PROPOSED EXTENSION OF DUNS TEW QUARRY, DUNS TEW, NORTH OXFORDSHIRE Environmental Statement Non Technical Summary PROPOSAL: North Eastern extension to Duns Tew Quarry (East) Extension to Duns Tew Quarry Proposed North Eastern extension to Duns Tew Quarry (East) SMITHS BLETCHINGTON are a long 1.0 Basic facts and figures Site access as existing on to Duns Tew Road: established, local, family run company. 48 Lorry movements (in and out) average per day Smiths are one of the key suppliers of Some figures are rounded and approximate Legal routeing agreement prevents quarry traffic from passing primary aggregates and recycled aggregates 14.6 Ha Application Area (red line) through Duns Tew Village except for local deliveries in Oxfordshire. Duns Tew Quarry is the 6.1 Ha New sand extraction area company’s only soft sand operation tying in 12 Approximate lorry movements on Middle Barton Road per day with their flagship sand and gravel quarry at 8.5 Ha Area of existing permitted East Quarry Gill Mill near Witney and their crushed rock 3.9 Ha Area of new woodland planting before start of Authorities: and walling stone quarries elsewhere in the extraction county. The company employs a staff of over Duns Tew Parish Council 415,000 tonnes New soft sand reserve 100 people and operate a fleet of company District Council: The site access and the southern part of the eastern 25,000 tonnes Annual sales of soft sand owned lorries. Their business activities include quarry fall in West Oxfordshire and the remaining northern part of the haulage, site excavations and groundwork, 16/17 years Duration of development quarry, within Cherwell District plant hire and recycling. c.2016 Approximate start date for extraction (at completion Mineral Planning Authority: Oxfordshire County Council of West Quarry) 25,000 tonnes Annual sales of merchanted sands, gravel and stone 2.0 Purpose of this document 10.3 Ha Area of the eastern quarry restored to native In this document you will find a summary of: woodland The proposed development 6.8 Ha Area restored to other nature conservation uses The main parts of the proposals that have the potential to impact both 1.4 Ha Area of rifle range, tracks and yard positively and negatively on the environment and local residents 07.00 - 18.00 hrs Working hours, Monday to Friday The potential measures we would take to prevent, reduce and where 0.700 - 13.00 hrs Working hours, Saturday (no working on Sundays or possible, offset any significant adverse effects on the environment Bank Holidays) Front cover photos clockwise: Duns Tew East and Frequently asked questions. West Quarries (July 2013), West Quarry Local Wildlife Site, West Quarry Southern Marsh orchid, East Quarry sand operations. 2 2 3.0 Introduction 4.0 The Site and Development 3.1 This document is the Non-Technical Summary (NTS) of the Proposals Environmental Statement (ES) prepared to accompany the 4.1 The existing Duns Tew Quarry lies approximately 1km south of planning application for the proposal to extend Duns Tew Quarry Duns Tew village and approximately 2kms north east of Middle (East) by Smiths and Sons (Bletchington) Ltd, the Applicant. Barton. 3.2 An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the potential 4.2 The quarry and surrounding agricultural land broadly rises from Screened soft sand for mortar ready for sale environmental impacts of the development has been carried south to north. The quarry is accessed off Duns Tew Road at the out and the findings of that EIA are presented as a separate south western part of the site. Both the weighbridge and site Environmental Statement. office are sited on the access road in the south of the quarry. 3.3 The requirement for an EIA is derived from European legislation, 4.3 The proposed extension area is situated to the north and east of translated in the UK into the Town and County Planning the existing eastern quarry and comprises intensively managed (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2011. These arable farmland. regulations require the ES to have a NTS. 4.4 Duns Tew is the nearest settlement to the proposed 3.4 The main topic areas for the ES were established through development site. Views of the site from the village are shallow consultation with Oxfordshire County Council and set out within in depth and largely obscured by intervening vegetation. The a formal Scoping Opinion received on 1st March 2012. nearest properties to the proposed extension are isolated 3.5 The NTS is a standalone document. It provides a brief summary residential dwellings; Blue Barn Farm, Tewley Barn and Four of the development and the results of the environmental Winds Farm to the north east, Horsehay Farm and Greenacres to assessment in non-technical language. A full copy of the the south west and Glebe Farm to the north. planning application will be posted by the County Council on 4.5 The site has been operational as a soft sand quarry since the their website. 1950s and is made up of two separate working areas separated by Duns Tew Road. Mineral extraction in the eastern quarry was exhausted in 2007 and replaced with an extension to the former western quarry. Extraction currently takes place within the western quarry with reserves expected to be exhausted by 2016. 4.6 The eastern quarry also has planning permission for a building supplies compound, the storage and processing of indigenous Sand operations in east quarry 3 Location plan 4 About halfway through the development - end of year 8 Sand martin nests and geological SSSI face sand as well as imported aggregate. These ancillary activities 4.8 The sands extracted from Duns Tew Quarry are unique to the have planning permission until 2018. local area and are known as the Horsehay Sand Formation. They were laid down some 168 million years ago in the Jurassic and 4.7 Duns Tew Quarry is the only ‘soft sand’ quarry supplying north are recognised by Natural England as a geological Site of Special Oxfordshire. With its distinctive colour, it has been used for Scientific Interest (SSSI). Some of the sand faces will be retained generations throughout the villages and rural settlements in the for geological study as part of the restoration proposals. north of the county, in Duns Tew itself and on the limestone plateau across the Cherwell Valley towards Bicester. It is used primarily as a limestone mortar for brick and block masonry, for both restoration and new build works. Loading sand for delivery 5 4.9 A recognised need 4.12 Access to the site There is a recognised need (through the National Planning Policy The quarry is accessed from a simple junction directly off Duns Framework) for Oxfordshire County Council to plan for a steady Tew Road. There are no plans to alter the access. The present and adequate supply of aggregates, and the proposed extension routeing arrangements will remain - with all HGV traffic using to Duns Tew Quarry would help to meet this need. The demand either of the two routes to the A4260 Oxford Road. The existing for these soft sands remains strong and their continued supply routeing agreement, which prevents quarry traffic from passing will make a valuable contribution in supporting development through the village except for local deliveries, will remain in force and contributing to the local built environment with its as part of these proposals. distinctive local character. 4.10 Alternative options 5.0 Environmental effects and The sands from Duns Tew serve a local demand and are only mitigation found at Duns Tew Quarry. Smiths are not aware of any substitute/recycled materials that could fulfil the same role 5.1 Landscape character and meet the continuing demand for this product. Although There are no nationally protected landscapes close to the site. other sand deposits exist in the Duns Tew area it is preferable The majority of Duns Tew Village is designated as a Conservation to work an extension to an existing quarry with existing Area. infrastructure in place rather than to open up a new quarry. It is also unsustainable for local customers to be supplied from A landscape character assessment classifies the site and adjacent other sand quarries further away involving significant increases areas to the north, east and south as ‘Wooded Estatelands’, with in lorry haulage distance. Also such sands do not meet the local woodlands, hedgerows and the unspoilt village of Duns Tew distinctiveness of the Duns Tew sands. being the main contributors to the setting of the site. 4.11 The proposals The overall landscape sensitivity of the site has been rated as medium. The changes associated with sand extraction could The proposal is for a 6.1 hectare northern and eastern extension potentially generate a substantially adverse landscape impact to Duns Tew Quarry (East) to yield an estimated 415,000 tonnes during the operational phases of the development. However, of saleable sand. Extraction would follow completion of the the loss of arable land and the medium to long term effects western quarry, expected in 2016. The expectation is for 25,000 of restoration mitigate these effects to a significant degree. tonnes per year to be extracted on a campaign basis, extending The predicted residual impact on the landscape incorporating the life of the quarry for a further 16 -17 years. mitigation is therefore rated as slightly adverse. In addition, the plan is to extend the life of the existing ancillary Landscape mitigation measures include: activities within the eastern quarry and to amalgamate all the operations into a single planning permission. All activities will l Planting of a large area of perimeter woodland cease at the end of quarrying.