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Thames Basin Heaths SPA
Assessment and Audit of Potential Land to
Mitigate Effects of Housing Examination in
Public- Technical Session 21 November 2006
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Audit and Assessment Land Use Consultants

• Objectives
• To identify Suitable Alternative Natural Green
  Space (SANGS) which could be used as appropriate
  mitigation land for further development
• Broadly identify the cost of bringing forward
  this land
• Identifying options and mechanisms to secure its
  use as appropriate mitigation for further
  development

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Thames Basin Heaths SPA Delivery Plan zones
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Audit and Assessment Land Use Consultants

• Process
• Identification and assessment of potential SANGS
  gt2ha up to 10km of SPA focus on publicly
  owned/managed land
• Natural/semi-natural and amenity greenspace,
  parks gardens, green corridors, sports fields
• Local authority GIS data on greenspace, PPG17
  audits
• Other public landowners Crown Estates, Defence
  Estates, FC, EP
• Wildlife Trusts, RSPB, NT

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Audit and Assessment Land Use Consultants

• Process
• Individual meetings with core Local Authorities
  (x11)
• Consultation with other major public
  landowners/managers (esp in outer zone 10km)
• Identification and mapping of potential SANGS
• Categorised by naturalness, access, size,
  location
• Verification of information with core LAs and
  landowners, consultation with developers
• Workshops LAs, landowners, developers
• Case studies delivery mechanisms process

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Potential SANGS (all)
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Potential SANGS
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Potential SANGS - All
In Zone A B 251 sites, 6,827 hectares In
Zone C 182 sites, 4,292 hectares Beyond
Zone C 10km 182 sites, 5,217
hectares Total 615 sites, 16,335 ha
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Potential SANGS type of land

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Potential SANGS - Land not included

• Following verification process, sites removed
  include
• Golf courses with no right of way
• Small sports pitches, school grounds
• Parks gardens with no public access
• Botanical gardens, grass verges
• Leasehold forestry sites with no public access
• Unsuitable military training areas
• Sensitive wildlife sites

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Potential SANGS - key sites

• Sites with most potential to be SANGS and to be
  available in short term Key sites
• In core local authority area
• 57 sites
• 1,427 hectares
• In wider 10km radius
• 4 sites
• 1,041 hectares

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Potential SANGS- key sites
In Zone A B 26 sites, 505 hectares In
Zone C 26 sites, 1,403 hectares Beyond
Zone C 10km 9 sites, 560 hectares Total
61 sites, 2,468 hectares
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Potential SANGS - Key sites
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Potential SANGS Pessimistic view
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Potential SANGS Pessimistic view
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Potential SANGS Pessimistic view
In Zone A B 162 sites, 4,717 hectares In
Zone C 118 sites, 3,161 hectares Beyond
Zone C 10km 116 sites, 4,129
hectares Total 396 sites, 12,006 ha
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Countryside Stewardship land
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Conclusions

• Information to assist delivery of housing and
  protection of SPA
• Sub-regional picture
• Part suite of work on SPA (peer reviews, access
  management)
• Focus on publicly owned/managed land
• Not definitive but encouraging
• Implementation at local level including through
  mini-plans , appropriate assessment,
• Need for joint working and monitoring

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Appropriate Assessment

• Thames Basin Heaths not only Natura 2000 site
  sensitive to recreation
• Appropriate Assessment of potential impact of SE
  Plan on all N2000 sites in SE and which could be
  affected by the Plan
• Core strategy and Implementation Plan

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Appropriate Assessment - Screening

• Screening used to
• Identify qualifying features and the
  environmental conditions required to support
  these
• Assess the possible impacts arising from the
  Plan
• Identify whether risk of a significant effect on
  features/conditions, alone or in combination with
  other plans and projects
• Informed by
• Stakeholder consultation
• County-level workshops
• Steering Group, including Environment Agency and
  Natural England

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Appropriate Assessment - Screening

• Lack of detail available to allow many sites to
  conclusively be screened out
• An inherent problem - strategic plans do not
  include enough site or project-level detail to be
  sure about their effects (or lack of)
• Examples
• Precautionary approach means that we were unable
  to conclude no significant effect on the majority
  of N2000 sites in the South East

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Appropriate Assessment - Conclusions of report

• Focus is on avoidance and mitigation measures
  that can overcome any possible risks of adverse
  effect
• Measures to address a number of cross cutting
  themes (impacts that could affect many sites)
• Water resources (abstraction) Water quality
  (discharge)
• Recreational impacts Other urban impacts
• Air quality Climate change and coastal squeeze
• Some measures generic, others can be more site
  specific

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Appropriate Assessment - Conclusions of report

• The South East Plan AA will inform and assist LDD
  AAs
• It highlights locational sensitivities, and
  promotes avoidance and mitigation measures
• Recommends stronger policy on green
  infrastructure to mitigate potential recreational
  impacts
• It does not provide all the answers - more
  detailed assessment will only be possible at
  levels where more detail is available

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