Agenda and draft minutes

Northern Area Planning Committee - Wednesday 19 June 2024 2.00 pm

Venue: Council Chamber - Council Offices, Monkton Park, Chippenham, SN15 1ER. View directions

Contact: Democratic Services  Email: committee@wiltshire.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

41.

Apologies

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Minutes:

Apologies were received from:

 

Cllr Gavin Grant

Cllr Nic Puntis

Cllr Dr Brian Mathew (Cllr Nick Murry substituting)

 

42.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting

To approve as a true and correct record the minutes of the previous meeting held on 22 May 2024.

 

Please note: these will follow as an Agenda Supplement.

Supporting documents:

Minutes:

The minutes of the last meeting of the Committee held on 22 May 2024 were considered for approval by the committee.

 

Resolved

 

To approve the minutes of the previous meeting held on 22 May 2024 as a true and correct record.

43.

Declarations of Interest

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

Minutes:

 

Cllr Elizabeth Threlfall declared an interest in application no. PL/2022/05504 as she had been lobbied by both sides as the local member. She declared she would participate in the debate and vote for the item with an open mind.

44.

Chairman's Announcements

To receive any announcements through the Chair.

Minutes:

There were no Chairman’s announcements.

45.

Public Participation

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public.

 

Statements

 

Members of the public who wish to speak either in favour or against an application or any other item on this agenda are asked to register no later than 10 minutes before the start of the meeting. If it is on the day of the meeting registration should be done in person.

 

The rules on public participation in respect of planning applications are linked to in the Council’s Planning Code of Good Practice. The Chairman will allow up to 3 speakers in favour and up to 3 speakers against an application, and up to 3 speakers on any other item on this agenda. Each speaker will be given up to 3 minutes and invited to speak immediately prior to the item being considered.

 

Members of the public and others will have had the opportunity to make representations on planning applications and other items on the agenda, and to contact and lobby their local elected member and any other members of the planning committee, prior to the meeting.

 

Those circulating such information prior to the meeting, written or photographic, are advised to also provide a copy to the case officer for the application or item, in order to officially log the material as a representation, which will be verbally summarised at the meeting by the relevant officer, not included within any officer slide presentation if one is made. Circulation of new information which has not been verified by planning officers or case officers is also not permitted during the meetings.

 

Questions

 

To receive any questions from members of the public or members of the Council received in accordance with the constitution which excludes, in particular, questions on non-determined planning applications.

 

Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such questions in writing to the officer named on the front of this agenda no later than 5pm on Wednesday 12 June 2024 in order to be guaranteed of a written response. In order to receive a verbal response, questions must be submitted no later than 5pm on Friday 14 June 2024. Please contact the officer named on the front of this agenda for further advice. Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

 

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website.

 

 

Minutes:

The Chairman explained the rules of public participation and the procedure to be followed at the meeting.

 

There were no statements or questions submitted.

46.

Planning Appeals and Updates

To receive details of completed and pending appeals and other updates as appropriate.

Supporting documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Chuck Berry invited Adrian Walker, Development Management Team Leader, to update the Committee on the pending and determined appeals as per the appeals report included within the Agenda Pack.

 

Following which, it was:

 

Resolved:

 

The Committee noted the appeals report for the period 10 May 2024 to 7 June 2024.

 

47.

PL/2022/05504: Land at Stonehill, Minety, Wiltshire, SN16 9DX

Installation of a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) together with associated ancillary infrastructure, equipment, and access arrangements.

 

Supporting documents:

Minutes:

PL/2022/05504: Land at Stonehill, Minety, Wiltshire, SN16 9DX (Pages 7 - 40)

 

Public Participation

Mr Richard Thwaites spoke in support of the application.

 

Officers from the Development Management Area Team introduced the report which recommended that the Committee approve planning permission, subject to conditions, for the installation of a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) together with associated ancillary infrastructure, equipment, and access arrangements.

 

Key considerations identified included:

 

  • Scale of development
  • Visual impact
  • Design
  • Cumulative effects

Members of the Committee then had the opportunity to ask technical questions to the officer.

 

It was clarified that:

 

  • The proposal did not include a definitive colour but there was a proposed condition that would require the colour to be submitted for approval. The expected colour was green or brown with camouflage also suggested.

 

  • The standard assessment of cumulative impact was used.

 

  • Noise suppressors could be conditioned and that a condition that an emergency plan be submitted for potential fires or contamination had been included in proposal.

 

  • There was no requirement to prove “need” which government legislation sets out clearly.

 

  • Any information received on an application was assumed accurate unless any significant doubt is raised that it might not be.

 

  • A condition to force the return of land to an agricultural state should the site become obsolete (within a decommissioning strategy) was already contained in the proposal and could be enforced.

 

  • There was no proposal to sink the site into the ground to reduce visual impact.

 

  • The land was not considered industrial land and would remain agricultural land even whilst being used for battery storage, and after any potential removal would return to “square one” in terms of planning applications.

 

Members of the public then had the opportunity to present their views to the committee as detailed above. The local member, Cllr Elizabeth Threlfall, also spoke to the application.

 

A debate followed where councillors considered when the line should be drawn on the cumulative impact of numerous BESS facilities, although it was noted that this application was optimum and neat.

 

The landscape officer’s comments stating that there would be harm to the landscape was considered.

 

Concern over safety and potential hazards was considered, although members appreciated planning officer clarification that there was an exemplary record of almost no fires and zero injuries or lasting damage to the surrounding environment at BESS sites.

 

The committee considered the planning officer’s recommendation for approval with conditions and that this shouldn’t necessarily be disregarded out of hand given the level of consideration put in.

 

During debate a motion to refuse the application was moved by Cllr Steve Bucknell and seconded by Cllr Mike Sankey with reference to Core Policy 51, cumulative impact, and impact on the landscape.

 

Resolved

 

That planning permission be refused.

 

48.

Urgent Items

Any other items of business which, in the opinion of the Chairman, should be taken as a matter of urgency.

Minutes:

There were no urgent items.