Plan 1.1 Once adopted the County Durham Plan will be the spatial strategy for development in the County until 2030. It will allocate sites for various types of development, set criteria for determining planning applications, and establish how community and other corporate plans and strategies will be implemented through local spatial planning, including waste and minerals. 1.2 Working to the requirements of the 2004 Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act, the preparation of the Plan had focused on the development of a 'Core Strategy' including strategic policies to define the quantity and distribution of new development across the County and identify strategic development sites essential to the delivery of the Plan. This approach has been modified, taking the opportunity to develop a Local Plan (The County Durham Plan) as required by the Localism Act(1). 1.3 Whilst the County Durham Plan still provides a new framework for development, it now includes a comprehensive range of policies to determine planning applications as well as identifying strategic development sites essential to the delivery of the Plan and other non-strategic allocations. This revised approach will ensure that the Plan will be finalised at the earliest possible opportunity, and that deliverable development sites will be available across the County to deliver the Plan as soon as it is adopted. It also embraces the concept of Localism, should local communities wish to promote additional development sites through the development of Neighbourhood Plans, setting out policy guidelines to aid their preparation. 1.4 The County Durham Plan in its entirety will comprise the following documents: Local Plan Preferred Options Minerals and Waste Policies and Allocations Document 1.5 Drafts of the following Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) have also been produced. These are not statutory planning documents but tools to supplement policies within the County Durham Plan: Aykley Heads; Sniperley Park; North of Arnison; Sherburn Road; and Lambton Park Estate. 1.6 Further SPDs will also be produced for the other strategic housing sites identified in the Plan and for the following themes: Historic Environment; Natural Environment; Built Environment; and Affordable Housing and Developer Contributions. 1.7 The Local Plan has been subject to a Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) at each stage of its development under the Habitats Directive, in accordance with the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010. 1 The Localism Bill received Royal Assent in April 2011. Habitat Regulations Assessment of the County Durham Plan Preferred Options 3 1 Introduction 1.8 The Habitat Regulations Assessment of the Local Plan Preferred Options has been undertaken and prepared by Durham County Council's Ecology Team and Sustainable Strategy Team. The Legislative Basis for Habitats Regulations Assessment 1.9 In October 2005, The European Court of Justice ruled that the UK had failed to correctly transpose the provisions of Article 6(3) and (4) of Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora - the Habitats Directive - into national law. Specifically, the UK had failed to ensure that land use plans were subject to Appropriate Assessment (AA) where they might have a significant effect on Natura 2000 sites. 1.10 Natura 2000 sites are of exceptional importance in respect of rare, endangered or vulnerable natural habitats and species within the European Community. Natura 2000 sites include Special Protection Areas (SPAs) designated under the EU 'Wild Birds' Directive, Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) designated under the EU 'Habitats Directive' and European Marine Sites (EMS). 1.11 The UK Government's National Planning Policy Framework requires that listed or proposed Ramsar sites should be given the same protection as European sites. (2) Ramsar sites are wetlands of international importance, designated under the Ramsar Convention 1979. 1.12 The Habitats Directive applies the precautionary principle to Natura 2000 sites. Plans and projects can only be permitted having ascertained that there will be no adverse effect on the integrity of site(s) in question. In the case of the Habitats Directive, potentially damaging plans and projects may still be permitted if there are no alternatives to them and there are Imperative Reasons of Overriding Public Interest (IROPI) as to why they should go ahead. In such cases, compensation measure will be necessary to ensure the overall integrity of Natura 2000 sites. 1.13 In order to ascertain whether or not site integrity will be affected, an Appropriate Assessment should be undertaken of the plan or project in question. 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 or projects, shall be subject to appropriate assessment of its implications for the site in view of the site's conservation objectives." 1.14 Following the European Court ruling, the former Office of the Deputy Prime Minister indicated that the regulations implementing the Habitats Directive in the UK would be amended to ensure that Appropriate Assessment explicitly applies to land use plans. The Conservation (Natural Habitats &c) (Amendment) Regulations came into force in 2007. Subsequent amendments have been made to the regulations and these have been consolidated by the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010. Regulation 61 and 62 states that: " A competent authority, before deciding to ...give any consent for a plan or project which is likely to have a significant effect on a European site ...shall make an appropriate assessment of the implications for the site in view of that sites conservation objectives." 2 Communities and Local Government National Planning Policy Framework (March 2012) 4 Habitat Regulations Assessment of the County Durham Plan Preferred Options Introduction 1 1.15 An assessment of land use plans has since developed. The term Habitats Regulations Assessment has come into use for describing the overall assessment process including screening and the specific appropriate assessment stage. Purpose of this Report 1.16 The purpose of this report is twofold. The first purpose is to provide an overview and update on previous HRA outcomes in relation to the development of the Local Plan Preferred Options. The report documenting these stages in full is entitled Interim Habitat Regulations Screening Report of the County Durham Plan 2011/12. (3) 1.17 The second purpose is to outline the HRA screening assessment of the draft Local Plan Preferred Options and outcomes of appropriate assessment. This report contains the following sections: Section 1 - This section has set out the legislative basis for habitats regulations assessment; introduced the County Durham Plan and set out the overall purpose of this report. Section 2 sets out the methodology used to undertake the assessment. Section 3 provides an overview and update on the previous interim HRA screening stages including the minerals bridging assessment undertaken. Section 4 outlines preferred policies screened into or out of the assessment. Section 5 describes Natura 2000 sites and the potential impacts of the Local Plan. Section 6 introduces and outlines the findings from the appropriate assessment stage. Section 7 proposes avoidance and mitigation measures. Section 8 concludes the HRA of the Local Plan Preferred Options and identifies draft monitoring proposals and next steps. 1.18 This report is also supported by the following evidence papers: (4) A Study of Over-wintering Waterbirds of the Durham Coast (5) Nitrogen Deposition Implications of the Local Plan (6) Recreational and Urbanisation Impacts of the Local Plan (7) Heights Quarry and Proposed Western Extension - Information to Inform Habitat Regulations Appropriate Assessment for North Pennine Moors SPA (8) 3 Available to view on the Council's website at http://durhamcc-consult.limehouse.co.uk/portal/planning/lp/hra_cdp_po 4 available to view on the Council's website at:http://durhamcc-consult.limehouse.co.uk/portal/planning/lp/hra_cdp_po 5 Cadwallender, T, M, 2012 A Study of Over-wintering Waterbirds of the Durham Coast - December 2011-March 2012 Cadwallender Consultancy 6 Prepared by Durham County Council's Ecology Team: February 2012 7 Prepared by Durham County Council's Ecology Team: June 2012 8 Middlemarch Environmental Ltd Heights Quarry and Proposed Western Extension