Agenda item

Referred simpliciter to Council

With reference to Article 1 of the minute of meeting of the Planning Development Management Committee of 3 October 2016, the Council had before it a report by the Acting Head of City Planning, which had been referred simpliciter, regarding an application for detailed planning permission for the erection of an Energy from Waste facility, vehicular and non-vehicular accesses, ancillary buildings, associated infrastructure and landscaping at the Scottish Gas Network site, Greenbank Crescent.

The report recommended:-

that the Planning Development Management Committee approve the application subject to the following conditions -

(1) Notwithstanding the details shown on the approved plans, the erection of buildings or structures hereby permitted shall not commence until details or samples of the external materials to be used in their construction, including details of finishes, colours and treatment, have been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.  Development shall be carried out in accordance with the approved details or samples; (2) No development hereby permitted shall commence until details of the culverting of the Tullos Beck have been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority; (3) The culverting of the Tullos Burn shall be carried out in accordance with the approved details before the access road is brought into use and, within two months of the completion of these approved works, a report and “as built” drawings demonstrating that the culvert has been constructed in accordance with the approved details shall be submitted to the local planning authority; (4)No development hereby permitted shall commence until a scheme for the provision of surface water management has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority in respect of each phase of the development.  The approved scheme for each phase shall be implemented in accordance with the approved details and retained thereafter; (5) The development hereby permitted shall not commence until a full Drainage Impact Assessment, indicating the proposed Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) facilities in addition to a full examination of all watercourses within the vicinity of the site and the impact which the development shall have on the existing drainage network has been submitted to and agreed in writing.  All connections for the soakaways should also be shown and the location of these connections; (6)Prior to the commencement of development, details of the red aviation warning lights to be placed on the stack shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.  The development shall be implemented in accordance with the approved details; (7)Prior to the commencement of development details of external lighting and internal lighting which will be seen outside the boundaries of the site shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.   The details shall include the position, height, type and power of each external lighting, the need for the external lights for security and safety, the circumstances in which external lighting is to be activated, the positioning and operation of internal louvres and the measures to be taken to minimise light pollution.  The approved lighting scheme shall be implemented in accord with the approved details.  Thereafter, the lighting and the louvres shall be retained in accordance with the approved details; (8) No waste shall be imported to the CERC until a travel plan to reduce reliance on the use of private cars as a means of staff and visitors getting to and from the CERC has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.  The approved travel plan shall be implemented and thereafter, the approved travel plan shall be retained; (9) No development shall take place until such time as a Construction/Environmental Management Plan has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.   The plan shall cover, but not limited to (i) a construction travel plan, including:- the number of daily and peak hour construction vehicle movements, construction operation hours, construction vehicular routes to and from the site, construction delivery hours, car parking for contractors, methods to encourage public transport use, and methods to restrict large construction related vehicles using the strategic road network and its associated junctions during weekday peak periods; (ii) a plan showing the location of the contractor’s site storage area/compound; (iii)the number, size (including height) and location of any contractor’s temporary buildings; (iv) temporary means of enclosure and demarcation of the site operational boundaries, to be erected prior to the commencement of construction operations in any part of the site and retained for the duration of construction operations; (v) the means of moving, storing and stacking all building materials, plant and equipment around the site; (vi) measures to ensure that dust emissions are minimised; (vii) details of external floodlighting installed during the construction period including hours of operation; (viii) details of wheel wash facility, use of water bowsers or other measures necessary to ensure that mud and other materials are not deposited on the road network; and (ix) a detailed strategy and method statement for minimising the amount of construction waste resulting from the development.  The statement shall include details of the extent to which waste materials arising from the demolition and construction activities will be reused on site and measures for their reuse.  If such reuse on site is not practicable, then details shall be given of the extent to which the waste material will be removed from the site for reuse, recycling, composting or disposal; (10) The commissioning of the development hereby approved shall not commence until the operator has submitted details of facilities to enable connection to the electricity distribution network and supply of generated electricity for approval in writing by the local planning authority, for the avoidance of doubt this shall include confirmation that electricity will be exported on commissioning.   The connection to the electricity distribution network shall be carried out in accordance with the approved details; (11) Prior to the commencement of the commissioning trials of the development hereby approved, a scheme for the management and mitigation of dust and litter shall be submitted to and agreed in writing by the local planning authority.  The scheme shall be adhered to fully in accordance with the agreed scheme; (12) No handling, deposit or processing of waste material shall take place outside the confines of the buildings hereby approved; (13) No recyclable materials shall be stored outside on the ground, in heavy good vehicles, or other containers outside the confines of the buildings hereby approved; (14) To maintain negative air pressure within the Tipping Hall, all doors to the waste Tipping Hall shall be kept closed unless vehicles are entering or leaving the Tipping Hall; (15) All loads of waste materials carried on HGV into and out of the development hereby approved shall be enclosed or covered so as to prevent spillage, or loss of material at the site or on the local road network, or the migration of odours.  All refuse waste vehicles shall enter and leave the site with the waste receptacle enclosed; (16) HGVs, including waste refuse vehicles, delivering any waste material, process consumables (such as ammonia etc.) or removing material or residues (including processed incinerator bottom ash etc.) associated with the operational phase of the development shall only enter or exit the site between 07:00 hours and 19:00 hours Monday to Friday inclusive and between 07:00 hours and 13:00 hours on Saturdays; (17) The number of waste vehicle vehicles movements identified in the ES shall not be exceeded, which for the avoidance of doubt equates to 614 per 5.5 day week; (18) Prior to the development hereby permitted becoming operational the car parking as shown on the approved drawings shall be completed and marked out and shall be retained thereafter solely for the parking of cars; (19) No development shall take place unless it is carried out in full accordance with a scheme to address any significant risks from contamination on the site that has been approved in writing by the planning authority.  The scheme shall follow the procedures outlined in “Planning Advice Note 33 Development of Contaminated Land” and shall be conducted by a suitably qualified person in accordance with best practice as detailed in “BS10175 Investigation of Potentially Contaminated Sites - Code of Practice” and other best practice guidance and shall include:- (a)an investigation to determine the nature and extent of contamination; (b)a site-specific risk assessment; (c) a remediation plan to address any significant risks and ensure the site is fit for the use proposed; and (d) verification protocols to demonstrate compliance with the remediation plan.  No building(s) on the development site shall be occupied unless (i)any long term monitoring and reporting that may be required by the approved scheme of contamination or remediation plan or that otherwise has been required in writing by the planning authority is being undertaken; and (ii) a report specifically relating to the building(s) has been submitted and approved in writing by the planning authority that verifies that remedial works to fully address contamination issues related to the building(s) have been carried out, unless the planning authority has given written consent for a variation; (20) The final building on the application site shall not be occupied unless a report has been submitted and approved in writing by the planning authority that verifies that the remedial works have been carried out in full accordance with the remediation plan, unless the planning authority has given written consent for a variation; (21)Prior to the development hereby permitted commencing a Construction Noise Management Plan shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority, which shall include, albeit not limited to specific details of the construction plant, type and number of control measures to be implemented; (22) Prior to the commissioning of the development hereby permitted a Traffic Management Plan shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority; (23) Prior to the commissioning of the development hereby approved details of the access points into the site (access/egress for HGV and waste refuse vehicles; and staff/visitor access/egress) shown on drawing No 37482-GLa100d shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.  The accesses shall be completed in accordance with the agreed details; (24) Prior to the commencement of development, a scheme to minimise and mitigate impacts on ecological interest during the construction period shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority; (25) The development hereby permitted shall not be commenced until details of secure cycle parking facilities for the occupants of, and visitors to, the development hereby approved have been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.  These facilities shall be fully implemented and made available for use prior to the occupation of the development hereby permitted and shall thereafter be retained for use at all times; (26) Within twelve months of the commencement of the development the plans and full details of hard and soft landscaping works shall have been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.  These details shall include a detailed scheme for the landscaping of the site including details of:- (i) hard landscaping, including (a) surface treatment finishes and colours; (b) proposed finished levels or contours at 0.5 metre intervals; (c) car parking layouts; (d) other vehicle and pedestrian access and circulation areas; (e) hard surfacing materials; and (f) water attenuation basins and bio retention/wetland areas, and associated drainage scheme; (ii) soft landscaping (including cultivation and other operations associated with plant and grass establishment) including planting plans covering the position, species, density and initial sizes of all new trees and shrubs; (iii) the programme of implementation of the approved scheme; and (iv) proposals for the maintenance of the landscaping.  The landscape works shall be implemented in accordance with the approved details and maintained for the duration of the development.  The approved soft landscaping scheme shall be implemented within the first available planting season (the period between 31 October in any one year and 31 March in the following year) following completion of the construction phase of the development.  All planting and seeding undertaken in accordance with this condition shall be maintained and any plants which within five years of planting or seeding die, are removed, damaged or diseased shall be replaced in the next planting season with others of a similar size and species; (27) Prior to the first receipt of waste at the Energy from Waste facility, details of the contingency plan to be employed to deal with the waste material destined for the Energy from Waste facility in the event of a breakdown or closure of it shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the waste planning authority.  In the event of any of the trigger events specified in the contingency plan occurring the contingency plan will be carried out as approved; and (28)The operator shall inform the local planning authority in writing within 30 days of final cessation of operation of the development hereby permitted that all operations have ceased.   Thereafter, the site shall be restored within a period of 24 months in accordance with a scheme to be submitted for the written approval of the waste planning authority not less than six months prior to the final cessation of operation of the development hereby permitted.  The scheme shall include the removal of all buildings, stack, associated plant, machinery, waste and processed materials from the site.

There was circulated the following additional condition proposed by the Acting Head of City Planning:-

(29)     Development shall not commence until a Bird Hazard Management Plan has been submitted to and approved in writing by the planning authority in consultation with Aberdeen Airport.  The submitted plan shall include details of:

Management of any flat/shallow pitched roofs (pitch less then 15°) on buildings within the site which may be attractive to nesting, roosting and “loafing” birds.  The management plan shall comply with Advice Note 8 ‘Potential Bird Hazards from Building Design’

1.    Monitoring of any standing water within the site, temporary or permanent

2.    SUDS - such schemes shall comply with Advice Note 6 ‘Potential Bird Hazards from SUDS available at:-

www.aoa.org.uk/publications/safeguarding.asp

The Bird Hazard Management Plan shall be implemented as approved, on completion of the development and shall remain in force for the life of the building.  No subsequent alterations to the plan are to take place unless first submitted to and approved in writing by the planning authority in consultation with Aberdeen Airport.

The Council was addressed by Mr Nicholas Lawrence, Senior Planner, who provided an overview of his report and presented a further additional condition:-

(30)     The development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with the approved plans and all aspects of the development shall be commissioned prior to the plant coming into operation, for the avoidance of doubt this shall include the appropriate heat network pipework on the application site to allow future connection to a local heat network.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

At this juncture, Councillor Dickson referred to the interest he had earlier declared and stated that he had received further legal advice which he considered required him to withdraw from the meeting with immediate effect.

Councillor Milne moved, seconded by Councillor Donnelly:-

That the Council approve the recommendation contained within the report along with the two additional conditions proposed by officers.

Councillor Finlayson moved as an amendment, seconded by Councillor Townson:-

That the Council refuse the application for detailed planning permission on the grounds of the impact on local amenity and the road network.

On a division, there voted:-

For the motion  (23)  -  Lord Provost; Depute Provost; and Councillors Boulton, Cameron, Carle, Cooney, Crockett, Delaney, Donnelly, Lesley Dunbar, Graham, Grant, Greig, Hutchison, Ironside, Laing, Lawrence, Malik, Milne, Jean Morrison, Nathan Morrison, Taylor and Young. 

For the amendment  (14)  -  Councillors Copland, Corall, Cormie, Finlayson, Flynn, MacGregor, Malone, Nicoll, Noble, Samarai, Jennifer Stewart, Sandy Stuart, Townson and Yuill.

Absent from the division  (3)  -  Councillors Allan, Dickson and Jackie Dunbar.

The Council resolved:-

to adopt the motion.