Development control is responsible for assessing the effects of all new development on the existing built environment and landscape as well as assessing the suitability of sites for particular types of use.
If you are making a planning application you may be asked to voluntary provide additional information to enable particular issues to be properly assessed. These could include:
- The effect of development on wildlife
- Whether a site is contaminated
- Assess noise levels - if these are high they could make development for housing unacceptable
When is a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment required?
A detailed Environmental Impact Assessment is required for particular types of use and larger scale development. This is set out in Government Legislation - 'The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations 1999 - 2000', 'The Regulations - (S.I. 293/1999 2867/2000).
An Environmental Impact Assessment ensures that all the relevant impacts of a proposed development are measured, considered and taken account of in the decision on the development proposals.
This is a simplified description of the process for handling environmental statements:
- Deciding whether an Environmental Impact Assessment is needed, this is the screening process and is carried out by the council.
- Determining the issues that need to be covered by the environmental statement, this is the scoping process, decided by council, along with advice from specialist bodies or organisations like the Environment Agency or English Nature.
- Information collection, assessment and measures to deal with adverse effects detected. This is usually produced for the applicant by independent consultants.
- Environmental statement - describes the result of the assessment and the proposed action and when submitted to the council this is a published document
- assessing the environmental statement and planning application This is done by planning officers in consultation with specialist bodies or organisations as above.
- The application is decided, usually with conditions attached relating to measures to minimise damaging effects or impact.
- The scheme is implemented and monitored. The council monitors the scheme to make sure that actions identified in the environmental statement and required by planning conditions are complied with.