Review Topic - Sustainable Provision of Aggregates: Assessment and Planning

The planning system is the strategic and regulatory context for aggregate operations in the UK. A number of ALSF funded projects have been directly concerned with planning and the assessment of aggregates provision. The research varies considerably in scope and content, with projects applicable to various phases of the quarry life-cycle (planning and design, operational and post-closure phases). Because of the broad range of issues, the review used three topic areas arranged in a hierarchy from national, through regional and local, to site level.

Primary aggregates are essential to the continued development and maintenance of England’s infrastructure of housing, industry and transport. To ensure their continued provision in a steady and sustainable manner it is essential that aggregate assessment and planning be carried out both nationally and locally in an effective and efficient way. The review has shown that the assessment and planning system for aggregates in England is generally working satisfactorily and continues to deliver adequate supplies of aggregate. However, there are several areas where performance could be significantly improved.

National level

Planning at the national level includes government policy and guidance on minerals as well as wider planning issues (e.g. Minerals Policy Statement 1 and associated documents, such as the National Guidelines for Aggregates Provision).
 
To help with the assessment of provision, ALSF projects have looked at improving aggregate resource information (such as technical properties and distribution) and attempted to collate this information. Some projects have then suggested ways in which resources could be better identified, safeguarded and utilised. Sustainability issues have been considered, particularly in relation to the supply of sufficient aggregates to meet demand. Sustainability has also been the focus in an ALSF project on the transportation of aggregates.
 
Some ALSF projects have assessed or developed tools (based on GIS) to assist with scoping and broader multi-criteria decision making, often in the context of Strategic Environmental Assessments. These tools have relevance at every level of planning and decision making.

All the ALSF projects consider a wide ranging stakeholder audience and take their involvement in the aggregates industry into consideration when providing products or recommendations.

Regional and local level

The planning framework at the regional and local level includes Regional Spatial Strategies and Minerals and Waste Development Frameworks. The assessment side includes Sustainability Appraisal (SA), Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and the environmental appraisal of the provision of aggregates.
 
ALSF projects have confirmed that aggregate resources (identified, economic, permitted reserves) are currently falling. One ALSF project has suggested a method for identifying Mineral Safeguarding Areas, so that important minerals are not sterilised by non-mineral development. The benefit of improving the knowledge base at a local level has been highlighted in another ALSF project; this could have applications on a much wider scale.

Site level

At the site level, the planning context includes the Minerals and Waste Development Framework administered by the Mineral Planning Authority. Important elements of assessment are Development Control and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). Taken together, these planning and assessment systems give rise to the granting of planning permissions and their monitoring and enforcement. There are about 500 active sand and gravel extraction sites in England and about the same number of aggregates quarries. As quarries exhaust their mineral reserves, new reserves are required. Thus there is a need for a steady stream of mineral planning permissions for new quarries and for extensions of existing operations.

Comprehensive scoping at site or project level has been shown in ALSF projects to improve the quality of Environmental Impact Assessments. A number of ALSF projects have considered the planning implications at a local level of different potential environmental effects, including the potential for birdstrikes and the use of geophysical surveys for delineating archaeological features and mineral deposits.

The importance of good communication and stakeholder consultation has been highlighted in several ALSF projects throughout the planning system, particularly at the local level.

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