Contact: Peter Chadwick, ext 6728

1. Summary

1.1 Planning permission for sand extraction at the site was originally granted in 1966, with subsequent permissions for extensions and deepening of the quarry. Due to the date of its original consent Kingsley Sand Quarry was notified as being subject to review under the Environment Act 1995. Therefore, an application has been submitted for determination of conditions. The applicant has put forward a scheme of conditions, and the recommendation is to approve these submitted conditions.

2. Site

2.1 Kingsley Sand Quarry, illustrated on the attached plan, comprises two sites either side of the B3004 to the west of the village of Kingsley. The northern site (Lode Farm) totals an area of 10.1 hectares and contains the sand washing plant, blending plant, stocks, weighbridge and office buildings, as well as an unrestored quarry void used for the supply of water and silt settlement and disposal.

2.2 The southern site (Rookery Farm) totals an area of 12.6 hectares and contains the current sand working and reserves. The sites are linked by a pipeline. Sand is worked by dredger and pumped through to the processing plant. The site is about one kilometre south-west of Kingsley.

2.3 The Rookery Farm site is adjacent to the Shortheath Common Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), and the Quarry itself is designated a SINC (Site of Interest for Nature Conservation) because of the presence of sand martins. The quarry is also adjacent to the proposed South Downs National Park.

2.4 Tarmac acquired the Kingsley Sand Quarry last year. Not all of the former quarry was included in this acquisition, consequently the application includes all areas under the control of Tarmac, but excludes areas not in its control. The main area not included is the small extension which is unrestored at Bridges Land. A Review application has been submitted by SITA for this area, which is the subject of a separate report.

2.5 The application is accompanied by an Environmental Statement and non-technical summary. The Environmental Statement includes studies of landscape and visual impact assessment, ecological assessment, archaeological assessment, hydrological and hydro-geological assessment, noise assessment, highways and transport assessment and dust assessment.

2.6 The existing planning permissions for Kingsley Quarry require the restoration of the quarry, both Lode Farm and Rookery Farm, to agriculture following infilling with waste. With regard to Lode Farm this would reinstate the former landform, which was a small hill side. Changes in legislation have severely restricted the range of waste, and the quantity of waste which would be suitable for tipping at this site. Consequently, it is now proposed to restore the Rookery Farm site to an amenity lake without any imported fill material. Although it is anticipated that sufficient fill material would be available to partly infill the Lode Farm site, this would be at current ground levels, not to original levels. The silt ponds would be restored to wetland habitats for nature conservation.

2.7 Following the studies undertaken as part of the Environmental Statement, the applicant has submitted a schedule of proposed conditions to control the future working and restoration of the quarry.

3. Development Plan

3.1 Hampshire, Portsmouth and Southampton Minerals and Waste Local Plan (adopted December 1998) Policy 10 concerns conditions, Policy 14 concerns restoration and after-care.

4. Consultations

4.1 East Hampshire District Council raises no objection.

4.2 Kingsley Parish Council - no comments made.

4.3 The Environment Agency raises no objection.

4.4 The Environmental Health Officer (EHDC) comments on the need for noise condition, restricting working hours, dust and lighting if proposed to install external lighting.

4.5 English Nature comments that the proposed restoration is unlikely to have a significant effect on Shortheath Common candidate SAC or Shortheath Common SSSI, and endorses the view that the proposed restoration would have greater ecological benefits than the previous restoration to agriculture. However, this will need to be managed.

4.6 Health and Safety Executive - no comments received.

4.7 The Rights of Way Adviser comments on the need for a permanent diversion of the footpath across Rookery Farm, and a desire for a footpath across Lode Farm.

4.8 The Highways Adviser raises no objection.

5. Representations

5.1 The local Member, Councillor Filer, has been informed.

6. Chief Planning Adviser's Comments

6.1 This is a Review of the current planning permissions and conditions for working the quarry, and does not include any extension beyond current permissions. The main issue is the change to the proposed restoration, which would be to a lake for the Rookery Farm site, and wetland and grassland at Lode Farm. This would mean that the site would not return to the original landform. The issues are the suitability of the proposed restoration, and whether the proposed conditions are suitable for the continued working of the quarry.

6.2 It is accepted that the increased restriction on the types of waste that would be acceptable for this site has meant that the original restoration landform for either Lode Farm or Rookery Farm could not be achieved within any reasonable timescale. The alternative restoration of Rookery Farm to an amenity lake would be acceptable. The restoration of Lode Farm to a variety of wetland habitats and dry land at existing levels would also be acceptable, and enhance the ecological value of the site.

6.3 In conclusion the proposed conditions would provide satisfactory environmental controls over future working and the amended restoration would be acceptable.

Recommendation

That the County Council determines that the following conditions shall apply to Kingsley Sand Quarry, Kingsley (Application No: F24847/014/CMA):

Duration

(1) The winning, working, washing and processing of minerals hereby permitted shall cease on or before 31 December 2018 and the sites shall be restored by no later than 31 December 2019 in accordance with the further conditions below unless otherwise approved by the Mineral Planning Authority.

Mineral Working and Development

(2) Mineral winning and associated topsoil and overburden stripping shall be restricted to the Rookery Farm site. No development shall be carried out other than in accordance with the approved plans.

Restriction of Permitted Development Rights

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995 (or any Order amending, replacing or re-enacting that Order), no buildings, plant, machinery or structure (whether fixed or portable design) shall be erected or placed without the prior written approval of the Mineral Planning Authority.

Archaeology

(4) All topsoil stripping operations shall be undertaken in accordance with the scheme of archaeological investigation prepared by Wessex Archaeology and titled "Written Scheme of Investigation for Archaeological Work".

Soil and Overburden Stripping and Storage

(5) All topsoil stripping shall be undertaken in accordance with the document submitted with the application and titled "Annex RAC2 - General Principles for Soil Handling". All topsoil and overburden stripped prior to mineral extraction shall be stored separately within the areas identified on approved Drawing No. K41/14. No stockpiles shall exceed 5 metres in height and all stockpiles in position for longer than 12 months shall be grass seeded.

Excavated overburden shall be used to restore progressively the margins of the quarry void at Rookery Farm.

No indigenous topsoil shall be removed from either the Lode Farm or Rookery Farm sites unless a written scheme of work has been agreed with the Mineral Planning Authority and implemented in full.

Mineral Stockpiles

(6) No minerals shall be stockpiled on the site other than in the area identified on Drawing No. K41/13 and all such mineral stockpiles shall not exceed a height of 8 metres.

Working Hours

(7) Except as may otherwise be agreed with the Mineral Planning Authority, apart from routine maintenance, water pumping and emergency procedures to maintain safety, no operations shall be carried out except between the following times:

Monday to Friday - 0700 to 1800

Saturday - 0700 to 1300

There shall be no quarrying or tipping operations carried out on Sunday or Bank Holidays.

Dust

(8) Measures shall be adopted as necessary to suppress dust arising from the stripping and removal of topsoil and overburden and the winning, washing and processing operations undertaken on the site. All loaded lorries leaving the site, except those carrying aggregate over 50 millimetres, shall be sheeted or have their loads otherwise enclosed before leaving the site.

Noise

(9) The noise from operations carried out on the site, measured or predicted as dB LAeg, 1 hour levels, should not exceed the background noise level at any residential property (measured as dB LA90,T) by more than 10 dBA during the hours of operation with a maximum allowable noise level of 55 dB LAeg, 1 hour at any residential property during the same hours.

Temporary works necessary to the operation of the site (such as the construction of baffle mounds, soil stripping, removal of soil heaps and construction of new permanent land forms) will be allowed to exceed the noise control criteria set out above at any residential property up to a maximum of 70 dB LAeg, 1 hour for up to 8 weeks in any 12 month period.

Silt Settlement

(10) All water from the sand processing plant shall be directed into the Lode Farm Quarry void at the point annotated on Drawing No. K41/13 unless otherwise agreed in writing with the Mineral Planning Authority.

Lighting

(11) All lights and floodlights shall be positioned or screened so as not to cause nuisance to occupiers of any dwelling in the vicinity of the site or to users of the public highways.

Import of Inert Fill

(12) There shall be no import of fill into the Rookery Farm site.

Infilling of the Lode Farm quarry void will be restricted to inert materials. No infilling shall take place until such time as the developer has secured any necessary licence, permit or consent required in accordance with the provisions of the Landfill (England and Wales) Regulations 2002 (or any Order amending, replacing or re-enacting these Regulations).

Import of Soils and Minerals

(13) Imports into the site shall be limited to peat, soils, sand, grit and aggregates and shall not exceed an accumulative total of 22,500 tonnes per annum in any consecutive 12 months period without the written permission of the Mineral Planning Authority.

Water Protection and Pollution

(14) Any oil, fuel, lubricant and other potential pollutants shall be handled on the site in such a manner as to prevent pollution of any watercourse or aquifer. For any liquid other than water, this shall include storage in suitable tanks and containers which shall be house in an area surrounded by bund walls of sufficient height and construction so as to contain 110% of the total contents of all containers and associated pipework. The floor and walls of the bunded areas shall be impervious to both water and oil. The pipes should vent downwards into the bund.

Monitoring of Groundwater and Surface Water

(15) The monitoring requirements set out in the submitted document titled "Shortheath Common - Groundwater and Surface Water Monitoring Scheme" dated August 1995 shall be complied with until such time as production from the site permanently ceases unless otherwise agreed with the Mineral Planning Authority.

Restoration and After-use

(16) Unless otherwise agreed with the Mineral Planning Authority, the Lode Farm and Rookery Farm sites shall be restored in accordance with the Outline Restoration Proposals shown on approved Drawing No's. K41/19 and K41/20.

Details of the proposed restoration scheme shall be submitted for approval by the Mineral Planning Authority within two years of the date of this approval. The scheme shall include details of:

(i) the nature of the intended after-use of the site;

(ii) the sequence of phasing of backfilling of the Lode Farm site (including the construction of the silt cells);

(iii) the respreading of overburden and topsoil, including proposed depths;

(iv) surface and sub-surface drainage arrangements;

(v) the ripping of any compacted layers of final cover to ensure adequate drainage and aeration; such ripping should normally take place before placing of topsoil;

(vi) the machinery to be used in soil spreading operations;

(vii) the final levels of the restored land including gradients; and

viii) the proposed planting scheme.

Aftercare Scheme

(17) An aftercare scheme detailing the steps to be taken to manage and maintain the restored site to the required standard shall be submitted for the approval of the Mineral Planning Authority not later than 12 months prior to the end date of this permission and thereafter implemented and approved.

Control of Noxious Weeds

(18) During operation of the site and the aftercare period, recognised control measures shall be implemented as soon as practicable to control noxious weeds (in particular Ragwort and Japanese Knotweed) and shall continue until clearance is achieved.

Removal of Pipelines

(19) All plant, buildings and equipment shall be removed from the site prior to completion of the restoration works unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Mineral Planning Authority.

Early Completion

(20) In the event of a cessation of winning and working minerals prior to the achievement of the completion of the approved scheme, which in the Mineral Planning Authority constitute a permanent cessation within the terms of Paragraph 3 of Schedule 9 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, a scheme, to include details of reclamation and aftercare, shall be submitted in writing for the approval of the Mineral Planning Authority within 12 months of the cessation of the winning and working. The approved scheme shall be fully implemented within 2 years of the written approval unless otherwise agreed in writing with the Mineral Planning Author

7959/PDC

APPENDIX

HAMPSHIRE, PORTSMOUTH AND SOUTHAMPTON MINERALS AND WASTE LOCAL PLAN (ADOPTED 17 DECEMBER 1998)

Policy 10

The Mineral and Waste Planning Authorities will impose conditions on planning permissions for minerals and waste development to minimise any adverse environmental, traffic or other impact resulting from the development and to ensure appropriate restoration and after-care of the site. Where such impacts cannot adequately be controlled by conditions, the Mineral and Waste Planning Authorities will seek appropriate planning obligations and/or legal agreements in order to control operations and/or to secure the enhancement of the environment or benefit to the local community.

Policy 14

The Mineral and Waste Planning Authorities will grant planning permission for minerals or waste development provided they are satisfied that:

(i) adequate provision has been made for the satisfactory restoration and after-care of the site to the highest practicable standard so as to be suitable for the agreed beneficial after-use when the operation or use of the site has ceased or the facility has reached the end of its life, which after-use should normally be agriculture, woodland, heathland or other nature conservation or amenity use; and

(ii) in the case of mineral working and waste disposal by landfilling or landraising, the land will be progressively restored within the shortest practicable timescale such that the rate of restoration is as far as practicable commensurate with the rate of extraction and/or disposal and the land will be subject to appropriate after-care to ensure that it is restored to a condition satisfactory for the agreed after-use of the site; and

(iii) the restoration and after-care provisions can be ensured by means of conditions attached to the planning permission or through a planning obligation or other appropriate legal agreement.