Agenda item

Mr Charles Todd raised concerns over the procedure which determined the application at the last meeting.

 

Mrs Pauline Reed spoke in objection to planning conditions.

 

Mrs Anne Henshaw spoke in objection to planning conditions.

 

Mr Tim Barton spoke in support of the suggested conditions.

 

The suggested conditions for the application were noted by the planning officer to be those in the report for consideration by the Committee.

 

The Committee then had the opportunity to ask technical questions of the officer and it was confirmed that the summary of the previous meeting’s resolution on the application was the same as in the printed minutes.

 

Members of the public then addressed the Committee as detailed above.

 

Following statements from the public, the planning officer confirmed that he felt condition 11 was suitable to overcome concerns and a condition on lighting had been included to help determine whether lighting would be appropriate to the location. The officer advised that the Landscape and Ecological Management Plan would ensure management of screening and that plans submitted to the Council were public documents.

 

The Chairman explained the site visit previously undertaken had examined the site thoroughly.

 

The local member, Cllr Dick Tonge expressed disappointment that there had been no debate on the public’s statements in relation to the minutes of the last meeting.

 

In the debate that followed, members considered the timing of Miscanthus planting, the definition of ‘first use’ in condition 5 and items considered under the Landscape and Ecological Management Plan. Members suggested that, if conditions were to be approved and planning permission be granted, the applicant should do all he could to relieve the concerns of local residents. It was agreed that ‘first use’ should reflect the first production of electricity and that the local authority would be informed when this started.

 

An amendment to a motion to approve the conditions was agreed, it was moved to approve conditions with an amendment  to condition 5 to read:

 

The Miscanthus ‘elephant grass’ planting detailed in the approved details shall be planted prior to the first production of electricity of the development hereby permitted. The Miscanthus shall be left to grow to aheight of at least 2.5m,after which a band at least 10m thick shall be maintained at all times across the full span of the indicated strip at a height of at least 2.5m, until such time as the apparatus is removed from the site and the land restored to its previous condition. If for any reason during the operational life of the development the Miscanthus should die, be removed or become seriously damaged or diseased, it shall be replaced in the next planting season with a similar species. And within 6 months of first production of electricity the Local Planning Authority shall be informed in writing.

 

 

Resolved:

 

To APPROVE the  following conditions for the application:

 

1.    The development hereby permitted shall be begun before the expiration of three years from the date of this permission.

 

REASON: To comply with the provisions of Section 91 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as amended by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004.

 

2.    No development shall commence on site until full details of the materials to be used for the external walls and roofs of buildings have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. Development shall be carried out in accordance with the approved details.

 

REASON: In the interests of visual amenity and the character and appearance of the area.

 

3.    No development shall commence on site until details of a suitable scheme of refurbishment and maintenance of the southern boundary wall between the site and Wadswick Lane and the maintenance of the central dividing wall between the two fields subject of the application has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The approved scheme shall be implemented in full prior to the first use of the development hereby permitted and maintained throughout in accordance with a suitable timescale, as agreed through that scheme.

 

REASON: In the interests of visual amenity and the character and appearance of the area.

 

4.    All soft landscaping comprised in the approved details of landscaping shall be carried out in the first planting and seeding season following the first use of the facility or completion of the development, whichever is the sooner; All shrubs, trees and hedge planting shall be maintained free from weeds and shall be protected from damage by vermin and stock. Any trees or plants which, within a period of five years, die, are removed, or become seriously damaged or diseased shall be replaced in the next planting season with others of a similar size and species, unless otherwise agreed in writing by the local planning authority. All hard landscaping shall also be carried out in accordance with the approved details prior to the occupation of any part of the development or in accordance with a programme to be agreed in writing with the Local Planning Authority.

 

REASON: To ensure a satisfactory landscaped setting for the development and the protection of existing important landscape features

 

5.    The Miscanthus ‘elephant grass’ planting detailed in the approved details shall be planted prior to the first production of electricity of the development hereby permitted. The Miscanthus shall be left to grow to a height of at least 2.5m, after which a band at least 10m thick shall be maintained at all times across the full span of the indicated strip at a height of at least 2.5m, until such time as the apparatus is removed from the site and the land restored to its previous condition. If for any reason during the operational life of the development the Miscanthus should die, be removed or become seriously damaged or diseased, it shall be replaced in the next planting season with a similar species. And within 6 months of first production of electricity the Local Planning Authority shall be informed in writing.

 

REASON: In the interests of visual amenity and the character and appearance of the area.

 

6.    Access to the site during construction, servicing and decommissioning of the development hereby approved shall be only via the existing entrance to the Manor Farm complex from Bradford Road, unless otherwise agreed in writing in advance by the Planning Authority, This access shall be maintained for this purpose between the date of commencement and the date on which the land is restored to its former condition after decommissioning. No construction, servicing or decommissioning traffic shall access the site from Wadswick Lane.

 

REASON: In the interests of highway safety.

 

7.    The development hereby permitted shall not be first brought into use until the proposed field gates, stiles, permissive bridleway and permissive footpath have been provided in full, in accordance with the approved details. These elements shall be maintained free of obstruction and in serviceable condition thereafter, until such time as the facility is decommissioned and the land restored to its former condition.

 

REASON: In the interests of the amenities of the area.

8.    No materials, goods, plant, machinery, equipment, finished or unfinished

products/parts of any description, skips, crates, containers, waste or any other item whatsoever shall be placed, stacked, deposited or stored outside any building on the site between the times of substantial completion of development and commencement of decommissioning, unless otherwise agreed in writing in advance by the Planning Authority.

 

REASON: In the interests of the appearance of the site and the amenities of the area.

 

9.    No external lighting shall be installed on site until plans showing the type of light appliance, the height and position of fitting, illumination levels and light spillage in accordance with the appropriate Environmental Zone standards set out by the Institute of Lighting Engineers in their publication "Guidance Notes for the Reduction of Obtrusive Light" (ILE, 2005)", have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The approved lighting shall be installed and shall be maintained in accordance with the approved details and no additional external lighting shall be installed.

 

REASON: In the interests of the amenities of the area and to minimise unnecessary light spillage above and outside the development site.

 

10.Prior to commencement of development, a Landscape and Ecological Management Plan shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. This plan shall include the following elements:

 

• Protection of existing trees and shrubs

• Establishment of hedgerows, trees and shrubs to be planted

• Establishment / restoration of grassland habitats

• Long-term management of all hedgerows and restored / created grassland

• Features to be installed for the benefits of protected / BAP fauna

• Ecological monitoring to inform future management at the site

 

The development shall be carried out in accordance with the agreed Landscape and Ecological Management Plan and the site managed in accordance with the approved plan unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

 

REASON: To protect and enhance biodiversity at the site

 

11.Within six months of the date 25 years after first use of the development or the date on which the facility permanently ceases to be operational, whichever is the sooner,all apparatus, buildings, hard standing and fencing shall be permanently removed from the site and the land restored to its former condition.

REASON: In the interests of preserving the long-term character and appearance of the site and its setting.

 

12.The development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with the following approved plans:

 

BH120283W-001 – Solarpanel Detail

BH120283W-004 – LV Transformer Station

BH120283W-005 - DNO Substation/Private Switchgear

BH120283W-006 – CCTV Pole

BH120283W-007 – Protective Deer Fence

Received 17 March 2014

B.0283_15-B – Site Location and Land Ownership Plan

B.0283_05-N – Block Plan – Site Layout

B.0283_20-C – Planting Proposals

B.0283_24-A – Gates and Stiles

Received 28 July 2014

 

REASON: For the avoidance of doubt and in the interests of proper planning.