Version No:

1

OG Status:

Fully Open

Author Section:

HID C14C

Issue Date:

25 July 2008

Review Date:

31 December 2009

To:

All HID CI, Planning Authorities, DCLG, BERR, Welsh Assembly Government, Scottish Government

Purpose

This circular gives advice to HID CI Teams and Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) on the revised procedure for providing Land Use Planning advice around Large Scale Petroleum Storage Sites (LSPSS).

Background

1 The Buncefield explosion and fire in December 2005 caused significant damage to property offsite, and particularly to industrial premises close to the site boundary. Early in 2007, HSE produced Consultation Document CD211, seeking views on greater control of development around those sites similar to Buncefield, known as Large Scale Petroleum Storage Sites (LSPSS). The Consultation Document (CD) made particular reference to ways of strengthening development control procedures in the areas closest to the site perimeter.

2 The responses to the CD supported HSEs view that more cautions advice should be given. The rest of this circular explains the new arrangements for providing such advice.

3 LSPSS are defined as COMAH top and lower tier sites where petrol is stored in vertical, cylindrical, non-refrigerated, above ground storage tanks with side walls greater than 5 metres in height, and where the filling rate is greater than 100 cubic metres/hour (unless enclosed overflow systems are provided to take the material to a safe place). A full definition is given in the Initial Report of the Buncefield Standards Task Group

4 These procedures ONLY apply to new developments around LSPSS. For all other onshore chemical hazardous installations with a Consultation Distance, the normal PADHI (Planning Advice for Developments at Hazardous Installations) process remains in use. Information about PADHI can be found in PADHI HSEs land use planning methodology [188KB].

New arrangements

5 PADHI categorises developments into one of four sensitivity levels (SL1, SL2, SL3, SL4) and uses a table to provide advice on such developments in the Inner, Middle and Outer zones around the Hazardous Installation. These LUP Zones are produced by HSE.

6 The arrangements around LSPSS introduce both a new Development Proximity Zone (DPZ) and a new sensitivity level zero (SL0). For these sites only, the PADHI decision table is extended to take account of the new zone and sensitivity level. The modified table is shown below:

Sensitivity Level	Development in DPZ	Development in Inner Zone	Development in Middle Zone	Development in Outer Zone
0	DAA	DAA	DAA	DAA
1	AA	DAA	DAA	DAA
2	AA	AA	DAA	DAA
3	AA	AA	AA	DAA
4	AA	AA	AA	AA

Key: DAA = HSE does not advise against the development. AA = HSE advises against the development

The development proximity zone

7 The Development Proximity Zone (DPZ) is a new LUP consultation zone, being the zone closest to the boundary of the Hazardous Installation i.e. it lies within the Inner Zone. Within the DPZ, only developments which are not normally occupied will attract Dont Advise Against (DAA) advice from HSE.

8 The DPZ will extend to 150m from the boundary of the relevant storage tank bunds within the LSPSS. It is therefore possible that the DPZ may lie entirely within the site perimeter, or extend to a distance less than but not exceeding 150m from the site boundary.

9 The size of the four LUP zones are:

DPZ	150m from tank bund
Inner Zone	250m from tank bund
Middle Zone	300m from tank bund
Outer Zone	400m from tank bund

This is illustrated in the diagram below.

Not normally occupied developments

10 Sensitivity Level Zero (SL0) developments are those that are not normally occupied. HSE have defined the type of developments that are considered to be SL0, and hence would not be advised against in the DPZ. The definitions tabulated below are those HSE will use when providing advice on developments within the DPZ.

Development type 0: Not normally occupied.

Reference	Examples	Details	Justification
DT0.1 Parking Areas. (limited to 500 cars)     Airport long stay parking served by a shuttle bus     Exclude multi-storey car parks these are SL 1	Car parks, Truck parks, lock up garages             Exclude normal park and ride schemes; under PADHI they are SL2	No associated structures or recreational areas. Truck drivers not allowed to sleep in cabs. Lock up garages not to be used for maintenance work.         Mainly used by holiday makers where the average stay is 7 14 days. No associated occupied building in the DPZ	To protect individuals and control the number of people in the DPZ at any time any individual must be present for less than 2 hrs in any 24 hr period.         Large multi-storey car parks may be a source of confinement in event of a flammable cloud igniting, and may have > 50 people present at busy times.
DT0.2 Storage facilities	Structures that are not normally occupied and used for storage. Includes outdoor storage, farm buildings. NOT TO BE USED BY PUBLIC.	Use of structures or storage area must meet occupancy criterion.	No more than 3 workers to be present at any one time. Total time people present not to exceed 2 hours in any 24 hour period.
DT0.3 minor transport links       Exclude railways, major roads, trams, and any road used by public buses	Access roads to car parks, storage areas	Single carriageway roads, light traffic	Associated with other development. Small numbers exposed for short periods (travel time included in occupancy criterion) Transient population could be relatively large for busy lines, also source of ignition.

Process for generating advice on planning applications

11 Four-zone maps for all the LSPSS in the UK will be made available to LPAs through the Consultation Zone Library.

12 For planning applications which do not encroach into the DPZ but are in the Inner, Middle and Outer Zones, LPAs will use PADHI to obtain HSEs advice. This is unchanged from the current arrangements.

13 For any planning application within the DPZ, the LPA should first check the development using the training version of PADHI, to ensure it would not receive an Advise Against response were it in the Inner Zone. If PADHI shows Advise Against (i.e., SL2, SL3 and SL4 developments), the development is certainly not compatible with a location within the DPZ. HSEs formal advice for the development is therefore Advise Against, and the application need not be submitted to HSE for formal advice. The development should be entered in the live version of PADHI, and an Advise Against outcome generated.

14 For any planning applications within the DPZ which are SL0 or SL1 (and hence not Advised Against by PADHI), the LPA will submit the application to HSE for formal advice. This will include applications where any part of the development site falls within the DPZ. Consultations should be sent to:

Health and Safety Executive
Risk Assessment and Process Integrity Unit
HID CI5
Redgrave Court 2.2
Merton Road
Bootle L20 7HS

15 When HSE receive a planning application for a development within the DPZ, it will check whether all parts of the proposed development within the DPZ comply with the definitions of Not Normally Occupied given above.

16 Providing the development complies with the definition of SL0, it will receive a Dont Advise Against (DAA) response, otherwise HSE will advise against the granting of planning permission. Having determined what advice is appropriate for the proposed development, HSE will write to the LPA giving that advice.

17 The process is shown diagrammatically below.

Rules that HSE will use for straddling developments and extensions to existing developments

18 For SL1 developments that straddle the IZ/DPZ boundary, ALL parts of the development site within the DPZ need to comply with the definitions of Not Normally Occupied. There is no equivalent to the 10% rule that exists within PADHI. Examples of Not Normally Occupied would be landscaping, employee car parking, and buildings that are not normally occupied. The presence of anything classed as SL1 within the DPZ will result in an Advise Against response.

19 Where a planning application relates to an extension to an existing development, HSE will advise against the proposal unless all of the extension complies with the definitions of SL0 given above. However, provided that the extension is SL0, extensions to existing developments that themselves are SL1 or SL2 will not be advised against.

Developments within major hazards installations

20 HSEs advice on occupied buildings within the DPZ will be different when the proposed development is within the site boundary of the Major Hazard Installation itself. Whilst planning permission for large occupied buildings within the DPZ would be advised against, there may be cases where SL1 developments are appropriate examples are plant control rooms, which could be specially constructed to withstand the effects of fire or explosion. In such cases, HSEs LUP advice will be Dont Advise Against, and HSE will use their powers as the COMAH Competent Authority to ensure the risks to the occupants of the proposed building are properly controlled. This takes account of the need for the Operator of the COMAH installation to do an Occupied Buildings Risk Assessment, demonstrating the suitability of the building for its proposed location.

Procedure if the planning authority is minded to grant planning permission against HSEs advice

21 LPAs may occasionally be minded to grant planning permission contrary to HSEs advice on particular developments, based on balancing the local benefits of the development against the risks of building it in proximity to a Hazardous Installation.

22 In most cases, HSE will not pursue the matter further as long as it is satisfied that LPA understands the reason for our advice. This reflects HSEs existing position, as stated in para A6 of CLG 04/2000 and the equivalent SG, WAG documents.

23 Procedures in England and Wales to request that a case is Called In for determination by a higher authority are covered in a semi-permanent circular SPC/TECH/GEN/22. In England the request would be considered by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whilst in Wales it is The Welsh Assembly Government that would consider the request.

24 In Scotland, where a planning authority wishes to grant planning permission contrary to HSEs advice, the application must first be notified to the Scottish Ministers. Before notifying an application in such circumstances, the planning authority should seek HSEs views on whether the application should be called-in by Ministers.

25 Where LPAs are minded to grant planning permission against HSEs advice for a development in the DPZ, the cases will be individually considered by HID CI4, in consultation with HID CI5 and Policy Group. Where the development is SL2, 3 or 4, the case for call in is strong, whilst SL1 developments in the DPZ will be considered on their merits.

Further information

For further information contact HID CI4C, 5.S2 Redgrave Court, Merton Road, Bootle, L20 7HS. Tel 0151 951 3721

ANNEX 1 - Requirement to consult HSE under the Town & Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995

In England LPAs are required to consult HSE for advice on planning applications within the Consultation Distance of Hazardous Installations by Article 10 of the Town & Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995 (SI 1995/419), as amended by the Planning (Control of Major - Accident Hazards) Regulations 1999 (SI 1999/981). Article 10 specifies the scale of development above which the LPA must consult HSE.

Sensitivity Level Zero developments may be smaller in scale than those covered in Article 10 Table, Para (d)(i) to (d)(iv), although there is also a requirement for LPAs to consult HSE where a development is otherwise likely to result in a material increase in the number of persons working within or visiting the notified area. The amendment in SI 1999/981 added the requirement to consult HSE on a Development including transport links, locations frequented by the public and residential areas in the vicinity of existing establishments, where the siting or development is such as to increase the risk or consequences of a major incident.

Due to the relatively high risks to persons within the DPZ, HSE would wish to be consulted on any developments involving the presence of people within the DPZ, even if the development is smaller in scale than those defined in Article 10 Table, Para (d)(i) to (d)(iv). However, where the planning application relates to a short-term maintenance or overhaul activity, HSE need not be consulted.

Scottish Legislation

In Scotland, the scale of development which needs consultation with HSE is defined in article 15(10(f) and (p) of the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) (Scotland) Order 1992 (SI 224(S 18) as amended. Amendments in the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) (Scotland) Amendment (No.2) Order 1994 (SI 1994/3293) and the Planning (Control of Major Accident Hazards) (Scotland) Regulations (SI 2000/179) relate to consultation with HSE.