October 2024 Minutes - EOM
BISHOP NORTON & ATTERBY PARISH COUNCIL
EXTRAORDINARY PARISH COUNCIL MEETING
Record of the Extraordinary Meeting held on Thursday 17th October 2024 at 6.30pm in the Church.
PRESENT: Councillors: Cllr Suggit [Chair,] Cllr Dean, Cllr Thody, Cllr Widdop and Mrs J Moore - Clerk.
4 members of the public were also in attendance: Mr and Mrs C Lee, Mr and Mrs N Flear
1. Apologies for Absence: Cllr Freeman, Cllr Guy, Cllr Townsend; Cllr Bunney -County and District
2. Issue. Odour Management Plan for Lincolnshire County Council Planning Application 147004 - Aenerobic Digestate Plant at Barff Lane, Glentham.
3. The Chairman introduced everyone and started the Meeting.
Chair – On 9 October 2024, the Parish Council was invited by Lincolnshire County Council Planning Support to comment on the Odour Management Plan, Lighting details and the Lighting layout plan for the Barff Lane facility. A response has been requested by 23 October 2024. After electronic circulation to Parish Councillors and residents of locations tabled in the Odour Management Plan, soundings were that an Extraordinary Meeting was warranted in order to submit concerns, not least because observations raised previously [May 2022] did not appear to have been addressed. Members of the public in attendance are some of the parishioners who fall into the High Sensitivity to Odour category tabled at in the Odour Plan. No observations were presented on Lighting issues; these will not be discussed. To assist memories, the matter actually cropped up about 4 years ago, but did not fall within our Parish. We picked it up some 2 years ago and duly submitted comments on 4 issues, reiterated here:
a. Construction Traffic.
Recommendation: If Planning Consent is afforded, an enforced stipulation must exclude all construction traffic transit through Bishop Norton with Atterby Parish 30mph limited residential zone and thereafter, all HGV maintenance traffic also, in perpetuity.
b. Digestate Throughput.
Recommendation: If Planning Consent is afforded, an enforced stipulation must exclude all In and Out waste traffic transit through Bishop Norton with Atterby Parish 30mph limited residential zone and in perpetuity.
c. Carr Lane/Stonepit Lane.
Recommendation: If Planning Consent is afforded, a reasonable stipulation must be for adequate hard standing passing points to be established, especially in the likely bottleneck zone, of sufficient size to take a “pig run” vehicle and trailer.
d. Section 106 Funding.
Recommendations: If Planning Consent is afforded, Section 106 provisions will fund and maintain wind measuring and air quality monitoring systems situate within the village, for public health reassurance and contingency considerations. If, after a period of five years from the facility achieving a full operating capacity, the Parish Council reports that resident wellbeing has not been adversely affected, the need for any continued provision of the monitoring system will be reviewed by the Parish Council and the County and District Ward councillors at that time.
4. At the time, Cllr Bunney provided some feedback on County and District perspectives. Our District Councillor at the time, Mike Summer, now retired, also provided comment. We have had no communication with our new Councillor, Cllr A Duguid. We understand there has been no opposition from Glentham previously. We raised issues mainly as for about twenty percent of the year we could expect to be downwind of the installation and within a 2 Km zone. White House Farm, The Spinney and Church could be affected, indeed so could most of the Village. I have included the affected residents in the meeting to aid our return.
5. Cllrs Freeman and Townsend have submitted comments previously. A parishioner unable to come tonight has drawn attention to most of the Village being within the 2Km high odour footprint. Another Parishioner commented that he just hoped the plan would work.
6. The Chair asked for the Parish Councillors’ views:
a. Cllr Widdop – Wind factors was a concern. The prevailing wind could come at us about up to 30% of the time. I would like to assume that there is sufficient evidence to ensure correct odour management. Do we know if all the lagoons will be lidded? Have all feedstock types been confirmed as those listed?
b. Chair – I have still not ascertained if the lagoons will be lidded; will check with Cllr Bunney. Will ask about feedstocks.
c. Cllr T – I think this is how we mitigate smells. Doesn’t really state how they are going to prevent smells. I can’t hand on heart say I have smelt smells from digestate process. Any increased traffic through the Village, especially that taking digestate waste for field disposal, would not be welcome. I also feel that a ‘sniff test’ is not sufficient, I am sure there must be some tech machinery to provide a more accurate test and data.
d. Cllr D – I agree with all the points said. I do definitely think the increase in traffic will be an issue.
e. The Chairman thanked Councillors for their initial views and next invited the Parishioners for theirs.
f. Mr Lee. Monitoring – what they are proposing is not good enough given the harmful gasses. The risks that pose in relation to respiratory and other health issues.
‘Sniff testing’ is not going to cut it. If gasses are escaping and especially with any dangerous ones, accurate data is needed.
Transport – Majority of traffic will come down Norton Lane and Glentham Road. We know that transporting can also give off terribly odours, such as the Pig Farm manure on Carr Lane.
Recommendation of material off the A631, Waddingham Road and turn left onto the site, at the very least to control the transport issues.
g. Mr Flear. Traditionally on a Friday the farmers spread and turn fans off. Roads are already in disrepair around us, tractors don’t pay road tax. They do a lot of damage but don’t contribute to the upkeep costs.
h. Cllr Dean – The roads are also very dangerous and muddy at present.
i. The Chair – If our previous reasonable requests had been addressed, we would not be needing to hold this meeting. Everything is connected to a variety of different things. The process produces gas, this can smell, which the burn off should sort. They have enhanced the chimneys to aid this. However, we know from Government actions elsewhere that Odour Management Plans can fail. The fact that the Environment Agency has prosecuted failings gives heart, but we also know that identifying culpability and properly qualifying and quantifying odours is problematic. This means we need to have a system that keeps parishioners safe, leads to timely corrective action and establishes a valid audit trail of reporting, resilience advice and measurements. Reliance on a ‘Sniff test’ is problematic; it may offer something for chemical smells, but not biological ones [Government Doctrine lists bio hazard concerns] and we have vulnerable residents with breathing issues. If the smell is Ammonia centric – devices can be purchased and possible funding may be obtained. We need advice from Public Health at WLDC, LCC and the resilience team as well on suitable devices. We would need a means of an audit trail, ideally logged to e-mail notifications, not just phone calls. It should be noted that some smells may come from alternative sites.
We need to be able to report it in good time and have evidence, especially if it falls on a Friday, when no one could come out over a weekend. Additionally, we need to log the wind direction, most modern phone weather apps can show that. I think any reporting system geared to going and have a look at the front gate to see emergency contacts doesn’t add up. Emergency contact details should be given to WLDC, LCC and in turn we can inform parishioners through the Triangle who to contact, should the need arise. If a smell complaint is made, the notifier should be visited within 2 hours, whoever has made the complaint should also contact the clerk to maintain an audit trail. There is a similar plant in North East which has had historic odour problems, we could contact the Parish there to as what steps they took.
j. Parishioner Mrs Flear agreed that the ‘sniff test’ could have accuracy and audit deficiencies. The availability of chemical measuring devices could reassure residents.
k. The Chair asked if he should submit comments on the Odour plan: the short notice furnished; the difficulty in identifying details on the plan; the lidding of lagoons; concerns over sniff testing and the probability that the Parish Council would source Ammonia and NOx measuring devices if necessary to reassure residents. This was unanimously agreed. He would check with Cllr Bunney, frame a draft reply and give Cllrs an opportunity for comment before submission.
l. Mr Lee raised a final observation, namely that the junction of Norton Lane and Glentham Road was prone to flooding in wet weather and any digestate tankers using the route would not improve this.
The Chair brought the Meeting to a close at 7.20pm.