Agenda item

Report of the Joint Officer Steering Group.

Stephen Pointer, Team Manager in Planning Policy for Nottinghamshire County Council, presented the Waste Local Plan update, highlighting the following points:

(a)  after being granted appropriate approval by Nottinghamshire County Council and Nottingham City Council, and after undergoing appropriate consultation, the Waste Local Plan was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in March 2024. The Inspector was appointed in April, and as part of his examination a public hearing was held at County Hall on the 15^th and 16^th October 2024;

(b)  over the summer the Inspector issued around forty questions, which formed the agenda for the hearing in October. This prompted modifications of the plan, to improve clarity and strengthen it, but which do not change the fundamental policies endorsed by both local authorities;

(c)  the Inspector’s report is likely to be published in the spring in 2025. The Inspector indicated that he was pleased with the modifications put forward, so officers are hopeful that the plan will be endorsed and that both Councils can then adopt it.

Emma Brook, Principal Planning Officer for Nottinghamshire County Council, outlined the proposed modifications, highlighting the following points:

(d)  there two kinds of modifications proposed: ‘main modifications’ which alter policy or add new content, and ‘additional modifications’, which correct typographical errors or clarify wording;

(e)  modifications were proposed at three points:

  i.  prior to the examination, for example agreeing changes to Development Management Policy 6 with Historic England, and some changes to wording to align the waste hierarchy with national policy;

  ii.  following the Inspector’s questions, which prompted officers to clarify points, such as ensuring that the plan clearly supports the colocation of waste facilities and their location alongside complementary activities, and around the achievement of net self-sufficiency;

  iii.  at the hearing itself, during which the Inspector identified thirteen further main modifications, primarily in Chapter 5, where the plan addresses the capacity gap.

In the discussion which followed, and in response to questions from the Committee, the following points were made:

(f)  it is important to note that energy-from-waste also enables the retrieval of useful byproducts. Incineration enables the recovery of metals, stone, and ash, for instance, as well as the production of energy. The plan is founded on the idea of a circular economy that regards waste as a resource with value, promotes the recycling of materials, and avoids disposal as the worst option;

(g)  the plan is intended to be valid until 2038, but there will be opportunities to update it considering changing circumstances. Prior to the general election in 2024, the government suspended the ability of the Environment Agency to issue environmental permits for waste incineration. There have been no clear announcements from the government since then, so it is unclear if the national policy approach on incineration will change. Once formally adopted, officers will monitor any changes in evidence or policy, and the plan will be reviewed every five years as per government guidance;

(h)  after seeing the growth of incineration across the country, the financial case for it may be changing due to the pricing of carbon dioxide emissions. Waste-from-energy is being questioned as the dynamics change, and it is unclear if this will impact on proposals to expand incineration at Eastcroft or the Uniper EMERGE project at Ratcliffe-on-Soar, which has received planning approval but has not yet been implemented;

(i)  as part of the forecasting for Local Authority Collected Waste (LACW) arisings, the plan presents three scenarios showing trends for the amount of waste collected, and three scenarios for the amount of that waste recycled. For the amount of waste collected, the plan is based on Scenario B as the most realistic scenario, assuming a low rate of decline per household resulting in an increase in total waste due to the growth in the number of households. A higher rate of decline would be desirable, but it is important to plan to provide the facilities to deal with the most realistic option. For the amount of that waste recycled, the plan assumes the most ambitious recycling rate of the three scenarios, with a 65% recycling rate, reflecting the national waste strategy target to reach 65% by 2035; 

(j)  there is flexibility in the plan to account for some of the larger projects that are uncertain, as the plan provides a framework against which changing circumstances can be monitored and assessed.

Resolved to note the Waste Local Plan update.