20
Local Authorities and Sustainable Peatland Management: Current Opportunities and Future Possibilities for Local Approaches
Area Statements may also be useful in providing evidence on priorities in terms of peatland action. Area Statements are created by NRW to help map key environmental themes and areas for priority action. Local planning authorities must have regard to Area Statements when creating Local Development Plans and these are a material consideration in any land use planning decision. Published information on Area Statements does not always refer to peat, but information on peatlands will feed into evidence gathering for these statements. Resilient ecological networks can help to deliver a range of ecosystem services: including carbon storage (and in some circumstances carbon sequestration), floodwater regulation, tourism and recreation, and physical and mental well-being. As outlined above, these are all ecosystem services that are provided by peatland habitats. It is notable that the significance of peatlands as a carbon store is specifically referred to in Future Wales as part of a network of carbon sites considered to be an important national natural resource. NRW has also produced a map of the carbon stocks provided by peatlands and a map of the CO2 emissions across the Wales peatland areas. Including peatland evidence in the ‘l ocal evidence ’ that contributes to applications for Developments of National Significance. There are two forms of development – Development of National Significance (DNS) and Local Development. Local Development refers to applications that are decided by local planning authorities (LPAs). Planning applications for DNS are decided on behalf of Welsh Government, by the Planning and Environment Directorate for Wales (PEDW). Applications for DNS involve a range of large infrastructure projects defined by certain thresholds, e.g., onshore windfarms that create more than 10MW. Future Wales, the national land use plan for Wales, sets out Welsh Government’s ambition for the development of infrastructure projects across Wales. The most significant form of DNS with respect to peatlands is onshore wind farm development. This is because many windfarm developments are located in the upland peatlands of Wales. Significantly, onshore wind energy is the only form of infrastructure for which Future Wales provides specific spatial locations to guide development. These are referred to as Pre-Assessed Areas for Wind Energy. There is a presumption in favour of large-scale wind energy development (including repowering) in these areas which can only be rebutted where there is evidence of unacceptable adverse impacts. There is an indicative list of factors to be considered in this regard, which includes reference to designated sites and protected habitat types. However, it is not an exhaustive list so unacceptable adverse impacts may also include more general impacts on the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems resilience, and the development of resilient ecological networks. This will be important in the context of peatlands given that not all peatlands sit within designated sites or are within the s7 lists. Local authorities have a duty to submit a Local Impact Report in relation to DNS in their area. PEDW has a duty to have regard to this Local Impact Report. Local Impact Reports include details of likely social, economic and environmental impacts of the proposed development at a local level. As outlined above, SPM can contribute to all aspects of wellbeing so, conversely, developing on peatlands may have negative impacts in all or any of these respects. The Local Impact Report can also include ideas for planning conditions
Made with FlippingBook HTML5