Fields 960, 961, 962 and 967A, St. Mary - rezoning for extension of La Gigoulande Quarry

FIELDS 960, 961, 962 AND 967A, ST. MARY: REZONING FOR EXTENSION OF LA GIGOULANDE QUARRY _______________

Lodged au Greffe on 22nd May 2001

by the Planning and Environment Committee

______________________________

STATES OF JERSEY

STATES GREFFE

180             2 0 0 1    P . 7 9          

Price code: C

PROPOSITION

THE STATES are asked to decide whether they are of opinion -

  to re - z o ne approximately 25.5  vergées of land, as shown on Drawing No.  657/1, including Fields 960, 961, 962 and

967A, St. Mary from the Sensitive Landscape Area of the Agricultural Priority Zone to land for stone quarrying as an extension of the Approved Quarry site.

PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE

REPORT

Introduction

At the beginning of April 2001, the Planning and Environment Committee reactivated an outstanding planning application by Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd., to extend La Gigoulande quarry eastwards into Fields 960, 961, 962 and 967A, St.  Mary (see Drawing No.  657/1).

The site measures approximately 25.5  vergées (11  acres) of which 20  vergées is proposed for quarrying and the remainder fo landscaping and screening.

The application is supported by a recently up-dated, independent Environmental Assessment'.

The land in question is predominantly leased for agricultural use and is located in the Sensitive Landscape Area of the Agricultural Priority Zone', where there is a normal presumption against new development, except where it is essential for agricultural purposes.

Having carefully assessed the application, the Planning and Environment Committee is minded to support the proposals, subject to various conditions referred to later in this report.

Background

Rock aggregates are vital natural resources, which make a major contribution to the economy of the Island and the quality of Jersey life. The construction industry depends on a readily available supply of these aggregates for the development of schools, homes and other essential community facilities.

Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. is one of two main rock-quarrying operators in the Island supplying aggregates for the construction industry. It is part of Robert Brett and Sons, a family-run United Kingdom group of companies, and has been operating from St. Peter's Valley since 1946.

The company is based at La Gigoulande Quarry and employs approximately 50 staff, who are permanently resident in the Island. The quarry is the only source of pink granite aggregate in the Island and the present output of rock is approximately 150,000 tonnes per annum. (N.B. this dipped to 130,000 tonnes in 2000, but the early indications for this year are that the output is on course to return to the higher level.) This output compares with an approximate annual output of 220,000 tonnes (1999) for Ronez Quarry. Approximately half of the rock quarried from La Gigoulande is used for pre-cast products, blocks and ready-mix concrete and the remainder is sold as loose aggregate.

Demand for La Gigoulande aggregate has increased in the past few years, not only in response to the needs of the Island's buoyant construction industry, but also as a result of the "alkali-silica reactivity problem" with Ronez rock, which was first identified with the Val de la Mare dam project. The legacy of this problem remains, despite the introduction of selective quarrying practice and quality control procedures at Ronez, and neither the Jersey New Waterworks Company nor the Public Services Department will specify Ronez pre-mix aggregate for certain projects.

There are numerous examples of developments in Jersey which have made use of La Gigoulande aggregates, including the St.  Helier Waterfront, the Elizabeth Marina, the Queen's Valley Reservoir, the Underpass, the Airport Runway, Haute Vallée School, Jersey College for Girls, the new States Library and many States' housing projects.

The company is currently contracted to supply many more projects, including a number of prestigious States' developments, as follows -

• A ir port Alpha Taxiway realignment, St. Peter (States);

• We st of Albert' Housing, St. Helier (States);

• E ly sée Housing Redevelopment - Phase III, Trinity Hill, St. Helier (States);

• Ja c kson's Garage redevelopment, Esplanade, St. Helier (States);

• Fo rmer Postal Headquarters redevelopment, Mont Millais, St. Helier (States);

• B le nheim Hotel housing development, Rue de Trachy, St. Helier;

• Wo  odville Hotel housing development, St.  Helier (States);

• C a nnon Street housing development, St. Helier (States);

• B e rkshire Hotel Housing development, La Motte Street, St.  Helier (States);

• Sta  tes Building refurbishment, Royal Square, St. Helier (States);

• FB   Cottages housing redevelopment, St.  Clement (States);

• B e llozanne Treatment Plant, St.  Helier (States);

• St.   Mary's Community Centre, St.  Mary;

• L e Masurier's site supermarket development, St. Helier.

The above list is not exhaustive, but it serves to emphasise the important contribution which has been, and continues to be made, by Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd to the Island's economy and quality of life.

Capacity of the quarry

Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. has consistently expressed serious concerns about the critically low level of permitted workable reserves at the quarry. For La Gigoulande to continue operating in a safe and practical manner, it is necessary to retain four working benches (at eight-metre intervals) adjacent to the proposed extension area, together with access ramps and roads to each level. On this basis, the company estimates that the life expectancy of workable reserves will not extend much beyond the end of June 2001.

If no approval for a quarry extension is forthcoming, the operators will very quickly have little option but to cease operations, suspend supplies for its contracts and lay off staff. The time of closure could be delayed if the company decided to work out the rock presently sterilised by the existing benches, ramps and roads. However, this option would only provide approximately six months supply, would pose significant and costly operational difficulties and would seriously reduce the prospect of safe access to future reserves.

Either way, the company will not be able to supply its present contracts, or continue to fulfil its valuable role in securing adequate supplies of aggregates to the construction industry. Clearly, the implications of such a scenario are extremely serious not only for the company, its employees and its customers, but also for the economy of the Island. Jersey would be left with one local supplier of aggregates, no acceptable source of aggregates for sewer and water works, no means of importing alternative supplies of aggregates and no opportunity for the quarry to make any significant contribution to the disposal of inert waste (i.e. by land fill in the medium term when La Collette reclamation site is full).

Current application

The main aim of the application is to maximise the potential of the quarry by making available approximately two million tonnes of rock. This would extend the life of the quarry by anything from 13-20  years, depending on future demand and rates of extraction.

The initial phase of the quarrying proposals is to extend eastwards using the established benches to excavate the remainder of Field 961 and part of Field 962. This would be followed by the excavation of Fields 967A and 960 respectively (see Drawing No. 657/2). A moveable fence will allow agriculture to continue for as long as possible on all the fields. These fields are owned by the quarry operator.

It is also proposed to create substantive indigenous screen planting and earth bunding around the periphery of the extension. Earth mounds of two to three metres in height will be created using topsoil and overburden stripped from the site. This landscaping will serve to screen the proposed quarry from surrounding areas, re-create bank and hedgerow features and enhance the conservation value of the site for wildlife. The landscaping works will include the creation of a 20-metre wide copse immediately to north of Field 960. This will extend from an existing row of mature trees and provide a substantial buffer to the proposed quarry operations.

The Jersey Mineral Strategy

The application to extend La Gigoulande Quarry was originally submitted in June 1996, but was held in abeyance pending the completion of a Minerals Study and the formulation of a Mineral Strategy for the Island. The requirement for a Mineral Strategy was set out in the States' Strategic Policy Review "2000 and Beyond" in 1995 and the States Environmental Charter of the following year. A principal aim of the Strategy was to provide a policy framework for the next twenty years and beyond, within which to judge individual planning and development applications for quarrying.

The limitations of the approved quarry site, and the protracted nature of the required Mineral Study process, resulted in the States approving an interim expansion of the quarry in September 1999.

The proposed Mineral Strategy was lodged au Greffe by the Planning and Environment Committee in March 2001 (P.51/2000). However, the States debate has been deferred, in response to concerns about the traffic implications of importing aggregates through St. Helier Harbour and of other planned developments throughout the St. Helier Waterfront and La Collette areas.

Although the States has not approved the strategy, it is nevertheless important to have regard to the wider issues, which are addressed by the Strategy report.

The Minerals Strategy generally aims to ensure a ready supply of sand and aggregates for the construction industry, whilst at the same time looking to reduce the long-term impact of quarrying on the local environment. To this end, the strategy provides for the continued production of aggregates locally in the short to medium term and a reduction in such extraction in the longer term combined with the bulk importation of aggregates.

The strategy is also integrated with the emerging Solid Waste Management Strategy, which is being prepared for the Public Services Committee. Both strategies recommend that La Gigoulande Quarry be used as a site for the recycling of construction and demolition waste and for the disposal of inert non-combustible waste when the reclamation site at La Collette is full. It has previously been estimated that the expanded quarry would have a land-fill potential of approximately

1,600,000 m3, which equates to seven or eight years at current input rates assuming perfect engineering conditions. The life- span of any such land-fill could, of course, be significantly increased if the Island is successful in reducing its present solid

waste levels and if opportunities are taken to recycle more of the waste being produced.

In its Mineral Strategy report, the Planning and Environment Committee recognises the importance of securing a high quality restoration of the site to a condition suitable for an appropriate after-use. Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. have always made it clear that they would support, in principle, any scheme which puts La Gigoulande to beneficial uses, once it is exhausted. Its parent company has an enviable record for the restoration and conservation of exhausted mineral workings, and would be happy for any permit to include conditions requiring the submission of detailed plans for restoration work.

The main components of the proposed Mineral Strategy can be summarised as follows -

• co n tinuing production at Ronez into the longer term;

• co n tinuing production at La Gigoulande in the medium term;

• w in ding down Simon Sand and Gravel Ltd by 2018;

• c re ating a new berth and handling area at St. Helier Harbour for importing all the Island's future sand

requirements and a large proportion of its future aggregates requirements (i.e. effectively replacing the sand and aggregate operations presently undertaken by Simon Sand and Gravel Ltd. and Granite Products Ltd);

• u sin g La Gigoulande for land-fill with inert waste and for secondary aggregate production, when La Collette II reclamation site has been filled;

• re s toration of La Gigoulande for a suitable end use.

The urgency of the situation at La Gigoulande quarry means that the current application will have to be considered on its merits, in the absence of an approved Mineral Strategy. However, it should be borne in mind that the only realistic alternative option to the proposed Mineral Strategy would be to continue a strategy which seeks to maximise the local supply of aggregates, albeit with all its implications for increased environmental and land use conflicts. In any event, both options would depend in the continued expansion of La Gigoulande quarry in accordance with the current application, to guarantee an adequate supply of aggregates for the local construction industry.

Environmental impact assessment

The present Environmental Assessment report for the application has been prepared in accordance with the Planning and Environment Committee's policy on Environmental Impact Assessments. This is required by the Committee, in order to address  the  environmental  effects  of  the  proposals  and  add  technical  depth  to  the  environmental  issues  arising.  The Assessment has been subject to the Committee's standard scoping and review processes, including consultation with -

• th e Environmental Adviser;

• th e Agriculture and Fisheries Department;

• E n vironmental Health;

• th e Health and Safety Inspectorate;

• th e Public Services Department (Highways and Water Resources);

• th e Parishes of St. Mary and St. Peter ;

• th e Société Jersiaise;

• th e Jersey Farmers' Union.

In broad terms, the Environmental Assessment fulfils its purpose and examines the issues identified at the scoping stage. There are some subject areas where more environmental baseline data and a more scientific approach in predicting the significance of the impacts would have been useful, but this does not, in the view of the Environmental Services Unit, undermine the bulk of the assertions made in the report.

The Environmental Assessment accepts that there will be a loss of approximately 22  vergées of agricultural land and that the local topography will be altered as a direct result of the ground level being reduced by 20 to 30  metres (65 to 98 feet). However, it concludes that other environmental effects are either negligible or slight (see Appendix  1).

There are two issues which the Environmental Services Unit have highlighted as requiring some additional attention and both would be the subject of specific conditions attached to any forthcoming planning permission. They relate to the following -

Noise

Although noise levels associated with the quarrying operation will otherwise remain within United Kingdom planning guidelines, this will not be the case during the removal of overburden from the application site and the creation of earth bunds. The normal condition, which restricts noise levels, will therefore need to allow for a suitable temporary exception.

Groundwater impacts

The relevant section of the Environmental Assessment has been reviewed by the Water Resources Section of the Public Services Department and by the British Geological Survey, who are retained by the States to advise on groundwater issues. They are both of the view that the extent of data in the document is not sufficient to make robust predictions of the effect that the proposals will have on hydrogeological conditions in the vicinity of the quarry.

Although Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. has agreed to pay to remedy any negative affects which the quarry extension might have on private supply boreholes abstracting in the area, this does not cover effects on the natural environment that any derogation of groundwater may have.

The company has effectively accepted this position and has agreed to a re-examination of the potential hydrogeological impacts, by professional hydrogeologists, as a requirement of any planning permission. The intention of the company is to avoid abortive costs which might occur if its application were to be refused. The Environmental Services Unit has provided the company with a brief for the required study, based on advice from the British Geological Survey.

Consultations

To assist its appraisal of the application the Planning and Environment Committee has sought the views of a number of States departments and other relevant bodies. The responses are summarised below.

Parish of St. Mary

The Connétable , whilst expressing concern about the continual erosion of the Island countryside, recognises the need for aggregate. He recently attended a meeting between the quarry owners and the Near Neighbours' group, when "concerns were raised and ultimately, no strong objections were made". He concludes his comments by stating "having only received one complaint from a Parishioner about the proposed extension, I accept the need to extend the quarry working into the fields, obviously with the associated landscaping and screening requirements being met by the applicant".

Public Services Department - highways

It has no objections in principle. However, it wished to comment that "considerable re-construction to both roadside walls and the carriageway of La Vallee de St. Pierre will be required, due to continued and prolonged use of heavily laden vehicles for which the road was not built".

Planning Officer comments

It should also be recognised that -

• m a ny heavy goods vehicles have used the road, not all generated by the quarry, over a very long period;

• th e re is unlikely to be any increase in traffic generated by the quarry as a result of the application;

• a ll  vehicles operated by the company conform to DVS terms of gross weights, axle weights and vehicle widths.

Public Services Department - Water Resources Section Discharge of water from the site

The Section has issued a temporary Deemed Permit to Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. to discharge water into Gigoulande stream, until its application for a Discharge Permit under the Water Pollution (Jersey) Law 2000, is determined. This will be issued when the Section is satisfied that the discharge is not having an unacceptable detrimental effect on the aquatic environment. To this end, the Section welcomes the inclusion in the Environmental Assessment of the water quality audit which it is to carry out and stresses the importance of initiating a regular monitoring regime.

Planning Officer comments

The company has in place a drainage system involving a series of settling ponds and is liaising closely with the Section to address concerns regarding the quality of the water, which eventually emerges from the outfall into the nearby stream. Recent weekly samples show that discharged water is now of similar chemical composition to that of the stream water immediately above the outfall. Clearly, regular monitoring of the outfall will assist in setting parameters for any future Discharge Permit.

Storage of chemicals

The Water Resources Section has also expressed concerns that, "despite improvements made, the current conditions with respect to storage of chemicals continue to pose a risk to the aquatic environment".

Planning Officer comments

This is essentially an operational procedure which requires further negotiation. At present, large quantities of oils and chemicals are stored in bunds on the site and there would appear to be obvious benefits in enclosing these areas. However, Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. have suggested that this is not always practical. They point out that the oil and chemicals are contained in barrels, which are presently handled by forklift, and that any such enclosure may pose a threat to the safety of forklift operators.

Groundwater impacts

The Section's concerns in this regard are addressed earlier in this report.

Health and Safety Inspectorate, Employment and Social Security No comments.

The National Trust for Jersey

"The Trust has accepted the proposed Mineral Strategy, which it has studied at length, but it feels strongly that the following points should be taken into account:

• La   Gigoulande Quarry has a finite life with the workings being gradually run down. It seems to the Trust that further intrusion to the extent proposed is undesirable and indeed, questions whether it is necessary. Obviously some extension for the interim period is required, but Field 960 is a large area;

• F  i eld 960 is in close proximity to the meadow owned by the Trust - part of the Elms property. The Trust believes that more exploitation of Field 960 is likely to have a profound effect on its environmentally valued property;

• F  in  ally, the Trust feels that this massive extension could be pruned down perhaps by 50%, leaving an area next to the Trust land exposure free from quarry workings."

Planning Officer comments

It should be pointed out that the Mineral Strategy provides for the extension of the quarry, in accordance with the present application. Furthermore, as alluded to earlier -

• th e current proposals seek to screen the Trust land from the quarry by bunding and tree planting; and

• G r anite Products (C.I.) Ltd. are in agreement with additional work on the hydrological impacts of the proposals being undertaken as a requirement of any forthcoming planning permission.

Société Jersiaise

The Société has no objection, in principle, to the application, which, it points out, is consistent with the proposed Mineral Strategy. However, it suggests that any permission should be conditional upon -

• c o ntinued monitoring of blasting and water levels in existing boreholes, with regular reports being made to the Department of Planning and Building Services and relevant neighbours;

• th e setting up of a working group to consider possible after-uses for the quarry and ensure acceptable restoration, or naturalisation;

• m e asures to ensure the proposed planting is carried out and properly established.

The Société also suggests that a commitment be required to "indemnify the owners of neighbouring properties against any consequences that may eventually follow".

Although it recognises that "considerable thought has been given to screening the extension from relevant view points", the Société queries whether residents have been invited to comment on the "accuracy of the analysis on which the proposals have been based".

Planning Officer comments

Any  forthcoming  planning  permission  will  carry  conditions  relating  to/controlling  blasting,  groundwater  levels, hydrogeological impact, implementation of landscaping and a future restoration plan.

Clearly, an open-ended commitment to owners of neighbouring properties against "any consequence that may eventually follow", is not something which could reasonably be dealt with as a condition of planning consent. Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. has also made clear that such a commitment would be difficult to accept or police. The company does, however, presently hold comprehensive third-party insurance and it has confirmed to local residents it will undertake to deepen boreholes or connect properties to the mains supply, where their water supply is proven to be affected by quarry operations.

In addition to the application process, the company has provided opportunities for local residents to inspect and comment upon details of the planned screening.

Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. also accepts that a Working Party should be set up to examine the after-use of the quarry. Other consultees

No comments have been received from other consultees, which include the Parish of St. Peter , the Agriculture and Fisheries Committee, the Health and Social Services Department, or the Jersey Farmers' Union.

Representations

When the application was originally advertised in 1996, it generated ten letters of objection from local residents. The principal concerns at that time related to -

• n o ise and dust levels;

• ris  k of damage to property associated with blasting;

• lo s s of amenity;

• im  pact on the landscape;

• af f ect on ground water levels;

• re d uction in property values.

Since the application was re-activated and re-advertised, there have been no written representations received from local residents. This might be largely attributable to -

• th e extensive work which has been undertaken in the interim, in connection with the Mineral Strategy; and

• th e regular series of liaison committee meetings which have been held between Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd and local residents. These were set up to provide a forum for airing local concerns, for explaining quarrying

activities and the company's aspirations and for allaying undue fears.

Conclusions

Having considered the current application in the light of all the relevant material planning and technical considerations, the Planning and Environment Committee is minded to approve the proposed rezoning of Fields 960, 961, 962 and 967A, St. Mary for an extension of La Gigoulande Quarry.

Whether the States approves the proposed Mineral Strategy, or decides to continue with a policy of maximising local supply of aggregates', the implications for the future of the quarry remain the same. Both options would require the expansion of La Gigoulande Quarry, as presently proposed, in order to guarantee an adequate supply of aggregates to the local construction industry.

The proposals have numerous advantages, in that they will enable Granite Products (C.I.) Ltd. to -

• re m  ain fully operational in the short and medium term;

• h o nour its existing contracts;

• m a intain its wider role in aggregate supply and avoid an adverse impact on the building industry and the Island's economy;

• m a intain "best quarrying practice" and essential operational safety;

• se c ure the jobs of its resident workforce;

• m a ximise the potential of the quarry in a manner which seeks to minimise the impact of quarrying on the local environment and neighbouring properties.

Although the existing quarry is located in an area of landscape quality and the "water pollution safeguard area" and the fields in question are in agricultural use, it should also be recognised that -

• L a Gigoulande is a long-established and "approved" quarry site;

• th e re will be no fundamental changes to the existing operation. The planned rate of extraction and other site activities will remain at the present level, and there will be no increase in vehicle movements;

• th e local topography and existing and proposed trees and landscaping prevent clear views of the site from all but very few points;

• th e re will be little adverse visual impact on the wider landscape;

• in addition to helping to screen the site, the proposed landscaping scheme will serve to enhance the existing vegetation network and character and the nature conservation value of the area.

There are also other strategic advantages associated with the proposed expansion of the quarry, in that it would -

• a v oid the creation of a monopoly situation, where there is one supplier of aggregates, one blockmaker and one ready - mixed concrete operator in the Island, and no means of importing aggregates in bulk;

• av o id the loss of the only local supply of aggregates currently considered suitable for sewer and water works;

• av o id the necessity of opening a new quarry to maintain supplies;

• p ro vide the opportunity for the disposal of a significant amount of the Island's inert, non-combustible waste, and for an associated re-cycling operation when La Collette Reclamation Site has been filled, in accordance

with the recommendations of the emerging Solid Waste Strategy.

It is held that outstanding environmental issues requiring additional attention, relating to noise and hydrogeological impacts can be addressed by attaching suitable conditions to any future planning permission (i.e. approval in principle).

Indeed, the Planning and Environment Committee is recommending approval of the application, subject to strict conditions relating to the following -

• th e exact area of extraction;

• co m pletion of peripheral landscaping during the first planting season;

• th e hours of operation;

• m a intenance of plant, machinery and vehicles;

• sto rage of fuel, or contaminant liquid;

• n o material being extracted below self-draining level;

• n o importation of materials;

• cl e arance of debris on adjacent roads;

• w a shing of vehicle wheels;

• co n trolling site water drainage;

• co n tainment and treatment of site run-off;

• m o nitoring of the outfall into La Gigoulande stream;

• m o nitoring of groundwater levels;

• th e completion of a hydrogeological impact study;

• d u st minimisation;

• m in imising the impact of blasting;

• m in imising levels of noise affecting nearby dwellings;

• es ta blishment and realignment of the security fence;

• n o buildings, fences, walls or means of enclosure;

• d eta iled plans for future restoration (to a condition suitable for an appropriate after-use).

Financial/manpower statement

This proposition has no implications for the financial or manpower resources of the States.

APPENDIX 1

ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT - March 2001 SUMMARY TABLE OF EFFECTS

Its main conclusions, in this respect, can be summarised as follows -

the stream water immediately above the outfall.

The Water Resources Section of the Public Services Department in November 1999 carried out a water quality audit of the operation at La Gigoulande Quarry. It subsequently granted a Deemed Discharge Permit under Schedule 5 of the Water Pollution (Jersey) Law 2000, in order to allow the company to continue to make a discharge until such time as the Committee has determined whether the drainage system is functioning correctly.

Air and climate There will be no change to the existing situation. 1

N.B. The company has a dust suppression unit and static water dust sprays to dampen areas liable to wind blown dust.

It also employs a road sweeper to clean internal roads and immediately adjacent external roads.

Ratings: 1 = Negligible; 2 = Slight

Source: Environmental Assessment, Granite Products, March 2001