Northamptonshire County Council ZECO2S Crick Primary ... › councilservices... · 1 th30 July 2014...
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1 30th July 2014
Northamptonshire County Council ZECO2S – Crick Primary School Biomass Boiler Renewable Energy and Climate
Change Statement
Prepared by: Date:
Rupert Blackstone, Wattcraft Limited (Project Engineer) 24/07/2014
Approved by: Date:
Julian Steele, Energy and Carbon Management Team, Northamptonshire County Council
04/08/2014
1. Introduction The proposed development at Crick Primary School comprises a biomass boiler plant of
95kW thermal capacity, using wood pellet as feedstock. This development is to be part-
funded (50%) by the European Union through the ‘ZECOS’ project, of which
Northamptonshire County Council is a partner. The remaining 50% is to be funded by
Northamptonshire County Council. The project aims to stimulate the implementation of
low carbon sustainable energy projects in communities.
2. Renewable Energy The wood pellet fuel will be from a sustainable resource – the wood from which it is
produced is to be from sustainable forestry and certified accordingly. There will be
possible non-renewable energy consumption during production of the wood pellet from
sawmill co-product in particular through the compression process. There may also be non-
renewable energy consumption through the transportation of the fuel, in its raw form to
the sawmill, from the sawmill to the pellet production plant and from the pellet
production plant to its point of use. The non-renewable component of the energy supplied
in the form of pellet is not expected to exceed 15% of the energy available in the wood
pellet in carbon dioxide emission equivalent terms, using oil as the reference fuel.
3. Climate change The carbon dioxide emissions from burning biomass are equal to those absorbed during the
growth of the trees that are the source of the wood fuel and therefore the burning of the
wood fuel in itself will not result in a net increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The non-
renewable energy components in the bioenergy process associated with production and
transportation (referred to in Section 2 above) will result in some greenhouse gas
emissions. These are expected to be less than 15% of those emitted when supplying the
same quantity of heat using oil.
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1 6th August 2014
Northamptonshire County Council ZECO2S – Crick Primary School Biomass
Boiler Planning Statement
Prepared by: Date:
Rupert Blackstone, Wattcraft Limited (Project Engineer) 06/08/2014
Approved by: Date:
Julian Steele, Energy and Carbon Management Team, Northamptonshire County Council
06/08/2014
Contents 1. Background ......................................................................................... 2
1.1. Scheme description.......................................................................... 2
1.2. National policy ............................................................................... 2
1.2.1. National Planning Policy Framework ................................................ 2
1.2.2. National Planning Policy Guidance .................................................. 3
1.3. West Northamptonshire Joint Core Strategy ............................................ 3
1.4. Saved District Policies ...................................................................... 5
1.4.1. Type, scale, design .................................................................... 5
1.4.2. Site access ............................................................................... 6
1.4.3. Landscaping and archaeology ........................................................ 6
1.4.4. Ecology ................................................................................... 6
1.4.5. Flood risk and water resources ....................................................... 8
1.4.6. Air quality ............................................................................... 9
1.5. Bioenergy Strategy .......................................................................... 9
2. Consultations, pre-submission .................................................................. 9
3. Conclusion ......................................................................................... 10
4. Supporting information .......................................................................... 10
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1. Background Crick Primary School has identified a need for a new biomass boiler facility within the
school site. The school is sited in the parish of Crick, located within the Daventry District
Council area, within rural Northamptonshire. Crick has a population of nearly 1,885 (Office
for National Statistics; updated 7/6/2013).
This planning statement has been prepared to support the application and to highlight
relevant development plan and other planning policies / guidance and assesses these
against the proposal to develop the application site.
1.1. Scheme description
The proposed development is a small scale biomass boiler to supply space heating to a
rural village primary school, located in the Daventry District of West Northamptonshire.
The proposed biomass boiler plant will have a thermal capacity of 95kW and will use wood
pellet as feedstock. Since the plant is sized above 45kW thermal capacity, it does not fall
within permitted development [reference:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/748/made/data.pdf].
The biomass boiler, auxiliary plant (including circulation pumps), controls, thermal (hot
water) storage and biomass fuel storage are to be enclosed in a rectangular cuboid
container of length 8.8m, width 2.6m and height 2.9m. The flue is to be 6m high (above
ground level). The container is to be cladded with wood and the flue is to be made of
steel. The dimensions of the plant are shown in the attached drawing (file ref: Crick
biomass boiler layout w images 2014-08-05v1.pdf/ drawing ref. TENDER CRICK L1).
Orthographic visualisations accompany the elevation views on this drawing.
The biomass boiler is to be located on the edge of the playground in a currently unused
space, without play markings, adjacent to the fence. The location of the plant room is
shown in the attached site plan drawing (file ref.: Crick biomass boiler location 2014-07-
24v1(D0185M-Crick-L1v5 Design 1-1250).pdf / drawing ref. D0185A-Z3) the larger scale
location drawing (file ref.: Crick biomass boiler location 2014-06-18v1(D0185M-Crick-L1v3
Design 1-100).pdf / drawing ref.: D0185A-Z1). This may be compared with the existing site
drawing (file ref.: Crick biomass boiler location 2014-07-24v1(D0185M-Crick-L1v5 Original
1-100).pdf / drawing ref.: D0185A-Z2).Planning policy context
1.2. National policy
1.2.1. National Planning Policy Framework
Published in March 2012 the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) sets out the
Government’s planning policies for England. The document provides a framework within
which local councils and communities can produce their own local and neighbourhood
plans reflecting the needs and priorities for their area.
In terms of renewable and low carbon energy, the NPPF is supportive of a transition to a
low carbon future and encourages the use of renewable resources (reference Core
Planning Principle 17/NPPF). It states that local councils should plan for new development
in locations and ways that reduce greenhouse gas emissions (reference clause 95/NPPF).
The NPPF also states that to help increase the use and supply of renewable and low carbon
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energy, local planning authorities should recognise the responsibility on all communities to
contribute to energy generation from renewable or low carbon sources. In doing so they
should support community-led initiatives for renewable and low carbon energy. The NPPF
states that opportunities should be identified for developments to use energy from
decentralised, renewable or low carbon energy supply and co-locating potential heat
customers and suppliers (reference clause 97/NPPF).
The proposal accords with the Government’s NPPF requirements to increase the use of
renewable and low carbon energy and to support community-led initiatives. This applies to
the Crick Primary School biomass project, whereby the school has been defined as integral
to the definition of community within the overarching European funded project that it is
part of. The Crick Primary School biomass project fits well with the requirement for
developments to use energy from decentralised supplies. It is one of a number of schools
(currently five) to be supported by the European-funded ZECOS project and, together with
the other schools, there is the potential to take advantage of the co-ordinated fuel supply,
giving potential benefits both in terms of reduced cost, but also reduced transportation
requirements and therefore environmental benefit. This would contribute to the NPFF aim
to co-locate potential heat customers and suppliers.
1.2.2. National Planning Policy Guidance
The National Planning Policy Guidance (NPPG) makes reference to the importance of
renewable and low carbon energy and the responsibility of local authorities for renewable
and low carbon energy development of 50 megawatts or less installed capacity (under the
Town and Country Planning Act 1990). It states, “Increasing the amount of energy from
renewable and low carbon technologies will help to make sure the UK has a secure energy
supply, reduce greenhouse gas emissions to slow down climate change and stimulate
investment in new jobs and businesses. Planning has an important role in the delivery of
new renewable and low carbon energy infrastructure in locations where the local
environmental impact is acceptable.” The biomass boiler project at Crick Primary School
may be viewed as being supported by this guidance.
1.3. West Northamptonshire Joint Core Strategy
The West Northamptonshire Joint Core Strategy (JCS) sets out the long-term vision and
objectives for the whole of the area covered by Daventry District, Northampton Borough
and South Northamptonshire Councils for the plan period up to 2026, including strategic
policies for steering and shaping development. It identifies specific locations for strategic
new housing and employment and changes to transport infrastructure and other supporting
community facilities, as well as defining areas where development will be limited.
The overall aim of the JCS is to deliver sustainable development and is in line with the
new National Planning Policy Framework. Proposed Changes include some rewording of the
Pre-Submission JCS Policy on Sustainable Development Principles (Policy S10) including
reference to development being designed to improve environmental performance, energy
efficiency and adapt to a changing climate over its lifetime. The policy entitled Low
Carbon and Renewable Energy (Policy S11) requires major development to contribute to
reductions in carbon dioxide emissions.
The overall aim of West Northamptonshire’s Joint Core Strategy is to deliver sustainable
development. Policies S10 and S11 aim for energy efficiency and the requirement for
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major developments to contribute to reductions in carbon dioxide emissions. Though the
proposed school development is small in scale, it will increase the take-up of renewable
energy supplies, particularly biomass energy.
In line with Policy S10, the wood used for cladding of the containerised plant room is to be
sustainably sourced. Also in line with Policy S10, the highest standards of design are to be
achieved including in relation to safety and security, in full recognition that this is very
important for a biomass boiler. A high quality system has been specified with fire safety
and personnel safety design features and strict quality control has been applied in the
selection of the contractor.
In line with Policy S11, the biomass boiler installation will:
bring wider environmental benefits by displacing fossil fuel consumption and
reducing greenhouse gas emissions
bring economic and social benefits through stimulation of local and national fuel
supply rather than maintaining dependence on imported fossil fuels
have no significant adverse impact on landscape or amenity
be straightforward to remove, in particular given that the main plant is housed in a
container.
Biomass energy is expected to play a key role in Northamptonshire’s ability to meet
renewable energy and carbon dioxide emissions reduction targets. Biomass schemes are
becoming increasingly popular as a result of financial incentives and the increasing cost of
fossil fuels. Much of West Northamptonshire is rural in nature with a dispersed network of
almost 190 villages and hamlets. The rural communities account for approximately one-
third of West Northamptonshire’s population. In Daventry and South Northamptonshire
districts the percentage of people living in rural communities is as high as 75%. With the
lack of the connection of the school to the gas network, there is the additional benefit of
utilising biomass energy of offering increased security of supply of heat.
It is however important to ensure that biomass is produced sustainably and to get the right
balance between food production and energy production. Biomass fuels are those derived
from replenishable plant material that can be converted into energy and therefore can be
regarded as a renewable energy. Where wood is the biomass fuel used this should be used
from sustainable sources. Using locally sourced wood stimulates the management of local
woodland which can help to improve biodiversity, increase rural employment and keep
revenue in the local economy while also minimising transport emissions. A number of
options for biomass fuel have been explored for Crick and wood pellet has been concluded
as the most suitable. Miscanthus (or elephant grass), whilst grown locally, has a
detrimental impact on boilers and major component replacement, as well as additional
maintenance, would be expected over the life of the biomass boiler, as well as increased
capital cost at the outset. This would result in excessive expenditure and a need to reduce
the number of projects, given budget constraints and therefore miscanthus has been ruled
out. Wood chip, also available locally, has been assessed, but requires significantly more
space than wood pellet and results in a far less clean operation than wood pellet, with
inevitable spillage around the fuel store on delivery. In the case of Crick, the only realistic
location for the biomass plant is on the edge of the playground, where there is inadequate
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additional space for woodchip and a need to keep the area tidy, given that it is the school
children’s playground.
1.4. Saved District Policies
The Saved Policies from the Daventry District Local Plan (June 1997) were saved on 28th
September 2007 and published in November 2010. The relevant policies to this proposal
are also referred to in the Renewable Energy Leaflet issued by Daventry District Council
(http://www.daventrydc.gov.uk/EasySiteWeb/GatewayLink.aspx?alId=28735) – this states
that there are no local plan policies that relate specifically to renewable energy
development; however there are a number of general policies on which any proposal will
be assessed. The proposed development complies with the following relevant (saved)
Local Plan policies:
GN2 (type, scale, design)
EN42 (design).
The project addresses Policy GN2 and Policy EN42 with a design that is in keeping with the
local environment with adverse impact on surrounding amenities.
1.4.1. Type, scale, design
The application relates to the installation of a biomass boiler facility adjacent to an
existing school building. The only external changes proposed include the construction of a
structure within which the biomass boiler is to be housed with materials that are
compatible with those of the school buildings, and a new flue, which will terminate above
the roof of the plant room, which is adjacent to the main school building, with its roof
punctuated by existing structures.
The school is located on Main Road in Crick. The proposed biomass boiler facility will be
sited to the north of the main school campus. With regards to residential amenity, the
school site is surrounded by existing residential development on three boundaries. The
nearest residences are 30m or beyond from the proposed biomass boiler location, to the
southeast and southwest of the school buildings. The nearby residences are all accessed
off Main Road.
Due to the small scale of the biomass plant and its housing and location to the southeast
of the school buildings, it is not expected to impact on the amenities of neighbouring
residential properties. The proposal is therefore considered to accord with saved Policy
GN2 of the Local Plan.
Policy GN2 seeks to ensure that all new development is designed to the highest possible
standard, which includes the use of sustainable and traditional materials. The building to
house the proposed biomass facility is relatively modern in design. The proposed external
changes will complement the existing materials prevalent within the school, which are not
considered to have any unacceptable impact on the overall character and appearance of
the building/area.
The new biomass boiler facility will be installed adjacent to an existing building, with
minimal changes proposed, and with no change to the principle use of the site as an
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educational establishment. Given the above, there is not considered to be any conflict
with Policy GN2.
1.4.2. Site access
Access to the site will be gained from the existing access from Main Road, as shown on the
submitted drawings. The school will continue to operate as normal for the duration of the
construction works, with restricted times during which deliveries of construction materials
will not be permitted. The school will manage the delivery of material/fuel and the
parking of delivery vehicles in order to ensure this does not impact on the functioning of
the educational establishment. Given that existing vehicular access is to be utilised for the
development, and that the delivery of materials, both for construction and for future
operational use will be managed by the school, there is not considered to be any impact
on highway safety. The store will hold a minimum of 5 tonnes of wood pellet, which
surpasses the 180 hours equivalent running time requested by the Council. If it is assumed
the boiler runs at full output for 8 hours each day, it would be expected that the store
would require re-filling approximately once a month, transported by truck.
The provision of the new boiler plant to the site will not displace parking spaces.
1.4.3. Landscaping and archaeology
The area around Crick is characterised by a combination of flat land with rolling hills to
the north and to the east with small to medium size open fields bounded by traditional
field hedges. Crick is within 1km of the M1 motorway to the west and there is a number of
industrial parks situated to the west of the village, to the nearside of the M1 motorway
and the other side of the M1 motorway.
There are several listed buildings in Crick, though the school building is not listed. The
nearest listed building to the proposed development site buildings is at approximately 59m
SE – Home Close and attached barn a Grade II property off Main Road. The nearest
scheduled monument is Watling Street Roman Road, approximately 1.7km to the west.
Due to the proposed design and scale of the biomass boiler, the proposed development
will not result in any conflict with any existing landscaping and archaeology within the
school site and beyond.
1.4.4. Ecology
There are no statutory designations within 500m of the site.
The nearest designations are:
Deciduous Woodland BAP Priority Habitat (England) at around 240m E
Deciduous Woodland BAP Priority Habitat (England) at around 570m E
The site is within a nitrate vulnerable zone (NVZ).
It is understood that great crested newts have been found at two nearby ponds - one near
the pre-school area and one close to Bury Dyke. This is based on a report produced for a
private client on a property adjacent to the school, but the due to copyright and
confidentiality issues with the report, it has not been made available for review in the
context of this application. Although the biomass boiler system is to be installed on
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existing artificially-surfaced land (the school playground), it is recognised that it is
necessary to implement mitigation measures during the construction phase to minimise
the harm to great crested newts that might find their way into the playground. This
matter has been discussed with Tina Cuss, the Council Senior Environmental Scientist and
she has recommended that for an assessment to be made, the approach to construction
and the proposed measures to mitigate harm to the great crested newts should be
presented in the planning application. These are described as follows.
The main activities during construction will be:
1. Making a concrete foundation for the containerised plant room - if the foundation
is to extend below ground, then this will require some excavation before pouring
the concrete. For both above and below ground concrete pouring wooden
shuttering will be used to contain the concrete pour and given even vertical
surfaces.
2. Dig a trench with a bucket shovel. The trench will be less than 15m long.
3. Making a hole for entry of services into the existing plant room at the end of the
trench.
4. Install services (flow and return insulated hot water pipework, electrical cabling
and data cabling) along the trench.
5. Connection of pipework and other services into the containerised plant room and
filling the hole around the services.
6. Backfill the trench leaving pipework ends above ground for connection into the
plant room.
7. Delivery of the containerised biomass boiler containerised plant room to the
installation location with a low loader truck through the school playground.
8. Lifting the containerised plant room into position with a crane that is integrated
into the low loader, with the low loader positioned on the artificial playground
surface adjacent to the plant room position.
9. Internal testing and commissioning of plant.
The mitigation measures that will be put in place are:
1. Prior to excavation of the trench and the foundation area, carry out a visual
inspection to check that no great crested newts are in the vicinity of the
excavation zone.
2. Prior to connecting the services into the existing plant room a visual inspection will
be carried out of the existing plant room to check that no great crested newts are
present in the plant room through having entered through the hole or otherwise
and come to harm through connection works in the plant room.
3. For the foundation excavation area, concrete pouring will take place no later than
the day after the excavation and, prior to pouring the concrete, a visual inspection
will be carried out to check that there are no great crested newts in the excavation
zone.
4. The services will be installed in the trench no later than the following day after the
trench has been dug. Prior to installation of the services a visual inspection will be
carried out to check that there are no great crested newts in the trench.
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5. Prior to connecting the services into the existing plant room a visual inspection will
be carried out of the existing plant room to check that no great crested newts are
present in the existing plant room, through having entered through the hole or
otherwise, and come to harm through connection works in the plant room.
6. The trench will be backfilled no later than the following day after the trench has
been dug. Prior to installation of the services a visual inspection will be carried out
to check that there are no great crested newts in the trench.
7. The section of the pipework that is exposed for later connection to the new
containerised biomass boiler plant room will be temporarily capped so that great
crested newts cannot enter it.
8. Prior to installation of the containerised plant room the area will be visually
inspected in the vicinity of the foundation to check that great crested newts will
not be interfered with during the installation.
9. If at any time during the installation great crested newts are found on the site then
all work will be stopped and Natural England will be contacted to inform them of
the discovery. The Council will also be informed and work can only recommence
when the Council gives its approval.
The biomass boiler installation will affect no trees on the school property. The trees
overhanging the fence alongside which the boiler is to be placed are being removed by the
neighbour independently of the biomass boiler project – it is understood that the
neighbour has been planning to do this since they moved in as the trees are too big for the
garden.
The applicant will ensure that the necessary obligations under The Wildlife & Countryside
Act 1981 will be adhered to.
1.4.5. Flood risk and water resources
The location of the site and the nature of the proposal will not raise any flood risk issues.
The site is located within Flood Zone 1 - land assessed as having a less than 1 in 1,000
annual probability of river or sea flooding (<0.1%). As such, no flood risk assessment is
requiredi.
The nearest water resources to the site are:
Grand Union Canal approximately 580m E.
The nearest pond is around 50m E.
Crick Primary School is not within a Surface Water Safeguard Zone, meaning that it is not
in the catchment area upstream of a Drinking Water Protected Area (DrWPA). These ‘at
risk’ zones are where action to address water contamination will be targeted, so that
extra treatment by water companies can be avoided. There is to be no discharge of
contaminated effluent from the biomass plant to surface water drainage and therefore
even if it were to be with a Surface Water Safeguard Zone, the project would not be
contrary to the objectives of the Surface Water Safeguard Zones.
Due to the scale of the plant and the enclosed loading of biomass pellets, no impacts on
water resources are expected.
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1.4.6. Air quality
The proposed development is of a small scale and not expected to result in any local air
quality impacts. An air quality assessment will be submitted along with the planning
application to demonstrate this.
No air quality management areas have been identified within Daventry borough, i.e. no air
quality targets are at risk of being breached [2012 Air Quality Updating and Screening
Assessment for Daventry District Council,
http://www.daventrydc.gov.uk/business/environmental-health/pollution-control/air-
quality-management/].
The proposed boiler installation will comply with the BS EN 303-5:1999 emissions standard,
as referred to in the attached Air Quality Assessment documentation.
Neighbourhood Planning has been introduced through the Localism Act 2011 and forms
part of the statutory planning process. The role of a Village Design Statement is to provide
more detailed design guidance for a parish and to supplement the planning policies of the
local planning authority. They are prepared by Parish Councils, and following consultation
they are adopted by the Council as Supplementary Planning Documents. The most recent
available version of the Crick Village Design Statement was published in September 2004.
This contains detailed information on the preservation of the character of the buildings
and also open spaces. The biomass boiler installation will be wooden clad and will only be
clearly visible from one adjacent property, the owner of which has been consulted. The
biomass boiler plant will be shielded from properties on the other side of the school by the
school buildings. It is to be located on the edge of the school car park in the grounds of
the school in an area that is currently unused space adjacent to the fence. The location of
the plant room is shown in the attached site plan drawing
1.5. Bioenergy Strategy
The strategic framework for biomass nationally is contained within the UK Bioenergy
Strategy(2012) which is supportive of the role that biomass can play in meeting the 2020
renewable energy targets as well as longer term carbon reduction targets
[https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-bioenergy-strategy ]. However, it does
recognise that, in order to achieve this ambition, biomass supplies will need to be sourced
sustainably. The strategy is supportive of the use of biomass from wastes and the use of
biomass for heat, transport and electricity. It supports the use of biomass to provide low
carbon heat for buildings and industry (process heating), through either biomass boilers or
through use of biomethane. Use of recoverable waste heat from low carbon power
generation or industrial processes is also an important component of this [bioenergy
deployment] pathway.
2. Consultations, pre-submission Northamptonshire County Council planning officers have been approached for guidance on
requirements for the biomass boiler plant application. They gave feedback on the
requirements for studies to be undertaken and referred to Daventry District Council for
environmental health matters. The Daventry District Council local environmental health
officers have been consulted on this project and have provided guidance on information to
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be provided by the applicant on the biomass boiler plant that affects local air pollution
and local air quality issues. This information is provided in the air quality assessment
documentation accompanying this application. Details on communications with the Council
officers and are as follows:
1. Meeting with Peter Moor (NCC/planning) and Phil Watson (NCC/planning manager)
on the 13th January 2014
2. Correspondence with Peter Moor and Julian Steele and Rupert Blackstone
3. Communication with Daventry officer Mike Jephcott (June 2014)
4. Phone discussion with Tina Cuss, Senior Environmental Scientist (29th July 2014)
Community biomass boiler information events were hosted on 2nd October 2012 and the 4th
October 2012. The purpose of these were for school representatives to understand what is
involved in having a biomass boiler at the school, about the benefits are and about the
opportunity for funding through the ZECOS project. Questions from the schools’
representatives were addressed and their views were taken on board in the next steps of
project development. Subsequent Zero CO2 community events were hosted in February
2014 for all members of the local community, at which local residents came to find out
what measures were possible in their community, including biomass boilers, as well having
the opportunity to offer their views on different energy measures. There is an ongoing
programme of these Zero CO2 community events in 2014.
Crick Primary School has sent out information on the project in their newsletter. They
have also consulted with the only neighbour who will be experience visual impact from the
boiler. One of the school governors went round to discuss the biomass boiler plant, and
how it would look, and the neighbour was satisfied with the proposal.
3. Conclusion The siting of the biomass facility and the associated external changes will have no impact
on residential amenity, any existing landscaping, the amenity of the wider area or on
highway safety or pupils. The external changes proposed are minimal in nature, with the
proposed materials to match those already found within the school campus.
The proposal is therefore considered to comply with the development plan policies and
Central Government advice referred to within this statement, and is considered therefore
to represent an acceptable form of development for which planning permission should be
granted.
4. Supporting information Supporting information that is to be provided includes:
Air quality assessment
Site location plan
Block plan of the site
Plant room layout drawing
Photomontage
Renewable Energy and Climate Change statement
11 6th August 2014
i Planning applications for development proposals of 1 hectare or greater in Flood Zone 1 and all proposals for new development located in Flood Zones 2 and 3 should be accompanied by an FRA. [Local requirements Reg 3, NCC - County Council Regulation 3 Applications Local List Requirements]