Agenda, decisions and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillor Chamdal. Councillor Chapman was present as his substitute.

None.

None.

It was confirmed that all items were marked as Part I and would be heard in public.

Plans and Specifications submission under Schedule 17 of the High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands) Act 2017 for earthworks to create 4 no. ponds, associated earthworks and hibernacula

Recommendation: Approval

RESOLVED:  That the application be approved.

Plans and Specifications submission under Schedule 17 of the High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands) Act 2017 for earthworks to create 4 no. Ponds, associated earthworks and hibernacula

Officers introduced the report, confirming that this was the first of a number of applications under Schedule 17 of the High Speed Rail Act 2017, which related to earthworks to create four ponds, associated earthworks and hibernacula on farmland north of the Shering Plough Research Facility, north of the Chiltern Line, west of Breakspear Road.

Members were informed that the scope to consider matters related to the application were limited by the High Speed Rail Act, and any potential reasons for refusal or the imposition of conditions were limited to the design and external appearance of the works and whether or not they could be reasonably modified to preserve the local environment or local amenity, to preserve or reduce prejudicial effects on road safety or the free flow of traffic in the local area, or to preserve a site of archaeological or historic interest or nature conservation value.

The plans submitted by HS2 Ltd were highlighted, which showed two ponds of 300sqm and two ponds of 150sqm. The ponds were confirmed to form part of the HS2 approval, approved as part of Parliament. Though the number of ponds required had been increased to four due to environmental reasons, this fit within the requirements of the Act as the additional ponds did not introduce any more significant local effects. The application in front of Members was solely concerned with the earthworks required to create the four ponds.

A statutory consultation process was carried out, of which the only statutory consultee was Natural England, who were required to be consulted as the ponds would be home to great-crested newts, which are a European protected species. There was no statutory requirement to consult the public, though the public were able to submit comments online, which had resulted in one comment being received from the Harefield Tenants and Residents Association.

Natural England had not submitted any objections, nor sought any modifications to the scheme. Regarding traffic and transport, there were concerns over the access to the site for construction vehicles, located off Breakspear Road. A traffic officer had responded and recommended a condition, which had been set out in the report as 1. Non Standard Condition.

The addendum was highlighted, which set out the proposal to remove the 1. Non Standard Condition as set out in the report, and replace it with an added informative. This followed discussions held after the receipt of representations from HS2 Ltd regarding their valid concerns over the imposition of a condition. It was therefore considered appropriate that the Council seek the necessary solutions through the Code of Construction Practice which is part of the Environmental Minimum Requirements, as opposed to through a condition of the approval.

It was confirmed that the decision to replace the condition with an informative was made following legal advice from the Borough Solicitor who  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.