Response to the Preferred Options Consultation for the Proposed Silica Extraction Site at Land north of Stow Bardolph within the Norfolk Minerals Local Plan Review
October 2019
Prepared by Fisher German LLP on behalf of Mr and Mrs Plaxton

01 Introduction
These representations have been prepared on behalf of Mr and Mrs Plaxton in respect of their land interests at the Wallington Hall Estate. The Wallington Hall Estate is situated within the Borough of Kings Lynn and West Norfolk and is located 8 miles to the south of Kings Lynn town centre. The Estate is situated between South Runcton to the north and Stow Bardolph to the south and is bounded by Lynn Road (A10) to the east and Woodlakes Park to the west.

A proportion of our client's land has been included as an area of search for proposed silica sand extraction within the draft Preferred Options Document produced by Norfolk County Council. The draft Preferred Options document was presented to Norfolk County Council's Cabinet meeting on 5 August 2019 with a recommendation for public consultation to take place between the 18 September 2019 until the 30 October 2019. The recommendation was taken forward and this representation is submitted in response to the Preferred Options document public consultation.
Our clients have not been consulted in any way regarding the proposed inclusion of their land within an area of search for mineral extraction sites by the proposed operator or the County Council. They wish to object to the inclusion of their land, and the wider proposed allocation. This representation proposes that the site referenced as AOS F 'Land north of Stow Bardolph' should be removed as an emerging allocation in the Norfolk Minerals Local Plan. There are specific factors which indicate this site is not suitable and that there are more appropriate site allocations that should be progressed instead that will more than meet the requirements of the Plan.

Site Context
The relevant part of our client's land is shown in Figure 1 [attached] edged red and comprises the Wallington Hall Estate. The black edged plot represents the area of land which has been included as an area of search for minerals extraction.
The plan included at Figure 2 [attached] shows the extent of the proposed area of search (AOS F) which includes land to the north of Stow Bardolph. The parcel affecting our clients land is one of two being considered under this reference and extends to 30 hectares in size. The land comprises a mixture of forestry and agricultural uses and is around 17 kilometres from the Leziate processing plant.
These representations seek to demonstrate that there is compelling justification to remove the AOS F site from further consideration. There are more appropriate options for the proposed silica sand extraction sites that should be investigated further within Norfolk rather than AOS F.

Policy Context
Norfolk County Council are in the process of preparing the Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review to consolidate the three adopted Development Plan Documents into one Local Plan in order to extend the plan period to the end of the 2036. It is noted that the Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review is currently at the Preferred Options Public Consultation stage.
The Core Strategy and Minerals and Waste Development Management Policies Development Plan Document (DPD) sets out the Norfolk Minerals and Waste Development Framework for the county. The Mineral Site Specific Allocations Development Plan Document was adopted in 2017 by Norfolk County Council and the Waste Site Specific Allocations Development Plan Document was adopted in October 2013.
The next section of the report provides extensive justification to support the view that Area of Search F should not be taken forward for silica sand extraction site in the Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan review.

02 Area of Search- AOS F Land to the north of Stow Bardolph: Proposed removal of the area for further assessment.
This section of the report sets out the reasoning behind the request for the AOS F removal as an Area of Search for silica sand extraction sites in West Norfolk.
Landowner consent/support

As previously indicated, our client's land constitutes a substantial proportion of the area of search and landowner consent and approval for inclusion as an area of search has not been sought. Our client does not support the inclusion of their land within this area of search and as such extraction in this location is undeliverable. Deliverability is a key test for emerging plan allocations and this area of search fails to meet this test. This area comprises woodland which is valued by the Estate and those in the local area as set out later in this report.

Heritage Impact
There are two Grade I listed buildings situated within 1km of this area of search which importantly includes Wallington Hall, which is located 0.68km from the proposed site, and Church of the Holy Trinity (1km). The Grade I listed Hall is located approximately half a kilometre from the proposed site, and land within the same ownership as the Hall is proposed for inclusion within the area of search. Grade I listed status is particularly special and only buildings which are of exceptional national, architectural or historical importance are designated as Grade I. Such buildings represent only 2.5% of listed buildings. At such close proximity, significant heritage impact is expected if mineral extraction were to occur on land within or adjoining the estate.
The Grade II listed buildings located within 1km of the proposed silica site include the kitchen and service range for Wallington Hall (0.70km), the walled garden to Wallington Hall (0.72km), Almhouses (0.74km), the Cottage (0.74km), the Hare Arms (0.78km), the forecourt wall and gate piers to Wallington Hall enclosing rectangle to south of house (0.79km) and the remains of Church of St Margaret (0.86km). The northern section of the area of search also encroaches within the curtilage of the Wallington Hall Estate. There are a number of listed buildings within close proximity and these would be adversely affected by mineral extraction.
Paragraph 194 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that 'Any harm to, or loss of, the significance of a designated heritage asset (from its alteration or destruction, or from development within its setting), should require clear and convincing justification. Substantial harm to or loss of: a) grade II listed buildings, or grade II registered parks or gardens, should be exceptional; b) assets of the highest significance, notably scheduled monuments, protected wreck sites, registered battlefields, grade I and II* listed buildings, grade I and II* registered parks and gardens, and World Heritage Sites, should be wholly exceptional' . Given the proximity of the area of search to both Grade I and II listed buildings a significant impact would be expected from mineral extraction on the buildings and their setting.

Amenity
Residential amenity is a key issue given that the area of search is located approximately 17 km from the Leziate processing plant which is where extracted silica would need to be transported for processing into a marketable product. Therefore, all the properties within 100m of the 17km road network would be impacted by dust, air quality impacts and noise impacts stemming from the HGV vehicle movements in order to move the extracted silica from the site to the processing plant. This would represent extensive impacts spread over a considerable geographical area and impact upon multiple sensitive receptors and residential areas.

Highway Access:
The highways access route from the proposed silica extraction site to the Silbelco processing Plant at Leziate is 17 km in distance. This means that the proposed silica sand extraction site at the land north of Stow Bardolph is located the second furthest distance away from the processing plant, when compared to the other proposed silica sand extraction sites. Additionally, the volume of traffic on the A10 is likely to increase as a result of the number of HGVs required to transport the silica from the proposed site to the processing plant at Leziate. Paragraph 109 of the NPPF states that development should be prevented if there is an 'unacceptable impact on highway safety'. Local information is that there have been a number of accidents along this section of the A10 in recent years and the additional traffic is likely to increase the risk of this.
This factor has not been adequately considered when proposing the area of search and should mean that the site is not taken forward for further consideration. The processing plant is a considerable distance from the area of search and there are more suitable sites significantly closer. The additional movements would potentially have amenity, highway safety and other adverse impacts on the transport route and adjoining areas which has not been adequately assessed to date. Forecast production of 900,000 tonnes per annum would require over 64,000 HGV movements at the site (assuming an average load of 28t per HGV) or 256 per day (assuming 50 working weeks per annum.) This would place an unacceptable burden on an already busy road.

Community/Neighbourhood Value
A proportion of the Wallington Estate is currently used for charity work, in providing horse riding activities for people with disabilities through the woodland. These activities are able to take place through the Magpie Centre and are based from Wallington Hall. The charity gives people with disabilities the opportunity to horse ride and has been operating as a dedicated Riding for the Disabled Association Riding Centre for over 30 years Figures 4 and 5 show the horse riding opportunities that take place at Wallington Hall through the Magpie Centre, which operates 5 days per week.
The centre provides 130 riding and carriage driving lessons a week and is supported by over 50 volunteers from the local community who help with the ponies, lessons, field maintenance and fundraising. This shows that the centre is a valued asset to the local community and is a resource used by a significant number of people, including volunteers and people with disabilities. The implementation of the proposed silica sand extraction site would have a detrimental impact on the ability of the horse riding activities for people with disabilities to continue in the future. The mineral extraction site located adjacent to the area of woodland would generate visual, noise and air quality impacts that would adversely affect the environment in which the horses ride, to the detriment of the community that utilise this space. Therefore, the proposed silica site should be removed as an allocation. This is a valued local community use and mineral extraction would render this location no longer suitable and would be to the detriment of the riding school and all those associated with it. This Estate is a special and tranquil environment for the riding school and it is very important that this facility is retained.

Archaeology:
The area is largely unstudied in terms of archaeology and a more detailed assessment of archaeological remains should therefore be undertaken through an archaeological survey. Sites such as the remains of St Margaret's Church situated 0.86km from the proposed silica extraction site show that there could be historic assets that have not yet been uncovered. Planning policy supports the view that a more detailed assessment of the archaeology in King's Lynn and Surrounding Area should be conducted through a heritage assets assessment which includes a review of the submitted information and relevant on-site investigations. Without such information there is uncertainty regarding suitability and deliverability which means that the allocation is potentially unsound as it cannot be taken forward with confidence that archaeology is not present.

Hydrogeology:
A hydrogeological risk assessment is required and has not been undertaken and therefore the potential impact of extraction on local hydrology is completely unknown. Again, this reinforces the point that the proposed area of search has not been investigated sufficiently and without it being considered suitable, developable and deliverable the allocation would be unsound.

Landscape:
Chiswick's Wood is an ancient woodland situated 1.4km to the east and unnamed ancient woodlands are located 1.2km south east and 1.7km north east of the of the proposed silica sand extraction site.
The area of search boundary includes woodland within the Wallington Estate which is valuable to the setting of the Grade I listed Hall and the local area. National policy seeks to protect woodland and in this case the woodland provides a valuable heritage; landscape and community benefit which should be protected from the adverse impacts associated with mineral extraction.

Ecology:
The proposed silica extraction site situated at the land north of Stow Bardolph includes an area of woodland which could have a potential adverse impact on protected species within this habitat. In addition, paragraph 174 part b) of the NPPF states that plans should 'promote the conservation, restoration and enhancement of priority habitats, ecological networks and the protection and recovery of priority species; and identify and pursue opportunities for securing measurable net gains for biodiversity'. In this case, the potential allocation of a substantial area of woodland could have adverse impact contrary to the aims of national policy.

Summary
Overall, there are substantial grounds to justify the removal of the proposed silica sand extraction allocation on land north of Stow Bardolph. These include the adverse heritage impact on the Grade I listed Wallington Hall and surrounding Estate; the loss of the woodland for use by the Riding for the Disabled Association Charity; adverse impacts on potential ecology within the woodland and landscape impacts associated with the loss of the woodland. The loss of the woodland also has impacts on the wider park and setting, as well as the circular routes used by the RDA. Additionally, the potential for archaeology; potential for hydrological impacts and the noise and dust impacts on the amenity of local residents along the 17km route from the area of search to the processing plant shows the impacts on the surrounding area within West Norfolk.

Moreover, the distance between the land at Stow Bardolph and the processing plant at Leziate is 17km and is a greater distance than all but one of the other proposed silica extraction sites. The greater distance required to transport the silica between the extraction site and the processing plant is likely to have a negative impact on the surrounding road network and contribute to increased traffic flow and congestion, because of the number of heavy goods vehicles required to transport the silica between the proposed silica sand extraction site and the processing plant.
The next section of the report identifies other silica sand extraction sites that are more suitable and sequentially preferable to the AOS_F.

03 Other Silica Extraction Site Options
The following section of the report sets out the alternative silica sand extraction site options available within West Norfolk. It is argued that alternative silica sand extraction sites would be more appropriate to be allocated than the proposed silica extraction site AOS F situated at the land north of Stow Bardolph, which includes a proportion of the Wallington Hall Estate and should be removed from further consideration.

MIN40- Land east of Grandcourt Farm, East Winch
The proposed silica extraction site located at land east of Grandcourt Farm is deemed to be more suitable than the land north of Stow Bardolph. The MIN40 allocation is situated only 1.8km from the Leziate processing plant which would make the transportation process of the silica between the extraction site and the processing plant more sustainable and minimise impacts on the highway and amenity of residents. The silica would also be transported by an internal haul route to the processing plant which would avoid any impact on the local roads. In comparison the AOS_F land north of Stow Bardolph is situated 17km from the processing plant at Leziate and is a much greater distance for transportation between the extraction site and processing plant. The proposed transportation route from AOS F would primarily use the A10 and would have greater impacts on the local roads in terms of congestion and traffic.
The MIN40 site has been put forward by Sibelco UK as an extension to an existing silica extraction site. This is not the case for the AOS_F land north of Stow Bardolph which would be a completely new silica sand extraction site.

SIL01- land at Mintlyn South Bawsey
Firstly, the proposed silica extraction site SIL01 land at Mintlyn South Bawsey is part of a former mineral working which was partially extracted. This shows that the area previously has a history of mineral working, which is not the case for the land allocated at AOS_F north of Stow Bardolph which would be a new greenfield location.
Secondly, the allocation at SIL01 is situated only 700m from the processing plant at Leziate and is much closer to the processing plant than the allocation at AOS_F north of Stow Bardolph, which is located 17km away from the processing plant. Therefore, the proposed allocation at SIL01 would be able to be transported by conveyor from the extraction site to the processing plant and would not impact on the local road network at all. Contrastingly the proposed silica extraction site at AOS_F north of Stow Bardolph would have to be transported by road and this would have far greater implications on the road network.
In addition, the Agricultural Land Classification scheme classifies the land at SIL01 Mintlyn, South Bawsey as being in 'Non- Agricultural' use whereas the land at AOS_F north of Stow Bardolph is classified as being in Agricultural use.

AOS_E Land to the north of Shouldham
The area of search covers 815 hectares which is almost 25 times the size of the AOS_F proposed silica sand extraction site allocation to the north of Stow Bardolph,. The proposed mineral extraction sites information produced by Norfolk County Council show that the MIN 40 land east of Grandcourt Farm proposed silica sand extraction site has an estimated resource of 3,000,000 tonnes for a 33 hectare site.
It is evident that no detailed information was put forward regarding the potential yield of AOS E and that estimated mineral tonnages are not able to be extrapolated accurately. However, there is a possibility given the very large area that this designation covers, that the estimated resource that could be derived from the proposed silica sand extraction site at AOS_E could more than satisfy the forecast need of 10,500,000 tonnes of silica sand required during the plan period. This means there is an argument to only allocate the proposed silica sand extraction site AOS_E to the north of Shouldham because it would satisfy the need for the required silica sand needed during the plan period.
The AOS_E site allocation is situated 2km closer to the processing plant at Leziate than the AOS_F site which is another reason why the AOS_E proposed silica extraction site is a more favourable option. In addition, the AOS_E proposed silica sand extraction site is adjacent to previous and current mineral workings and close to a sand and gravel allocation. This means that the AOS_E site could be seen as an extension to existing mineral operations, which the NPPF would prefer to the opening of a new site. In comparison the surrounding land at AOS_F for the land north of Stow Bardolph has no previous history of mineral extraction.

AOS_I Land to the east of South Runcton
The proposed silica sand extraction site AOS_I land to the east of South Runcton is situated 16km from the processing plant at Leziate, which is 1km closer than the AOS_F allocation. Although this does not seem a significant difference, when the number of HGV movements that will be required to transport the resource between the silica sand extraction site and the processing plant each year is considered, it creates a noticeable increase in impact. This means that the proposed silica sand extraction site AOS_ should be considered a more favourable allocation than the AOS_F land because it is situated in closer proximity to the processing plant at Leziate.
Moreover, the proposed silica sand extraction AOS_I site covers 47 hectares which is over 15 hectares larger than the AOS_F site that incorporates part of the Wallington Hall Estate. This means that the potential resource that could be derived from the AOS_I site is likely to be greater than the AOS_F site. Therefore, the proposed silica sand extraction for AOS_I land to the east of South Runcton is more favourable to be used as a site allocation than the AOS_F land to the north of Stow Bardolph.

AOS_J Land to the east of Tottenhill
The proposed silica sand extraction site AOS_J land to the east of Tottenhill is situated 15km from the processing plant at Leziate, which is 2km closer than the distance between the proposed site AOS_F . Similarly to the point in the previous section (AOS_ I land to the east of South Runcton), although this distance does not seem a significant difference, when it is considered the number of HGVs that will be required to transport the resource between the silica sand extraction site and the processing plant each year, the impact is more significant than it may appear. Therefore the distance in the transportation of the silica between the AOS_J site and the processing plant at Leziate makes it a more favourable option than the AOS_F site allocation.

SIL02 Land at Shouldham and Marham
Although this site has not been allocated as a proposed silica sand extraction site by Norfolk County Council it has been considered as a potential 'Preferred Area'. The estimated resource in tonnes for silica that could be extracted from this site is believed to be 16,000,000 tonnes, which could more than satisfy the forecast need of 10,500,000 tonnes of silica sand during the plan period. There is an argument which supports the idea that if the proposed silica sand extraction situated at SIL02 land at Shouldham and Marham was allocated, then the other allocations would not be needed as forecast for the required silica sand within the plan period would already have been met.
However, the proposed silica sand extraction sites in West Norfolk document prepared by Norfolk County Council suggests that the proposer of the site has given a potential start date of 2027 and estimated the extraction rate to be 800,000 to 900,000 tonnes per annum. Using this information, the full mineral resource at Site SIL02 could be extracted within 20 years and means 9,000,000 tonnes could be extracted within the plan period. This means that if the SIL02 site was allocated as a proposed silica sand extraction site it would go a long way towards securing the silica required during the plan period.
Furthermore the SIL02 proposed silica extraction site should be preferred to the AOS_F site because the SIL02 site is situated only 6km from the Leziate processing plant and this enables the mineral to have the potential to be transported by pipeline rather than road. In comparison the AOS_F proposed silica sand extraction site is situated 17km from the Leziate processing plant and would need to be transported by road. For these reasons, it is evident that the SIL02 proposed silica sand extraction is a more favourable allocation than the AOS_F site.

04 Conclusion
To summarise, the preferred option document for the Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review is currently under review. The proposed area of search AOS F for silica sand extraction includes part of the Wallington Hall Estate. These representations seek to remove this area of search entirely from the local plan review process. There are alternative sequentially preferable areas under consideration and potentially significant site specific impacts associated with AOS F which justify its removal. A further point is that the landowner had not been consulted prior to the allocation of AOS F and does not approve of the submission.
Overall, there are substantial grounds in terms of potential impact to justify the removal of the proposed silica sand extraction allocation on land north of Stow Bardolph. These include the adverse heritage impact on the Grade I listed Wallington Hall and surrounding Estate; the loss of the RDA group use of the woodland; adverse impacts on potential ecology within the woodland and landscape impacts associated with the loss of the woodland; the potential for archaeology; potential for hydrological impacts and the noise and dust impacts on the amenity of local residents along the 17km route from the area of search to the processing plant.
It is appropriate to allocate sequentially preferable areas of search instead of area of search F which is not required in the extended plan period for proposed silica sand extraction and because of its size would not make a significant contribution to the tonnage required to meet the Plan's needs. There are sites situated substantially closer to the processing plant at Leziate that have a greater potential to extract a higher tonnage of silica through being larger site allocations in terms of area. Therefore, the proposed silica sand AOS_F extraction site should be removed.