®Planning appeal decision
Aggregate Industries Uk Ltd, Chard Junction Quarry, South Chard, CHARD, TA20 4QS
temporary planning permission for an extension to Chard Junction Quarry at Westford Park Farm for the winning and working of approximately 930,000 tonnes of sand and gravel with progressive restoration to agriculture and nature conservation, inclusive of a new internal haul road and the retention of the existing mineral processing facilities and silt lagoons for a period of seven years
- Authority
- Dorset
- Appeal type
- other · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Inquiry
- Development
- minerals-waste · Mineral working
- Inspector
- Woolcock J
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- The effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the area.
- The effect of the proposed development on highway safety.
- The effect of the proposed development on the residential amenity of nearby occupiers by reason of noise and dust.
- The effect of the proposed development on biodiversity.
- The need for the development having regard to any national considerations and the impact on the local economy.
- The scope for and cost of meeting the need for the development in some other way.
- The extent to which any detrimental effect on the environment, the landscape and recreational opportunities could be moderated.
- Whether there are exceptional circumstances for major development in the AONB, and whether the development would be in the public interest.
What decided it
The great weight required to conserve and enhance the landscape and scenic beauty of the AONB, combined with the failure to demonstrate exceptional circumstances or public interest under NPPF paragraph 177, outweighed the benefits of mineral extraction.
the great weight given to conserving and enhancing landscape and scenic beauty in the AONB outweighed the great weight attributable to the benefits of mineral extraction, including to the economy, and the biodiversity benefits of the appeal scheme, with potential harm from silt press noise tipping the balance further against the proposal
Framework references: 174, 176, 177, 188, 210, 211
Plan policies cited: MS14 Policy DM4, MS14 Policy DM8, MS14 Policy DM2, MS14 Policy DM3, MS14 Policy DM1 g., MS14 Policy DM5, MS14 Policy RS1, MS14 Policy SS2, MS14 Policy AS1, MSP19 Policy MS-1, MSP19 Policy MS-2, AONBMP Policy C4a, AONBMP Policy C4c, AONBMP Policy C2f, AONBMP Policy C1a
Judgments cited: Compton PC v Guildford BC [2019] EWHC 3242 (Admin); SSCLG and Wealden DC [2017] EWCA Civ 39
The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.