Report to Planning and Licensing Committee 5th October 2016 Agenda Item: 05 REPORT OF CORPORATE DIRECTOR – PLACE BASSETLAW DISTRICT REF. NO.: 1/15/01498/CDM PROPOSAL: TO DEVELOP A HYDROCARBON WELLSITE AND DRILL UP TO TWO EXPLORATORY HYDROCARBON WELLS (ONE VERTICALLY AND ONE HORIZONTALLY) BY USE OF A DRILLING RIG TOGETHER WITH ASSOCIATED ANCILLARY WORKS. THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT WILL BE CARRIED OUT IN FOUR PHASES: PHASE 1 - WELLSITE CONSTRUCTION; PHASE 2 - DRILLING OF UP TO TWO EXPLORATORY WELLS FOR HYDROCARBONS INCLUDING POTENTIAL SHALE GAS (THE FIRST ONE VERTICAL AND THE SECOND ONE HORIZONTAL); PHASE 3 - SUSPENSION OF WELLS AND ASSESSMENT OF DRILLING RESULTS; PHASE 4 - SITE DECOMMISSIONING, WELL ABANDONMENT AND RESTORATION. LOCATION: LAND OFF SPRINGS ROAD, MISSON APPLICANT: ISLAND GAS LIMITED Purpose of Report 1. To consider a planning application for a hydrocarbon well site and the drilling of up to two exploratory hydrocarbon wells, the first vertical and the second horizontal. The proposed development is on land off Springs Road, Misson. The key issues relate to visual and landscape impact, flood risk, noise, ecology, traffic, air quality, contamination, unexploded ordnance and heritage. The recommendation is to grant planning permission subject to conditions and the signing of a legal agreement. 2. No hydraulic fracturing is proposed as part of this planning application. The Site and Surroundings 3. The proposed exploratory well site is located in the north of Nottinghamshire, within the district of Bassetlaw and the parish of Misson. The site is approximately 3.2km north-east of the centre of the village of Misson (see Plan 1). 4. The site is accessed off Springs Road, which joins the B1396 (Bank End Road/Sanderson‟s Bank) to the north and to the south enters Misson. The wider area is rural in character, comprising open agricultural fields and a generally flat topography. The application site itself is located within the boundary of the existing L Jackson and Co site, a company which specialises in the sale of ex- military vehicles and equipment. 5. Historically the L Jackson and Co site was a Surface to Air Guided Weapon (SAGW) facility used as the Mk 1 Bloodhound Missile Launch site. The facility had two fire units, each containing 16 missile pads. The missile pads associated with the former fire units remain; comprising concrete and hardstanding, and surrounded by grass. 6. The planning application boundary comprises a roughly rectangular area surrounding the concrete and hardstanding associated with northern fire unit, with a spur to the west incorporating the access route through the L Jackson and Co site and extending to Springs Road (see Plan 2). 7. In the immediate surroundings there is a row of large industrial buildings running in a north to south orientation, which separate the missile pads from Springs Road to the west. To the south there is a further fire unit which is used for storage associated with the L Jackson and Co operations. To the east there is a row of trees, beyond which is a field and then the Misson Training Area Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). To the north of the site is a tree and scrub boundary, beyond which is open agricultural land. 8. The site is within Flood Zone 3a, according to the Environment Agency Flood Risk Mapping, which means it has a greater than 1% annual probability of flooding. 9. The nearest residential property to the application sites is Misson Springs Cottage (although it is noted that this property is unoccupied and within the control of the applicant). The nearest sensitive residential properties are Prospect Farm and Levels Farm located off Springs Road, approximately 130m north of the site access and 260m north-west of the well pad respectively (see Plan 3). 10. The Misson Training Area (also known as Misson Carr) SSSI is approximately 125m to the east of the application boundary and is designated on account of its fenland supporting a diverse range of semi-natural habitats including open water, tall-herb-fen, unimproved neutral and acidic grassland, dry oak woodland and nationally restricted wet woodland. This SSSI is also designated as a Local Wildlife Site (LWS). Approximately 1.7km south-east of the site is the Misson Line Bank SSSI, and 1.9km to the south-east is the River Idle Washlands SSSI (see Plan 4). These two sites are separated by the River Idle, which itself is designated as a LWS between the two SSSIs. There are also a number of drainage ditches within the surrounding area which are LWSs. 11. The Hatfield Moor Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Thorne and Hatfield Moor Special Protection Area (SPA) are located approximately 5.8km north of the application site. 12. The nearest listed building is Newland Farm House (Grade II listed) approximately 540m to the north of the application site. 13. Robin Hood (Doncaster Sheffield) Airport is approximately 3.7km to the west of the site (see Plan 1). Proposed Development Background 14. The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change previously issued Petroleum Exploration and Development Licences (PEDL) for a defined geographical area and specified period of time, although responsibility for this now lies with the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) as an executive agency sponsored by the newly formed Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (DBEIS). The licences give exclusive rights for the licensee to „search, bore for and get‟ petroleum. However, the licences do not in their own right confer on the licensee any consent, permission or authorisation to carry out development activity. 15. PEDL 139 and 140 cover parts of Nottinghamshire, Doncaster and North Lincolnshire (see Plan 5) and are held by a consortium of companies made up of Total E&P UK Ltd, GP Energy Ltd, IGas, Egdon Resources UK Ltd and eCorp Oil & Gas UK Ltd. IGas is the operator of these licenses. The proposed development site lies within PEDL area 140. 16. In 2014 a 3D seismic survey covering a 7,000 hectare area, defined following the results of a desk study. The applicant used the analysis of the seismic survey results to define the area of search for an exploratory well site location. 17. In January 2016 planning permission was granted for the drilling and installation of up to four sets of groundwater monitoring boreholes on land off Springs Road, Misson (Ref: 1/15/01034/CDM). The purpose of the development was to allow information to be gathered on the existing nature and depths of water bearing strata; water levels and piezometric pressure (a measure of liquid pressure); and the baseline range of water quality variation within the water bodies at the Springs Road location. These boreholes have been drilled and installed and are being actively monitored. Proposed Development 18. The proposed development is the construction of a hydrocarbon well site and the drilling of up to two exploratory wells. Planning permission is sought for a temporary period of three years and during this time the proposed development would comprise four phases: 1) Phase 1: Well site construction and ancillary works (approximately 14 weeks); 2) Phase 2: Drilling operations which would include the drilling rig set up (known as mobilisation) and drilling of two exploratory wells (the first vertical and the second horizontal) and rig removal, referred to as demobilisation (approximately 39 weeks); 3) Phase 3: Suspension of the wells and the assessment of the drilling results (approximately 14 weeks); 4) Phase 4: Well abandonment, site decommissioning and restoration (approximately 14 weeks). 19. The purpose of the exploratory wells is to log and take core samples from the boreholes, which once analysed will confirm whether flow testing (which could involve well stimulation through hydraulic fracturing) of the wells would be worthwhile. Such flow testing and well stimulation would be subject to a separate, further planning application. 20. The planning application is accompanied by an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). Phase 1 – Well Site Construction 21. The first phase would be the well site construction. This would involve the construction of a rectangular well pad measuring approximately 100m by 80m, sitting within the central area of the northern fire unit (see Plan 6). 22. The well pad would include a large wellhead cellar capable of accommodating up to two wells. The cellar would be a rectangular reinforced concrete chamber (approximately 3m in depth) sunk into the ground so that the top would be level with the well pad surface. The cellar would be located centrally within the pad. 23. Within the well head cellar there would be the installation of large diameter steel conductors (the first of the borehole casings), which would be drilled with a truck mounted drilling rig. The gap between the conductors and the floor of the cellar would be filled with concrete to maintain the integrity of the well site. 24. The pad would be a sealed impermeable site constructed on top of the existing fire unit (see Plan 7). The pad would have multiple protective layers including: a) A sand capping layer over the existing missile fire units; b) A Fibertex geotextile membrane; c) An impermeable Bentomat liner; d) A further Fibertex geotextile membrane; e) A protective aggregate layer. 25. There would be a central level area (43m by 59m) within which the cellar would be located. Then there would be a fall towards the edges of the pad where there would be a „French drain‟ type surface water drainage system comprising a perimeter of clean stone contained within an impermeable liner within a porous pipe. The pipe would drain to a buried surface water attenuation tank on the eastern edge of the well pad, which would be of a size to accommodate 45,000 litres (see Plan 8).