Somerset Minerals and Waste Development Framework Sustainability Appraisal & Strategic Environmental Assessment Scoping Report February 2011 Somerset County Council Somerset Minerals and Waste Development Framework Revision Schedule Scoping Report Somerset MWDF February 2011 Rev Date Details Prepared by Reviewed by Approved by 01 Aug 2007 Draft J. Boca/K .Ricards Colin Bush Colin Bush 02 Sept 2007 Revised draft A. Gauldie/ K Ricards J. Boca Colin Bush 03 Sept 2007 Final Report K. Ricards J. Boca Colin Bush 04 Oct 2008 Final Report K. Ricards J. Boca Colin Bush 05 Oct 2009 Draft Tracy Horsted J. Boca Colin Bush 06 Oct 2010 Revised draft Tracy Horsted J. Boca Colin Bush 07 Oct 2010 Final Report Tracy Horsted Colin Bush Colin Bush 08 Jan 2011 Final Report Jennifer Boca Colin Bush Colin Bush URS/Scott Wilson Scott House Alencon Link Basingstoke This document has been prepared in accordance with the scope of Scott Wilson's Hampshire appointment with its client and is subject to the terms of that appointment. It is addressed RG21 7PP to and for the sole and confidential use and reliance of Scott Wilson's client. Scott Wilson accepts no liability for any use of this document other than by its client and only for the purposes for which it was prepared and provided. No person other than the client may copy (in whole or in part) use or rely on the contents of this document, without the prior Tel. 01256 310200 writte n permission of the Company Secretary of Scott Wilson Ltd. Any advice, opinions, Fax. 01256 310201 or recommendations within this document should be read and relied upon only in the context of the document as a whole. The contents of this document do not provide legal or tax advice or opinion. www.urs-scottwilson.com © Scott Wilson Ltd 2010 Somerset County Council Somerset Minerals and Waste Development Framework Table of Contents Executive Summary ........................................................................ 1 Introduction..................................................................................................................... 1 Strategic Environmental Assessment /Sustainability Appraisal ....................................... 1 Scoping Report............................................................................................................... 1 Introduction..................................................................................... 2 Background.................................................................................................................... 2 SEA/SA .......................................................................................................................... 2 The Somerset Minerals and Waste Development Framework ........................................4 Compliance with the SEA Regulations............................................................................5 The SA Scoping Report.................................................................................................. 6 Report structure.............................................................................................................. 6 Task A1 – Review of Relevant Plans and Programmes................7 Introduction..................................................................................................................... 7 Key messages from the review..................................................................................... 10 Task A2 - Baseline Information .................................................... 12 Introduction................................................................................................................... 12 Somerset Overview ...................................................................................................... 13 Waste and Minerals Baseline Overview........................................................................ 20 Key Messages.............................................................................................................. 25 Data Gaps.................................................................................................................... 26 Future Trends............................................................................................................... 26 Task A3 – Sustainability Issues and Problems........................... 28 Introduction................................................................................................................... 28 Task A4 – The SA Framework ...................................................... 31 Introduction................................................................................................................... 31 Consultation and Next Steps........................................................ 38 Introduction................................................................................................................... 38 Next Steps.................................................................................................................... 38 Glossary......................................................................................... 40 Appendix 1 - Plans and Programmes Considered...................... 45 Appendix 2 - Reviewed Relevant Plans and Programmes ......... 50 Appendix 3 - Baseline Indicators ................................................. 77 Somerset County Council Somerset Minerals and Waste Development Framework Appendix 4 – Maps........................................................................ 87 Appendix 5 – Consultation Responses ...................................... 98 Somerset County Council Somerset Minerals and Waste Development Framework 1 Executive Summary 1.1 Introduction Somerset County Council is preparing a Minerals and Waste Development Framework (MWDF) which will set the overall framework for minerals and waste planning for the area. The MWDF will consist of a series of documents including Development Plan Documents (DPDs) which will contain minerals and waste core strategies, site allocations and policies. The Framework will: • Establish what waste facilities are needed to manage Somerset’s waste in the future and where these should be located; • Identify where minerals could be worked in Somerset in order to meet society’s needs, and • Show how both of those activities can be accommodated without compromising the unique environment of Somerset. 1.2 Strategic Environmental Assessment /Sustainability Appraisal Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) involves the systematic identification and evaluation of the environmental impacts of plans and programmes and stems from the EU SEA Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment. Sustainability Appraisal (SA) broadens the concept of SEA to encompass economic and social impacts and is required under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Government guidance requires that all DPDs are subject to both SEA and SA. Throughout this report, where reference is made to Sustainability Appraisal, it should be taken to include the requirements of the SEA Directive. 1.3 Scoping Report A Scoping report documenting the initial stages of the SA/SEA process was prepared in October 2007. To ensure that the Scoping report is still relevant and up-to-date, a revision has been undertaken and this report comprises the revised Scoping report. The draft Scoping Report made available for comment and also sent to the three SEA statutory bodies (Natural England, English Heritage and the Environment Agency) in October 2010. The responses received have been addressed and incorporated in this final Scoping Report. The report focuses primarily on the following tasks of the SA process: • The review of relevant plans and programmes; • Baseline review; • Identification of key Sustainability Issues; and • The SA framework (objectives against which the MWDF policies and proposals will be assessed). Scoping Report February 2011 1 Somerset County Council Somerset Minerals and Waste Development Framework 2 Introduction 2.1 Background Scott Wilson was commissioned by Somerset County Council to undertake the Sustainability Appraisal (SA) incorporating Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of its Minerals and Waste Development Framework (MWDF), preparing the scoping report for the MWDF and undertaking SA work on the waste development plan documents (DPDs). In October 2007, a Scoping report documenting the initial stages of the SA/SEA process was prepared. This report has now been updated to reflect changes that have occurred since the publication of the initial Scoping report. It incorporates recommendations provided in the Scoping report verification work undertaken for SCC by Land Use Consultants as well as comments received from statutory consultees (the Environment Agency and Natural England) and others in the October 2010 Scoping stage consultation. 2.2 SEA/SA SEA is required by European and by English law. It involves the systematic identification and evaluation of the environmental impacts of a strategic action (e.g. a plan or programme). In 2001, the EU legislated for SEA with the adoption of Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment (the ‘SEA Directive’). The aim of the SEA Directive is “to provide for a high level of protection of the environment and to contribute to the integration of environmental considerations into the preparation and adoption of plans and programmes, with a view to promoting sustainable