Agenda item

(1)       Mrs T Dean was present for this item pursuant to Committee Procedure Rule 2.24 and spoke.

(2)       The views of Mrs S V Hohler had been circulated to all Members of the Committee prior to the meeting. A hard copy of these views was also tabled at the meeting and was referred to by the Head of Planning Applications Group during the presentation of her report.

(3)       Mr Matthew Balfour, Mrs Claire Innis (local residents) and Mr David Stretton (Chairman of Offham PC) addressed the meeting in opposition to the application.  Mr Brett Spiller (New Earth Solutions) spoke in reply.

(4)       Following a suggestion by Mrs Dean, the Chairman agreed to write on behalf of the Committee to the Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Environment, Highways and Waste asking him to consider setting up a “Task and Finish” Group to look into local concerns over the monitoring of odour control at Blaise Farm Quarry.

(5)       During discussion of the application, the Committee agreed to the amendment to the condition specifying that all loaded, open backed vehicles entering or leaving the site would be properly and completely sheeted. It also agreed to the inclusion of an additional condition requiring the doors to only be open when vehicles enterer or left the facility and for maintenance purposes. 

(6)       RESOLVED that the application be referred to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government as required under the 2009 Direction and that subject to no intervention by him permission be granted to the application subject to the prior satisfactory conclusion of a Section 106 Legal Agreement to secure Heads of Terms requiring the continuation of the Blaise Farm Site Liaison Committee, HGV routing, and site restoration (including the availability of restoration materials); the applicant meeting all reasonable administrative Planning and Legal costs associated with the prior completion of the Section 106 Legal Agreement; and to conditions, including conditions covering a 5 year implementation period; the operation being time limited to 20 years from first commercial use of the Anaerobic Digestion (AD) Facility with all plant, buildings and equipment being removed upon expiration of this period; the development being carried out in accordance with the permitted details; site noise control (to ensure that noise associated with site operations does not exceed background noise levels at the nearest residential receptors); waste catchment areas being restricted to the following geographical areas for the life of the development: Kent, Medway, Thurrock, Havering, South East London Waste Partnership Authorities (London Borough’s of Greenwich, Southwark, Lewisham, Bromley and Bexley), Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex, Brighton and Hove, Essex and Southend-on-Sea; the total site processing capacity (including In-vessel Composting (IVC)), AD and Advanced Thermal Conversion (ATC) plants) not exceeding 100,000 tpa; the ATC plant operating with only the waste imported to the site pursuant to the existing Composting Facility (as covered by planning permission TM/09/3231), packaging and any associated residual waste arising from the AD plant; restoration of the AD and ATC plant area (at the end of the 20 year period) as part of the details approved on the main Composting Facility permission (TM/09/3231) including provision for biodiversity enhancement; hours of use being 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (with deliveries and exports being limited to those set out in the table in paragraph 28 of the report; external colour treatment of all plant and buildings as detailed in the application; combined HGV movements (including IVC, AD and ATC plants) being limited to 120 HGV movements per day; appropriate measures to control mud and debris; records of HGV numbers being maintained by the operator; signs being erected and maintained for the duration of operations advising HGV drivers not to travel through the settlements of Offham, Mereworth and West Malling unless they are collecting waste from within those settlements; the surface of the haul road being maintained; all loaded, open backed vehicles entering or leaving the site being properly and completely sheeted; details of surface water drainage being agreed prior to commencement of operations; details of site lighting being agreed prior to implementation; and the doors to the facility only being open when vehicles enter or leave the site or for maintenance purposes.