Northumberland County Council is the mineral planning authority
and waste planning authority for the area of Northumberland outside
of the Northumberland National Park. This means Northumberland
County Council is responsible for preparing planning policies to
guide future developments for minerals extraction (such as coal,
sand and gravel, hard rock, sandstone, clay and peat) and waste
management and the policies to determine planning applications
for these developments.
This page provides information on the current planning policies
for minerals and waste and the new policies that are being
developed through the Local Development Framework.
Current minerals and waste planning policies
The current minerals and waste planning policies for
Northumberland are the 'saved' policies in the Minerals Local Plan
(adopted in March 2000) and the Waste Local Plan (adopted in
December 2001). Further information on these documents can be
viewed by clicking on the links below:
Development of new minerals and waste policies and the Local
Development Framework
The current planning policies for minerals and
waste will be reviewed and updated through documents prepared as
part of the Local Development Framework.
The Core Strategy Development Plan Document will
contain the Council's strategic planning
policies with regards to developments for the extraction of
minerals and facilities for the management of waste in
Northumberland. These policies will be important to guide
decisions on planning applications for these types of development.
The Core Strategy can also allocate strategic sites for minerals
extraction and the management of waste. It is proposed that the
Delivery Development Plan Document will
include smaller scale site allocations for minerals extraction and
waste facilties.
Further information on the Local Development Framework and the
Core Strategy and Delivery Development Plan Documents can be viewed
by clicking on the links below:
Details of the background work and studies to inform the
preparation of the minerals and waste policies in the Local
Development Framework are shown below.
Work to inform the minerals and waste policies in the Local
Development Framework
Background research and studies are important part of informing
the production of the Local Development Framework and the future
minerals and waste planning policies.
Work to specifically inform the future minerals and waste
policies includes:
- Technical Papers - These will provide a
summary of the baseline information and inform the scope of the
minerals and waste planning issues that will need to be addressed
in the Local Development Framework
- Environmental constraints mapping study - This
study will map the key environmental constraints within the mineral
resource areas in order to understand the factors that could
influence the future location of minerals extraction.
- Landscape sensitivity study - This study
will evaluate the sensitivity of the landscape in Northumberland
to minerals extraction.
- 'Call' for strategic minerals and waste sites
- The Council invited suggestions for new
strategic mineral extraction and waste management sites in
Northumberland in order to identify potential future sites for
minerals extraction and waste management. A list of the minerals
and waste sites that have been submitted can be viewed by
clicking here.
- Draft approach to defining Mineral Safeguarding Areas
- This document set out how the Council intends to
approach the task of defining Mineral Safeguarding Areas. Further
information on 'Draft approach to defining minerals safeguarding
areas' can be viewed by clicking here.
Further information on the evidence base work for the Local
Development Framework can be viewed by clicking here.
National Planning Policy on Minerals Extraction and Waste
Management
Information on national minerals and waste planning policy
can be found on the
Communities and Local Government website, which can be viewed
by clicking
here.
North East Region Aggregates Working Party
The North East Region Aggregates
Working Party collects information on the production and reserves
of aggregate minerals from Northumberland and the North East
Region. The North East Region Aggregates Working Party has members
from the Mineral Planning Authorities in the North East
Region, central government, the North East Regional Planning
Body and the aggregates industry.
Further information on the North
East Region Aggregates Working Party can be viewed by clicking
here.
Contact for further information
For further information on the minerals and waste planning
policy in Northumberland, please contact:
Links to related webpages
