Page 1 of 7

Consultation response: Planning Policy Wales 10 Date: May 2018

Wales Environment Link (WEL) welcomes the opportunity to input into the re-alignment of Planning Policy Wales 10 to the Wellbeing of Future Generations (WFG) Act, as well as the Environment Act. Rather than answering each consultation question individually, this response considers the document as a whole. WEL has specific suggestions for sections on biodiversity net gain; ancient woodland; common land; nitrogen pollution; and open space protection below.

General points Our main messages on Planning Policy Wales version 10 (PPW 10):

Having been redrafted to reflect the introduction of the WFG Act and Environment Act, we broadly welcome the new PPW 10. We particularly welcome inclusion of ‘Protects and enhances biodiversity’ and ‘Minimises environmental risks’ as considerations within the definition of ‘What is a sustainable place?’ (p.18). We’re also glad to see ‘Assessing the sustainable benefits of development’ section (paras. 2.24 – 2.26) as this will enable the full range of lifetime costs and benefits to be considered in taking planning decisions.

Implementing PPW 10 will require appropriate ecological expertise in the public sector and the support of Local Record Centres.

We feel that some of the wording is too vague to implement the WFG Act as intended.1 Where necessary, we suggest stronger alternative wording (see specific sections below). Where the Welsh Government considers a certain action is needed in order to achieve the relevant wellbeing goal, the word ‘must’ would demonstrate that the action is essential. For example, we recommend that PPW 10 states any non-nationally important development that is likely to damage an SSSI will be refused.

There is little on how the successful application of PPW 10 will be measured; monitoring should be introduced and linked to the National Indicators for Wales2 so planning’s contribution to wellbeing is demonstrated.

Provisions of the Environment Act are not always faithfully incorporated. For example, the definition of the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources (SMNR) has not been incorporated in full (paras. 1.18 – 1.21). Inclusion of appropriate cross referencing would help. We would welcome the inclusion of the following statement within para. 1.7:

1 Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, 2018. Letter from the Commissioner to the Inspector of the Public Local Inquiry for the M4 Corridor around Newport. 2 Welsh Government, 2016. National Indicators for Wales.

Page 2 of 7

“PPW recognises that maintaining and enhancing biodiversity and ecosystem resilience is consistent with the proper exercise of the planning functions of all public authorities engaged in planning activity”.

We would welcome clarification that development should provide ‘biodiversity net gain’ rather than ‘net benefit’ (para. 5.46). ‘Net gain’ is a topic worthy of a distinct section. If introduced appropriately, a principle of biodiversity net gain could significantly improve the way the planning system deals with biodiversity. We would strongly support a mandatory system that ensures all unavoidable biodiversity loss is effectively compensated for, in a more efficient and certain planning system. Conversely, we would strongly oppose a voluntary system that fails to improve protection for biodiversity, or that serves to make the planning system more inconsistent in the way it deals with biodiversity.

We welcome the introduction of Green Infrastructure Assessments and seek guidance on their preparation and content.

The Environment Act’s Section 7 list3 should be given more prominence and its fleeting references miss an opportunity to prioritise public bodies and Welsh Ministers’ duty in enhancing the protection of at-risk species. Welsh Ministers must take all reasonable steps to maintain and enhance the living organisms and types of habitat included in any list published under this section, and encourage others to take such steps, and other public bodies have to have regard to the list under section 6 (biodiversity and resilience of ecosystems duty). PPW 10 is a vital place to meet these duties.

The structuring of PPW 10 risks continuing a silo mentality in the consideration of planning topics. If ‘placemaking’ is the approach, we question the need for three separate supporting ‘themes’. If this structuring is to remain, the ordering should follow that in the NDF consultation4 with ‘Distinctive and Natural places’ following ‘Place-making’, so that it is a cross-cutting theme throughout PPW, rather than perceived as an afterthought.

An additional potential issue with the new four distinctive themes, is that it places another artificial layer of separation between planning and the wellbeing goals. This could lead to the problem of developers seeking to demonstrate how their applications connect to the policy topics rather than demonstrating how they are maximising their contribution to the wider and interlinked wellbeing goals. The themes may be a hindrance to aligning planning policy to the WFG Act; particularly when the National Place-making Outcomes (p. 20) are more clearly linked to the seven wellbeing goals. As drafted, PPW 10 does not justify the added value these themes provide.

We would welcome the introduction of both a glossary and a definitions section to precisely define various terms such as ‘net gain’.

Given the Welsh Government’s commitment to retaining the EU environmental principles5, they should be embedded in the five Key Planning Principles in PPW 10 (p.17) and all other Welsh Government policy and guidance. In particular, the precautionary principle6 should be applied where there is a risk of significant damage to ecosystems. This principle should be explicitly mentioned in guidance to cumulative impact.

3 Wales Biodiversity Partnership, 2018. Section 7 Lists for Priority Species and Priority Habitats. 4 Welsh Government, 2018. Consultation on NDF: Issues, options and preferred option’, p.17. 5 National Assembly for Wales, 2018. During Stage 3 of the Law Derived from the EU (Wales) Bill, Leader of the House, Julie James said: “this Government will take the first proper legislative opportunity to enshrine the environmental principles into law and close the governance gap.” 6 EU Factsheet, 2018. Environment Policy: General Principles and Basic Framework.

Page 3 of 7

The five Key Planning Principles text states that precautionary principle should be invoked in the event of possible ‘serious environmental damage’. This is a misrepresentation of the precautionary principle. The precautionary principle is detailed in Article 191 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which says it should be invoked when there are ‘potentially adverse effects’. Therefore we recommend that the wording of this principle should be amended to refer to the event of ‘potential adverse effects on the environment’.

The implications for planning in National Parks, following recent commitments7 to retaining the Sandford Principle, should be made clear (p.118 – 119). Furthermore, as a matter of policy, this should be extended to Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The fifth principle on ‘Maximising environmental protection and limiting environmental impact’ does not go far enough to meet commitments in the Environment Act and what is required to maximise the Resilient Wales goal. Currently, the principle makes no direct reference to the enhancement of ecosystems, nor the central role the planning system has in delivering it. Rather than seeking to limit environmental impact – i.e. further damage – the principle should be for the planning system to make a positive contribution towards the enhancement of ecosystem resilience through its decisions. Enhancing ecosystems is a more effective long-term approach to dealing with climate change, as those ecosystems become more resilient to change.

A significant threat to ecosystem resilience and the principles of SMNR is the cumulative impact of developments. Currently the planning system is ineffective at accounting for cumulative impact as decisions are too often made in isolation. This needs to change. Therefore, the five Key Planning Principles would benefit from acknowledging the need for cumulative impact to be considered as a matter of integration. This could then inform how Strategic Development Plans and Local Development Plans address cumulative impacts and the existing limitations of a given ecosystem. Identifying the limitation of an ecosystem must be a key outcome of the spatially specific evidence base to be delivered by NRW’s Area Statements. As such, it will be vital that PPW 10 makes clear links to Area Statements in this regard.

To demonstrate integration, PPW 10 should dovetail with other Welsh Government Policy. Planning’s role in delivering the Natural Resources Policy (NRP) should be made clear; para 1.19 reads as if the NRP has not been published.

The definition of what is a ‘Sustainable Place’ (p. 18) is very human focused and needs to better reflect the needs of the biosphere. Not doing so jeopardises social and economic sustainability – as explained by Johan Rockström and Pavan Sukhdev8. To be faithful and consistent with the context of existing bespoke Welsh legislation this would be best reflected by including ‘ecologically diverse & resilient’ among the attributes of Sustainable Place contained in the definition.

SoNaRR9 has revealed that none of Wales’ ecosystems are resilient. Irreplaceable habitats / sites where ancient soils survive (e.g ancient woodlands, peatlands, species-rich arable and old meadows) must be afforded the utmost protection and footnotes to appropriate data sources would be helpful10. Furthermore, non-statutory environmental designations (e.g. local nature reserves, wildlife parks, wildlife sites / Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation11

7 National Assembly for Wales, 2018. In a statement on Designated Landscapes, Environment Minister, Hannah Blythyn said: “I intend to retain the existing purposes of national parks, along with the Sandford principle”. 8 Stockholm Resilience Centre, 2016. ‘How food connects all the SDGs’. 9 State of Natural Resources Report, 2016. Chapter 4: Resilient Ecosystems, p22. 10 For example, the new portal for the Ancient Tree Inventory. 11 Gwent Wildlife Trust, 2004. Guidelines for the Selection of Wildlife Sites in South Wales.

Page 4 of 7

and non-designated habitats in general) should be afforded greater protection in planning decision making, especially in strategic planning (para 5.57). Protection for irreplaceable habitats, common land and non-statutory environmental designations must not depend on the preparation of Green Infrastructure Assessments. Site condition monitoring must inform planning’s monitoring mechanisms (e.g. Strategic Environment Assessment monitoring, LDP annual monitoring & SD monitoring of applications) and any introduced for PPW.

Regarding designated sites, we note that PPW 5 (2012) and the proposed PPW 10 are very similar. We would expect PPW 10 to give greater importance to designated sites given their critical role in securing ecologically coherent resilient networks (noted as a key commitment in the Natural Resources Policy). Nor does it adequately reflect the contribution designated sites make to Wales’ ecology or economy. Only developments of national significance could possibly be equivalent to the nationally important conservation designations. We request that the presumption against development affecting SSSIs, and also Local Wildlife Sites – given their critical role in supporting biodiversity and developing ecologically resilient networks – be strengthened in PPW 10.

We are concerned about the omission of policy on intensive agricultural units and their environmental impacts. These developments are creating substantial new air and water pollution and there appears to be no mechanism to assess the cumulative impact of multiple applications (particularly ground and surface water pollution and ammonia emissions) outside of the EIA process.

We support the paragraph 4.161 (Onshore Oil and Gas) which states that proposals for opencast, deep-mine development or colliery spoil disposal should not be permitted. We recommend that this is also applied to exploratory drilling and unconventional oil and gas proposals (i.e. fracking) which the Welsh Government announced a moratorium on in 2015 due to concerns over climate change and the legal requirement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% by 2050. As the final point before ‘Specific Suggestions’ heading.

Suggestions for specific sections of PPW 10 In the following sections, WEL makes specific points to improve five areas of PPW.

Biodiversity Net Gain We propose biodiversity net gain principles which should be reflected in PPW 10 and WEL would welcome a meeting to discuss the precise details including – given that biodiversity is an integral part of landscape character – how the principles should apply in protected landscapes:

o Net gain must be supported by improved access to independent ecological expertise in Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) and Natural Resources Wales.

o Irreplaceable habitats are inappropriate for the net gain system and should be protected from any loss.

o The existing system of statutory biodiversity12 protection should underpin the net gain process,

which should only apply outside of protected areas for nature conservation.

o There must be a clear and consistent national framework that sets minimum values for nationally important habitats and species based on favourable conservation status, as biodiversity does not work within silos and cannot only be protected just within certain areas. This also links to Area Statements, which should become a vehicle to implement this statutory protection.

12 Section 6, Part 1 of the Environment Act, 2016.

Page 5 of 7

o The ‘mitigation’ hierarchy in TAN5: Nature Conservation must still apply. It needs to be

underpinned by a robust biodiversity metric, taking account of species and habitats in the Section 713 lists in order to provide a robust baseline against which we measure impacts and net gain. The data on existing habitats and species (including importance, condition and irreversibility) needs to be significantly improved.

o New habitats delivered through net gain should be secured in perpetuity and have a long-term

financial and legal framework for monitoring, evaluation, reporting and implementation.

o Net gain must integrate with improved strategic spatial planning and a strategic programme of nature conservation at a variety of appropriate scales.

Ancient Woodland The role of NRW and the wording around ancient woodland is not very clear. WEL suggests re-wording paragraph 5.63 (on p. 127) as follows:

5.63 Ancient and semi-natural woodlands and individual ancient, veteran and heritage trees are irreplaceable natural resources, and often have significant landscape, biodiversity and cultural value. Such trees and woodlands must be afforded protection from development which would result in their loss or deterioration unless there are wholly exceptional reasons of national significance. They must be afforded additional levels of protection and every effort should be made to prevent potentially damaging operations and their unnecessary loss. In the case of a site recorded on the Ancient Woodland Inventory, authorities should consult with and obtain a response from NRW. Planning authorities should also have regard to the Ancient Tree Inventory.

Common land In view of the importance of registered common land in Wales for biodiversity, landscape, recreation and, in some areas, for the viability of farming – and because commons are of vital importance for cultural heritage – they should be afforded the same protection we propose for ancient woodland (see above).

Pollution We welcome the recognition in paragraph 5.126 that: “National air quality objectives are not ‘safe’ levels of air pollution […] It is desirable to keep levels of pollution as low as reasonably practicable”. However, air quality is not only an issue for public health in urban areas. The proposed approach should be extended to address:

o The impacts of ammonia emissions and other pollutants on public health in all areas, both rural and urban;

o The impacts of NOx (nitrogen oxides) and ammonia emissions on biodiversity and the natural environment;

o The significance of agriculture as a source of ammonia emissions. Ammonia causes significant damage to public health by contributing to the formation of fine particulate matter. This has only come to light in recent scientific research14 and it must now be fully taken into account in public policy on air quality and the Welsh Air Quality Forum. Air pollution is also one of the major threats to biodiversity and a resilient natural environment in Wales. Nitrogen in the atmosphere – from NOx and ammonia emissions – is deposited onto

13 Wales Biodiversity Partnership, 2018. Section 7 Lists for Priority Species and Priority Habitats. 14 Pozzer, A et al., 2017. Impact of agricultural emission reductions on fine-particulate matter and public health.

Page 6 of 7

vegetation, soils and water. This nitrogen enriches and acidifies the whole ecosystem, making it impossible for many species to survive. More than two thirds of wild flowers, as well as many lichen and other fungi, cannot tolerate high nitrogen levels. The details of this threat to biodiversity are set out in NRW’s Natura 2000 Thematic Action Plan – Air Pollution: Nitrogen Deposition15. It also identifies the need for further action in the planning system to reduce emissions and restore biodiversity. Implementation of this Action Plan should be fully supported by PPW 10. Farming is the dominant source of ammonia emissions in Wales – 81% in 201516 – mostly from the management, storage and application of farm animal manures and artificial fertilisers. While beef and dairy cattle are the largest source of emissions, the recent dramatic expansion of intensive poultry units, including clusters of units in some areas, has led to increased concerns about impacts on local people and wildlife. Only an estimated 5% of farm emissions come under direct regulation through the environmental permitting system; those from the largest pig and poultry units. Planning policy and regulation is the other regulatory means of delivering reductions in ammonia emissions. There has been a striking lack of progress in reducing ammonia emissions since 1990, compared to all other pollutants. Since 2008, emissions have actually increased. If this trend continues, Wales will fail to cut 8% of emissions by 2020 and 16% by 2030 (compared with 2005), as required by the UK’s legally-binding targets under EU and international law. Voluntary measures by the farming sector, supported by government schemes, have failed to deliver. A more robust approach is required, integrated into wider policy on air quality, agriculture and planning.

Open space protection

In relation to the wellbeing goals, developers should be required to dedicate land – within any development – for public benefit, for instance:

o As a town or village green (under section 15 (8) of Commons Act 2006); o For public access (under section 16 Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000); o Or as a public right of way.

WEL also notes that Technical Advice Note 16 (Sport, Recreation, and Open Spaces 2009) is out of date. We would welcome stricter protection of open space in PPW 10, as it is vulnerable to disposal and development when left to policy guidance alone.

15 Natural Resources Wales, 2015. Natura 200 Thematic Action Plan: Air Pollution – Nitrogen Deposition. 16 National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory, 2018. Pollutant Information: Ammonia.

Page 7 of 7

Wales Environment Link (WEL) is a network of environmental, countryside and heritage Non-Governmental Organisations in Wales, most of whom have an all-Wales remit. WEL is a respected intermediary body between the government and the environmental NGO sector in Wales. Our vision is a healthy, sustainably managed environment and countryside with safeguarded heritage in which the people of Wales and future generations can prosper.

This briefing represents the consensus view of a group of WEL members working in this specialist area. Members may also produce information individually in order to raise more detailed issues that are important to their particular organisation.