PLANNING APPLICATIONS BOARD 30 MARCH 2021 COMHAIRLE 31 MARCH 2021 18/00216/PPDM – DRUIM LEATHANN WINDFARM, NORTH TOLSTA, ISLE OF LEWIS Report by Head of Economic Development and Planning PURPOSE 1.1 The Report is to seek the recommendation of the Board on the determination of a planning application for an EIA development categorised as Major development made under The Town and Country Planning Scotland Act 1997 (The Act) , prior to a determination by the Comhairle. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2.1 The application seeks planning permission to construct a windfarm comprising 14 wind turbines (up to 140m to blade tip) and install associated infrastructure, including access tracks, crane hardstanding areas, a substation, form temporary construction compounds, laydown areas and borrow pits at Druim Leathann, North Tolsta, Isle of Lewis (the Proposed Development). A copy of the Planning Application documents, the EIA Non-Technical Summary, the EIA Report (EIAR), and the EIA Supplementary Information (SI) are available to view on the Planning ‘Public Access’ portal under reference 18/00216/PPDM. The application is assessed under the provisions of the Outer Hebrides Local Development Plan 2018 (OHLDP) and the Supplementary Guidance: Wind Energy Development, (2018) (SG). The application attracted 380 representations, some in support and some in objection, many raising duplicate issues and some matters non-material to a planning decision but ultimately an indicator of the interest and concerns around the proposal. 2.2 A windfarm, comprising 14 turbines of up to 126m in height, with associated ancillary infrastructure including tracks, substations and borrow pits on the same site was initially the subject of a Report to the Comhairle in November 2013. The siting of the windfarm, partially inside what was then a 1.5km spatial buffer, for community separation from windfarms, coupled with predicted impacts of major significance on visual amenity, led to an assessment of the development as being contrary to the Development Plan. However in making its determination, the Comhairle, placed weight upon other material considerations, and planning permission was granted in March 2014 upon completion of a Planning Agreement. Subsequent applications, made under Section 42 of The Act, to develop the windfarm subject to varied conditions led to the grant of further planning permissions; the most recent, (the Consented Development) was granted on 15 Feb 2018 for a period of five years and therefore, remains extant. 2.3 All turbines comprised of the Proposed Development, are located on the same site, and are in the same positions as those in the Consented Development, save for one, T12, repositioned to mitigate effects on ornithological interests. For the same reason, the substation has also been relocated to a new position now within 500m of the nearest houses in Lochside, Tolsta. The windfarm infrastructure now proposed would be sited wholly inside what is now set by the SG as a 2km spatial buffer for community separation from windfarms and has predicted impacts of major significance adverse effects on visual amenity from in and around Tolsta together with localised impacts on landscape character. 2.4 Consistent with the assessment of the initial application for a windfarm on this site in 2013, the assessment of the Proposed Development concludes that it would be contrary to the provisions of the Outer Hebrides Local Development Plan. As an initial stage in the assessment, a conclusion is drawn on the proposal in light of material considerations assuming no planning history or extant planning permission. The significant effects both positive and negative are weighed in a planning balance and in that scenario it is the judgement of officers that within the current planning policy context and decision making framework the significant negative effects would not outweigh the benefits of the Proposed Development. 2.5 However, the site has a Planning History and the existence of the live Planning Permission requires to be taken into account. A comparison has therefore been made of the effects both positive and negative that arise from the Proposed Development when compared with the Consented Development, in the context of policy changes, both local and national that have arisen since the Comhairle first considered the application for a windfarm on this site in 2013. 2.6 The decision to grant or refuse planning permission, is therefore based on a finely balanced judgement between the level of additional harm to localised visual amenity versus the benefits of increased power from the proposed windfarm (with predicted powering of circa 2000 additional homes with green energy). This decision is to be made in the context of national and local policy changes, since the Comhairle first made its decision in 2014, to grant planning permission for the now Consented Development. 2.7 There has been a rigorous examination, assessment and consideration of all planning issues. On balance, it is considered that when taken as a whole, the effects of the Proposed Development, would not be significantly more beneficial nor significantly more harmful than those that would arise from the Consented Development. That is, notwithstanding that the Consented Development (at the relevant time) and the Proposed Development have been assessed as being contrary to the Development Plan and further that the policy position has strengthened in certain matters since 2014 (both for and against the proposal). 2.8 Therefore, largely as a consequence of the weight afforded to the extant planning permission being in place (acknowledging that on balance, there is limited difference in the overall effects arising from the Proposed Development compared with the Consented Development), it is recommended that the planning application be approved, subject to management by way of conditions and the securing of other matters that are unable to be addressed by planning conditions within a Planning Obligations Agreement. RECOMMENDATIONS 3.1 It is recommended that the Comhairle approve the planning application subject to: (a) the application of planning conditions, based upon the draft set of conditions provided in Appendix 1 to this Report; their finalisation delegated to the Director for Communities. (b) the completion of either a new or a variation to the existing S75 Planning Obligation Agreement with Druim Leathann Wind Farm Limited (DLWF Ltd)and other relevant land interests, such agreement to secure existing commitments with updated sums for the provisions for a Planning Conditions monitoring officer and to add measures to secure the implementation of the terms of the Agreement between DLWF Ltd and the met office re impact on the weather radar; the Chief Executive being granted delegated Authority, in consultation with the Director for Communities to complete such an Agreement and where appropriate, to discharge the Existing Agreement following an application from the Developer once the new agreement or variation has been registered. (c) A Direction be made under Section 58 (2) of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 the effect of which would be to direct that subsection 58 (1) of the Act is not to apply as respects the permission and instead that the permission is to lapse on the expiration of a 5 year period from the date upon which it is granted. Contact Officer: Morag Ferguson, Planning Manager (Development Management) Telephone: 01870 604990 Email: [email protected] Appendix 1: Schedule of Draft conditions Appendix 2: Plans: Site location and layout, Typical Wind Turbine Structure, Substation Appendix 3: Comparative viewpoints Appendix 4: Consultation responses Appendix 5: Existing Section 75 Planning Agreement Appendix 6: Traffic and transport assessment clarifications Appendix 6a: Traffic and transport Appendix 7: Appropriate Assessment Background Papers: None IMPLICATIONS 4.1 The following implications are applicable in terms of the Report. Resource Implications Implications/None Financial None Legal Requirement to update a Section 75 Planning Agreement Staffing Future resource implications for the pre-commencement discharge and construction phase monitoring of conditions Assets and Property None Strategic Implications Implications/None Risk None Equalities None Corporate Strategy None Environmental Impact None Consultation None BACKGROUND Site selection and planning history 5.1 Chapter 3 of the EIAR sets out the site identification and selection process that was undertaken by DLWL and the design considerations that informed the layout of the Consented Development, as well as the feasibility work undertaken in relation to the windfarm design which forms the subject of this EIA and planning application. 5.2 The EIAR does not set out consideration of alternative sites but rather cites that Scottish Planning Policy (2010) provided support for wind development in principle and encouraged local authorities to guide development towards appropriate locations. DLWL identified the Druim Leathann site as potentially suitable on the basis that Comhairle spatial strategy identified a potential area in this location and the site as selected was partly within this identified ‘area of search’ for large scale windfarms. It is the case that only a small part of the site, that closest to the western boundary and all in excess of 1.5km from the settlement was within ‘the area of search’ as illustrated by Figure 3.1. 5.3 Notwithstanding this, a site which is within 1km of the settlement edge