Issue details

Proposed decision:

The adoption of an updated Kent Minerals and Waste Safeguarding Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) 2021.

Background:

The County Council has a statutory responsibility to plan for future minerals supply and waste management within Kent as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework 2019 (NPPF) and the National Planning Policy for Waste 2014 (NPPW). In addition, the County Council has a responsibility to ensure that sustainable waste management and supply of primary aggregates within the county is not compromised by other forms of development. This is achieved through minerals and waste safeguarding.

The Kent Minerals and Waste Local Plan 2013-30 (KMWLP) was adopted by Full Council in July 2016. The KMWLP contains a number of policies relating to the safeguarding of minerals and waste resources, which other local planning authorities (Borough and District Councils) across Kent must refer to when considering development in the proximity of minerals and waste infrastructure or primary mineral resources. In April 2017 the County Council adopted a Minerals and Waste Safeguarding Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) that set out in detail the process that should be followed by the County Council, the Borough and District Councils and applicants when dealing with applications and local plan allocations that have implications for minerals and waste safeguarding.

In 2017, an Early Partial Review (EPR) of the adopted KMWLP was undertaken.  This included a number of amendments to the safeguarding policies within the Plan which improved their clarity and ease of application in practice. During the preparation of the EPR, the County Council made a commitment to update the Supplementary Planning Document to reflect the amendments to the policies and address representations made during the Examination in Public for the EPR in 2019.

Members of the County Council resolved to adopt the KMWLP as amended by the EPR in September 2020 and a subsequent public consultation was undertaken on the updated SPD. Following this consultation, a number of changes have been made to the SPD to provide clarity in implementing the adopted planning policies.  Importantly, the guidance in the SPD does not change the policy as this can only be achieved through a further formal review of the local plan.  To give full weight to the guidance in the SPD, the final stage of the process is adoption by the County Council. The 2021 version of the SPD it is now considered ready for adoption.

How the proposed decision meets the objectives of ‘Increasing Opportunities, 

Improving Outcomes: Kent County Council’s Strategic Statement (2015-2020)’ and the objectives of ‘Setting the Course’: Kent County Council’s Interim Strategic Statement (December 2020)

The revised SPD will be used to deliver the Council’s adopted Mineral and Waste Local Plan strategy and policies in the Borough and District Council’s local plans. These are in accordance with national planning policies and support the County Council’s corporate policies contained within the Council’s Strategic Statement ‘Increasing Opportunities, Improving Outcomes – Kent County Council’s Strategic Statement 2015-2020 and the recently approved Setting the Course – Kent County Council’s Interim Strategic Plan 2020, which sets the Council’s priorities for the next 2 years.

Kent’s mineral and waste planning policies support and facilitate sustainable growth in Kent’s economy. In addition, they support the creation of a high-quality built environment, with accessible local services that reflect the community’s needs.