Agenda item

Reforming of land and use as an occasional 4x4 training course (resubmission) [Rural West York Ward].

Members considered a major full application by Professor G Reece for the reforming of land and use as an occasional 4X4 training course (resubmission).

Officers updated that Informative 5 Part E had been amended to include Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002. An additional Informative had been added regarding Health and Safety. Officers also said that the following amendments had been made to the report:

·        The following to be added to paragraph 3.4 of the report: The Environmental Protection Unit would recommend that should the developer suspect that the site contains asbestos that they employ a consultant to advise them of the risks and how to remove the material.

·        Paragraph 4.5 of the report: following discussion at the site visit and with the applicant it has been confirmed that the site will not be used for recreational purposes.

Representations were received from the applicant’s representative who said that the college was aiming to be one of the biggest land based colleges in the country. There was a need for people to be trained to use 4 X 4’s and at the moment there were very few training opportunities available.

Members asked the representative about the tipping that had taken place on the site and he stated that the college adheres to rigorous controls regarding noxious substances. Members raised concerns that some residents had claimed that the gates to the area had been left opened and that is why the fly tipping had taken place. Members also said that it may be impossible for the college to know what had been ‘dumped on the land’ and it did not appear that any tests had been carried out on the material that had been tipped. The representative from the college said that there was no evidence that the materials were noxious or dangerous in any way and that if any contaminated waste had been dumped then the college would have used the correct methods to remove this. There were concerns that the tipped waste would be buried and contaminated waste inadvertently covered.

Members said that they welcomed the application and the provision of a facility of this nature and felt sure that if there was any contaminated land then it would be cleared properly.

RESOLVED:             That the application be approved subject to the conditions listed in the report and the following amended and additional conditions and informatives:

4.      The site shall be used by motor vehicles for no more than two days in any one 7 day period and be used for training purposes only.

Reason: To protect the amenity of nearby occupants from noise.

11.  Any unexpected areas of contamination identified during site works will be reported to the Local Planning Authority and a suitable remediation strategy agreed and fully implemented prior to occupation of the site.

Reason: To address any problems of ground contamination.

Informative 5 – Part E – ‘Your attention is drawn to the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002, which regulates the removal and management of asbestos in non domestic environments, the details of which can be found on http://www.opsi.gov/SI/si2006/20062739.htm’

Informative 6 – Your attention is drawn to the Health and Safety Executives advice regarding what action should be taken by employees on discovering asbestos. By law the contractor does not necessarily have to employ specific asbestos removal contractors and may be able to dispose of it themselves, however they should follow the guidance supplied by the heath and safety executive below.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/guidance/em1.pdf

REASON:                  The proposal, subject tot eh conditions listed in the report and listed above, would not cause undue harm to interests of acknowledged importance, with particular reference to the impact on the designated Green Belt, visual amenity, landscaping and noise. As such the proposal complies with PPG2 and Policies GP1, NE7 and GB1 of the City of York Development Control Draft Local Plan.