Cabinet & Council Decisions
As a mineral planning authority, Hampshire County Council and its partners are required by Government to identify land so that 2.63 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of sand and gravel can be produced locally. However the Council thinks that only a level of 1.82 mtpa is justified by sales trends and the impact a higher level of provision would have and this is what the Plan provides for. However there is a risk additional sites will be imposed by Government.
Sites that have been identified in the Plan are determined by the geology of Hampshire and only 18% of the area contains sand and gravel. Constraints such as nearby homes, accessibility and environmental designations limit this resource even further. It is also important that local sources are extracted so that sand and gravel is not needlessly transported long distances.
The County Council and its partners have been preparing the Minerals Plan for some time, and this has included several rounds of consultation and the most recent consultation resulted in almost 14,000 representations.
The Cabinet has undertaken a tour of potential sites to see the situation for themeselves. Councillors Perry, Kendal, Hindson, Banks and Glen visited Daedalus, Chilling and Brownwich Farms, Hamble Airfield, Pickwell Farm, North of Portsmouth Road (a late proposal by land owner) in the morning of 30 May. In the afternoon the Councillors without Cllr Glen visited, Forest Lodge Farm, Downton, Ashley Manor Farm, Roeshot Hill, Purple and Blue Haze and Plumley Wood. They also took the opportunity to look at Cobley Wood, Midgham Farm and Bicton as these had been suggested by objectors to other sites as alternatives.
On the 9 June Councillors Thornber, Perry, Kendal, Hindson, Banks, Snaith, Kirk, Glen and Ellis visited Bunny Lane, Dunwood Nurseries (late site proposed by land owner), Michelmersh Brickworks, Mortimer Quarry in the morning. In the afternoon they visited Eversley Common Quarry, Frith End Quarry, Bordon/Whitehill Opportunity, Selborne Brickworks and Kingsley Quarry.
The areas were put to the County Council’s Cabinet at a meeting on 23 June. For further information please see the Cabinet Report and Decision, the Appendix (PDF, 3.5MB) and Map (PDF, 1.4MB).
The Hampshire Minerals Plan was then debated and approved at the Hampshire County Council meeting on 10 July. For more information, please see the Council Report and Decision.
These areas will also be placed before our partners Member's for further consideration.
In support of the draft Hampshire Minerals Plan there are a number of Supporting Documents which you may wish to view.