Agenda and minutes

No apologies for absence were received.

Members are asked to consider any Pecuniary and Non-Pecuniary Interests they may have to disclose to the meeting in relation to matters under consideration on the Agenda.

No pecuniary or non-pecuniary interests were disclosed.

The committee are asked to agree that the Minutes of the last meeting held on 6 March 2024 be confirmed and signed by the Chair.

Resolved: That the minutes of the meeting held on 6 March 2024 be confirmed and signed by the Chair.

The Update Sheet will be considered as part of each related agenda report.

There was no Update Sheet for this meeting.

A report was presented on an application for the proposed development of an Energy Recovery Centre and associated infrastructure on land at Hillhouse Business Park, Bourne Road, Thornton-Cleveleys.

The proposed development was subject to an environmental impact assessment and the application was accompanied by an Environmental Statement and non-technical summary.

The report included the views of Wyre Council, the Head of Enterprise Zone, the Environment Agency, Atkins Realis (Air Quality), Natural England, Marine Management Organisation, Atkins Realis ((Ecology), Lancashire County Council Ecology, Atkins Realis (Landscape), Lancashire County Council Highways, Lancashire County Council Lead Local Flood Authority, Lancashire County Council Archaeology, the Health and Safety Executive, United Utilities and Cadent. Three representations objecting to the application had been received.

The Senior Planner presented a Powerpoint presentation showing site location plans and an aerial view of the site, proposed site layout, proposed east and west elevations, proposed north and south elevations, Enterprise zone Masterplan, site MRT13 plan and photographs of the view from the north of the site looking south, view towards the east/Wyre Estuary, view towards the west/houses under construction and views along Bourne Road.

George Lucan, applicant (Sesona), addressed the Committee and said the following:

'Sesona are an independent UK business working with a reputable contractor who has delivered and operates multiple energy from waste plants throughout the UK.

What is this facility? It's an energy recovery centre for up to 120,000 tonnes of refuse derived fuel, which is waste which cannot be economically or feasibly recycled at the present time. The plant has the potential to supply electricity and heat to local business or electricity direct into grid. Sesona has an electrical connection agreement in place with Electricity North West and will look to advance this agreement once planning permission is granted. The committee will be pleased to hear that we have already engaged with Victrex PLC to consider the possibility of supplying heat direct from our plant to their neighbouring chemical processing facilities.

How much waste are we talking? Well, between 2019 and 2022, regrettably, landfill waste disposal in Lancashire actually increased by 6.5% from 203,000 tonnes to 217,000 tonnes, and over twice that volume exists in the joint authority area. There is an opportunity to target this waste and move the disposal further up the waste hierarchy.

What are the environmental benefits? Well, avoiding local waste being sent to landfill obviously, and releasing methane to the atmosphere when in landfill. To this must be added the benefits from energy recovery, being the displacement, at least in part, of fossil fuel which would otherwise be burnt to generate grid electricity.

Do we look to improve on these savings?  Yes, anticipating ever tightening emission standards, we are already engaged with carbon capture specialists to see what can be retrofitted in the future. Given our considerable distance from the carbon capture hub at Hynet near Liverpool, that would be easy, but we have some solutions already.

What are the local economic and social benefits of the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

Committee were informed that the applicant had withdrawn this application.

A report was presented on an application for an amendment to Condition 6 of planning permission 8/10/0241, to allow approval of amended restoration contours together with the submission of a restoration and aftercare scheme to comply with Conditions 29 and 31 of planning permission 8/10/0241 at Round O Quarry, Cobbs Brow Lane, Lathom.

The report included the views of West Lancashire Borough Council, Newburgh Parish Council, the Environment Agency and the Lancashire Badger Group. Three representations objecting to the application had been received.

An updated Powerpoint presentation had been circulated to Committee (copy attached).

The Head of Development Control presented a Powerpoint presentation showing site location plans and an aerial view of the application site, plan showing permitted contours, current contours with restoration proposals, and photographs of the view from Cobbs Brow Lane looking south and north, the view over the site, the view of the northern side of the site and the view of the western boundary.

Mr Martin Ainscough, adjacent landowner, addressed the Committee and said the following:

'I own the land to the north east of the south of the site. Despite over 31 conditions imposed in 2012, the operation has totally ignored them. Your team last visited in 2013 and sadly failed to enforce the main tool you, the committee, uses to control development and preserve our environment.

Condition 3 required details of the removal of the perimeter bounds, it's now OK to keep them. Condition 6 stated that levels were not to exceed agreed levels, which you've seen on the screen just now. It's now OK to accept millions of tonnes of hugely profitable over-tipping. Condition 7 stated that the topographical survey shall be submitted to you, the County Planning authority annually; why was this never asked for?

Condition 27 states that the mounds shall be kept free of vegetation; they were never planted as you've just stated. The fact that this was never done is seen as the reason to keep the mounds. As a result, we have a devastating example of overtipping of millions of profitable tonnes up to the top of the mounds, which should have been removed. And when you have an alien landscape scarred by a huge flat 10 metre tall, 50 acre on landscape heap of who knows what, the hydrology of the area has been seriously impacted, despite what you've just said, and with the blocking of historic water courses across the site leading to the runoff in times of flood and constantly waterlogged fields to the north and west. Now, rather than requiring the operator to put things right, you're being recommended to just roll over and recommend granting retrospective planning permission and this is wrong. In your advice, Mr Haine states that you can make a judgment - please make a judgment that this should be put right.

There's no landscape impact assessment; this is the landscape of historic importance. The site, where 2,000 of Cromwell's parliamentarian troops besieged Lathom House in 1644 and 1645; it  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

A report was presented on an application for the restoration of Ravenhead Quarry, Chequer Lane, Up Holland, through the importation of non-hazardous material.

It was reported that this planning application had been received in December 2023 and proposed the restoration of an existing quarry through the importation of non-hazardous materials, comprising construction and excavation materials. The scheme would involve infilling the existing quarry void to levels corresponding to adjacent ground levels. This would amend the previously approved restoration scheme for the site.

The Senior Planner presented a Powerpoint presentation showing site location plans and an aerial view of the site and proposed restoration.

The planning application had attracted 12 representations from members of the public and objections from Up Holland Parish Council. Due to the large scale of the development, it was considered that members of the Committee should visit the site and the surrounding area before they determined the application.

Resolved: That the Committee visit the site before considering the planning application.

It was reported that, since the last meeting of the Development Control Committee on 6^th March 2024, five decisions had been taken on development control matters by the Director of Environment and Planning, in accordance with the county council's Scheme of Delegation.

Resolved: That the report be noted. 

An item of urgent business may only be considered under this heading where, by reason of special circumstances to be recorded in the Minutes, the Chairman of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency.  Wherever possible, the Chief Executive should be given advance warning of any Member’s intention to raise a matter under this heading.

There were no items of Urgent Business.

The next meeting of the Development Control Committee will be held on Wednesday, 5 June 2024 at 10.30am in Committee Room B - the Diamond Jubilee Room, County Hall, Preston.

Resolved: That the next meeting of the Committee be held on Wednesday 5 June 2024 at 10.30am in Committee Room B – The Diamond Jubilee Room, County Hall, Preston.