TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING (ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT) (ENGLAND AND WALES) REGULATIONS 2017 (As Amended) SCOPING OPINION PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT: Business and Enterprise Park SITE: Gateway 14, Land between the A1120 and A14, Creeting St Peter MID SUFFOLK DISTRICT COUNCIL PLANNING REFERENCE DC/20/03246 AUGUST 2020 Prepared by: Gemma Walker Area Planning Manager 1 SCOPING OPINION FOR DEVELOPMENT AT GATEWAY 14, LAND BETWEEN A1120 AND A14, CREETING ST PETER, STOWMARKET 1. INTRODUCTION Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an iterative process that attempts to ensure that any significant effects on a range of environmental issues that might result from a particular development are fully understood and taken into account prior to any planning decision being taken. ‘Scoping’ forms part of the overall EIA process in which the extent of issues to be considered in the assessment of an application for planning permission for an EIA development are determined and the information to be included in in the accompanying Environmental Statement or EIA Report (ES) is set out. Scoping is a preliminary, technical exercise and not an application for planning permission. As such, there is no assessment of planning merit at this stage. Material planning considerations will be assessed if a subsequent application for planning permission is made. It is noted that comments have been received from parties other than technical consultees. These comments have been recorded, considered and made available as part of this scoping exercise but they will not be carried forward and considered in the assessment of any subsequent planning application as the details of the proposal may change. The Council will therefore take steps to ensure all interested parties are both advised of the above and notified of any subsequent application that is submitted so they may make a representation at that time should they want to. The effects of the proposal on a range of environmental topics should be assessed in terms of: characteristic (adverse, beneficial, neutral, direct, indirect, cumulative); scale (International, national, regional, district, local); and significance (long-term, short- term, irreversible, reversible, major, minor) together with their timing (pre-construction, construction, operation/occupation, decommissioning, restoration). Where the potential for significant environmental effects have been identified as part of a scoping exercise, the ES comprising part of the EIA process should propose mitigation and monitoring measures. The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations 2017 (‘The EIA Regs’) (as amended) sets out the scoping procedure whereby a person mindful to make an EIA application is entitled to ask the relevant planning authority to state in writing their opinion as to the information to be provided in the ES in the form of a ‘scoping opinion’. 2. APPLICATION FOR SCOPING OPINION This Scoping Opinion is based on information provided to Mid Suffolk District Council (“MSDC”) by Avison Young on behalf of Gateway 14 Ltd. (“the developer”) together 2 SCOPING OPINION FOR DEVELOPMENT AT GATEWAY 14, LAND BETWEEN A1120 AND A14, CREETING ST PETER, STOWMARKET with the comments and opinions resulting from consultation with the developer and other statutory bodies. A scoping exercise was initiated following the receipt of documents on 3rd August 2020 as constituting a formal request for a scoping opinion from the developer to MSDC. This Scoping Opinion has been prepared and issued by MSDC in response to this request as part of the EIA process. In accordance with the EIA Regulations this Scoping Opinion shall not preclude MSDC from requiring the developer to submit further information in connection with any application subsequently submitted to the Council. The EIA directive requires the ES to provide a description of a range of environmental factors as outlined in this document. 3. THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT The development to which this Scoping Opinion relates comprises the following elements: • B8 Storage and Distribution Approx 210,000 • B1/B2 Approx 117,225 • A1 Approx 6503 • A3/A5 Approx 1858-6782 • A4 Approx 636 • C1 Approx 3036 • Sui Generis PFS Approx 643 • Waste storage/treatment/collection • Drainage • Landscaping 4. CONSULTATION During the scoping process, the Council carried out formal consultation with the statutory ‘consultation bodies’ as well as other relevant authorities and parties considered to have an interest in the proposal and/or having expertise in the environmental issues relevant to the site or proposal. Copies of the responses received are available on the Babergh District Council website: https://www.babergh.gov.uk/planning/development-management/application-search- and-comment/. In accordance with the EIA Regulations and in the interests of transparency, the following bodies were consulted / notified: 3 SCOPING OPINION FOR DEVELOPMENT AT GATEWAY 14, LAND BETWEEN A1120 AND A14, CREETING ST PETER, STOWMARKET • Anglian Water • Highways England • The Environment Agency • Natural England • Historic England • Suffolk Wildlife Trust • East Suffolk Inland Water Drainage Board • SCC Highways • SCC Travel Plan • SCC Rights of Way • SCC Archaeology • SCC Flood and Water • SCC Fire and Rescue • SCC Infrastructure • Suffolk Police • Mid Suffolk District Council (Environmental Protection Officers) • Mid Suffolk District Council (Communities Team) • Mid Suffolk District Council (Public Realm) • Mid Suffolk District Council (Heritage Team) • Mid Suffolk District Council (Waste Management) • Mid Suffolk District Council (Economic Development) • Place Services Ecology • Place Services Landscape • Creeting St Peter Parish Council • Creeting St Mary Council • Stowmarket Town Council • Combs Parish Council 5. FORMAT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT (ES) The information contained within the ES must comply with the requirements of the EIA Regs. It should provide a full factual description of the development and should focus on the “main” or “significant” environmental effects of the development. The ES should be proportionate and not be any longer than is necessary to assess properly those effects. Where alternative approaches to development have been considered, the Environmental Statement should include a description of the reasonable alternatives studied which are relevant to the proposed development and its specific characteristics and provide an indication of the main reasons for the choice made, including a comparison of the environmental effects. 4 SCOPING OPINION FOR DEVELOPMENT AT GATEWAY 14, LAND BETWEEN A1120 AND A14, CREETING ST PETER, STOWMARKET The Environmental Statement may, of necessity, contain complex scientific data and analysis in a form which is not readily understandable by the lay person. The main findings must be set out in accessible, plain English, in a non-technical summary, to ensure that the findings can more readily be disseminated to the general public, and that the conclusions can be easily understood by non-experts as well as decision- makers. The European Commission document ‘Environmental Impact Assessment of Projects Guidance on the preparation of the Environmental Impact Assessment Report’ provides further information on the content and quality requirements of the ES. MSDC would prefer to see the ES set out in the following format: Non-Technical Summary Section 1: A description of the proposed development including site, design, size and other relevant features of the development. Section 2: The baseline scenario Section 3: A description of the likely significant effects of the proposed development on the environment. Section 4: A description of any mitigation features or measures of the proposed development. Section 5: Measures for the monitoring of the significant effects of the development. Section 6: A description of the reasonable alternatives considered and the main reasons for the option chosen. Section 7: Any additional information specified in Schedule 4 of the EIA Regs relevant to the specific characteristics of the particular development or type of development and to the environmental features likely to be significantly affected 5.1 ES section 1 - Information Describing the Project This section should describe the purpose and physical characteristics of the project. It should identify the land use requirements and other physical features of the project: a) during construction; b) throughout the lifetime of the development; c) during any decommissioning (to the extent reasonably foreseeable). The section should also include a description of the production processes and summarise the operational features of the project including: 5 SCOPING OPINION FOR DEVELOPMENT AT GATEWAY 14, LAND BETWEEN A1120 AND A14, CREETING ST PETER, STOWMARKET a) type and quantities of raw materials, energy and other resources consumed; b) residues and emissions by type, quantity, composition and strength including: i. discharges to water; ii. emissions to air; iii. noise; iv. vibration; v. light; vi. heat; vii. radiation; viii. deposits/residues to land and soil; ix. other Where applicable, the information considered under this section should include all relevant statutory designations such as sites of special scientific interest, areas affected by tree preservation orders, water protection zones, conservation areas, listed buildings, scheduled ancient monuments, and designated areas of archaeological importance. It should also include references to relevant national policies