COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEASSOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

south dublin county council crest

MEETING OF DEVELOPMENT PLAN MEETING

Tuesday, May 04, 2010

HEADED ITEM NO 8.

0.3.22 Environmental Policy Context

 

To amend Section 0.3.22 to read as follows (additional text in bold, deleted text struck through):

0.3.22 Environmental Policy Context   Strategic Environmental Assessment  

A Strategic Environmental Assessment which is a formal, systematic evaluation of the likely significant environmental impacts of a proposed plan or programme will be prepared for the County Development Plan in accordance with the Planning and Development (Strategic Environmental Assessment) Regulations 2004 (SI No. 436 of 2004).

 

The environmental issues which are considered by the SEA are as follows:

 

•              Biodiversity (flora, fauna);

 

•              Landscapes/Geology;

 

•              Agriculture and Forestry;

 

•              Population;

 

•              Water Quality;

 

•              Air Quality;

 

•              Waste Management;

 

•              Cultural and Material assets; and

 

•              Climate.

 

The evaluation of the likely environmental consequences of a range of alternative strategies for accommodating future development in the South Dublin County area is part of the SEA process.

There are two EU Directives that require the assessment of the Development Plan in terms of its impact on the environment. These are the SEA Directive and the Habitats Directive.

 

Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is a formal process, involving the systematic evaluation of the likely significant environmental effects of implementing  a plan or programme before a decision has been made to adopt it.  The assessment is undertaken in accordance with the EU SEA Directive (Directive 2001/42/EC ) and the Planning and Development (Strategic Environmental Assessment) Regulations 2004. SEA is a valuable tool that will influence decision-making at each stage in the County Development Plan Review process, will improve the overall environmental sustainability of the new Plan and will raise awareness of the potential environmental consequences of its implementation so that these consequences may be mitigated or avoided altogether. It also gives the public and other interested parties an opportunity to comment and to be kept informed.

 

 

The ‘Habitats’ Directive (Directive 92/43/EEC) requires that an "appropriate assessment" be undertaken for any plan or project that is likely to have an impact on a Natura 2000 site i.e. a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) or a Special Protection Area for Birds (SPA). There are two SACs located in the Dublin Mountains area of South Dublin County: Glenasmole Valley and that part of the Wicklow Mountains SAC that extends across the border into South Dublin County.  There are currently no SPAs designated for the County. In effect, the Directive requires South Dublin County Council to undertake an appropriate assessment of the ecological implications of the Development Plan proposed on Natura 2000 sites both within or outside the County.

 

A short account of the two assessment processes, their key findings and of how they were integrated into the Plan preparation are outlined in Appendix --.

 

 

 

Appendix –

 

 

Strategic Environmental Assessment

A Strategic Environmental Assessment which is a formal, systematic evaluation of the likely significant environmental impacts of a proposed plan or programme is being undertaken in parallel with the production of the Draft County Development Plan. The assessment is undertaken in accordance with the SEA Directive (Directive 2001/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of Ministers, of 27 June 2001, on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment) as transposed into Irish Law through the Planning and Development (Strategic Environmental Assessment) Regulations 2004 (SI No. 436 of 2004).

 

The intention of the SEA process is to provide a clear understanding of the likely environmental consequences of decisions regarding the future accommodation of growth in South Dublin County Council. This ‘assessment’ process is a key mechanism in promoting sustainable development, in raising awareness of significant environmental issues in the South Dublin County Council area and in ensuring that such issues are properly addressed within the capacity of the planning system. The results of the SEA are recorded in the Environmental Report which should be read in conjunction with the South Dublin County Development Plan.

 

 

The aim of the Environmental Report is to identify specifically:

•          The current state of the environment and the existing environmental issues in the South Dublin area

•          The likely significant effects on the environment of the Plan’s policies and objectives

•          How any negative impact on the environment can be reduced or prevented and

•          How to monitor environmental impacts over the lifetime of the Development Plan

 

The environmental receptors which are examined in the Environmental Report are as follows:

 

The key environmental issues in the South Dublin County area have been identified as:

 

The following Gaps in the Baseline environmental information have been identified in the report

 

The evaluation of the likely environmental consequences of a range of alternative strategies for accommodating future development in the South Dublin area is part of the SEA process. The scenarios as outlined below provide alternative visions of how the future development of South Dublin might occur.

 

Scenario 1 Environmental / Preservation Approach

Scenario 2 Sustainable/Selective Concentration

Scenario 3 Weak Planning/Market-led Growth

Scenario 4 Combination of Reactionary Planning and Market-led Approach

 

Following evaluation, the Sustainable/Selective Concentration scenario was identified as the best means of continuing to accommodate and control growth in the South Dublin County Council area while providing for environmental protection and enhancement. The  County Development Plan that has emerged from the Plan preparation process has a close correlation to this scenario.

 

The assessment of the policies and objectives of the County Development Plan in the Environmental Report has identified a range of measures that require mitigation to prevent, reduce and, as fully as possible, offset any significant adverse impacts on the environment of implementing the Development Plan. The principal mitigation measures are in the areas of Biodiversity, Water Protection, Flooding and Landscape.

 

The SEA Directive requires that the significant environmental effects of the implementation of plans and programmes are monitored. The Environmental Report puts forward proposals for monitoring the Development Plan which are adopted alongside the Plan. Monitoring enables, at an early stage, the identification of unforeseen adverse effects and the undertaking of appropriate remedial action. In addition to this, monitoring can also play an important role in assessing whether the Development Plan is achieving its environmental objectives and targets - measures which the Development Plan can help work towards - whether these need to be re-examined and whether the proposed mitigation measures are being implemented.

 

A preliminary monitoring report on the effects of implementing the Development Plan will be prepared within two years of the making of the plan. The Council is responsible for the collation of existing relevant monitored data, the preparation of a monitoring report, the publication of this report and, if necessary, the carrying out of corrective action.

 

Appropriate Assessment

 

Introduction

Article 6(3) the ‘Habitats’ Directive 92/43/EEC requires that an "appropriate assessment" be undertaken for any plan or project that is likely to have an impact on a Natura 2000 site i.e. a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) or a Special Protection Area for Birds (SPA). 

 

In effect, Article 6 (3) requires a robust and thorough application by all consent authorities, including planning authorities, of the requirement to undertake an appropriate assessment of the ecological implications of any plan or project, whether within or outside of a designated site, which may impact upon its stated conservation objectives.  The impacts assessed must also include the cumulative impacts of approving the plan, considered with any current or proposed activities impacting on the site.   

 

The procedure is a two-step process, involving an initial screening of the plan or project to determine the likelihood of potential impacts arising from the plan and then when necessary, a second step involving a process of appropriate assessment where a potential impact has been determined during the screening process which cannot be avoided or mitigated against.  This second stage essentially requires an expert ecological assessment of the potential impacts of the plan on the listed conservation objectives of the protected site.

 

There are two SACs located in the Dublin Mountains area of South Dublin County: Glenasmole Valley (Site Code 1209) and that part of the Wicklow Mountains SAC (Site Code 2122) that extends across the border into South Dublin County.  There are currently no SPAs designated for the County.

 

Screening of the draft County Development Plan

The draft Development Plan was subjected to an initial screening process with the objective of determining if any of its policies or objectives were likely to have a significant effect, alone, or in combination with other plans, on a protected Natura 2000 site occurring either within, adjacent to, or downstream of the County

 

A number of draft Development Plan policies and objectives relate to the protection of Natura 2000 sites and to the area of the uplands where the two SACs are located (see LHA 1, LHA 2, LHA 6, and LHA 7).  These policies, particularly in combination with one another, offer considerable protection to this area of the County and hence, to the two Natura 2000 sites.

 

The results of the appropriate assessment screening process concluded that there were no projects in the draft plan that would give rise to significant adverse direct, indirect, or secondary impacts on the integrity of any Natura 2000 sites within the area of the plan.

 

Possible ‘in combination’ impacts were also investigated by assessing other current or likely plans or projects for this area of the Dublin Mountains which could have a cumulative impact on the two SACs located there.  With the range of policies applying to the area as listed above and following the strengthening of Policy H33 in relation to the provision of housing in the uplands area, no impacts were deemed likely to result from the cumulative effect of the draft Development Plan and other plans or projects. 

 

Finally, the Habitats Directive requires that the screening process must also consider impacts that are likely to arise on Natura 2000 sites in the proximity of the County by virtue of any plan or project implemented within the County itself.  This is also taken to include potential downstream effects of the plan.  This therefore required an assessment of potential impacts on SACs and SPAs located in adjacent County Wicklow (Wicklow Mountains SAC and Poulaphouca Reservoir SPA) and also those Natura 2000 sites located downstream of South Dublin County in Dublin Bay (North Dublin Bay SAC, South Dublin Bay SAC, North Bull Island SPA, and South Dublin Bay and River Tolka Estuary SPA).

 

The screening process concluded that there were no projects in the draft County Development Plan, either individually or in combination with other plans or projects, which would give rise to significant adverse direct, indirect, or secondary impacts on the integrity of the two Natura 2000 sites located in County Wicklow.

 

In relation to the assessment of downstream effects, poor water quality originating within South Dublin County and entering Dublin Bay, in conjunction with the inputs from the three other Dublin Local Authorities of Fingal, Dublin City, and Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, is deemed to be the main potential threat to the conservation objectives of the Dublin Bay Natura 2000 sites.  The Dublin City water treatment facility is subject to separate operational consent and licensing procedures and it is required to be compliant with all applicable environmental Regulations and Directives, including the Water Framework and Habitats Directive. 

 

The draft South Dublin County Development Plan contains a number of objectives and policies  relating to water quality, waste water treatment, and river and stream management (e.g. WD 1, WD 2, WD 5, LH 18), all of which aim to eliminate or reduce the potential for deterioration of water quality.  Many of these policies involve the co-operation of adjoining Counties in a broader, strategic approach to dealing with water quality issues.  These policies will, together, facilitate monitoring of changes in water quality and aquatic habitats, and assist in the preparation of landscape improvement schemes for existing rivers and streams.  With the implementation of these and other related policies and mitigation measures, any current downstream impact on the Dublin Bay Natura 2000 sites will continue to diminish and any future plans will be rigorously assessed to ensure that there will be no additional negative impacts on water quality leaving the County.

 

Conclusions

The draft County Development Plan was subjected to screening for Appropriate Assessment as required under Article 6 (3) of the Habitats Directive.  The Plan has generally been formulated to ensure that uses, developments, and effects arising from permissions based upon the Plan (either individually or in combination with other plans or projects) shall not give rise to significant adverse impacts on the integrity of any Natura 2000 sites either within, adjacent to, or downstream of the County.

 

The appropriate assessment procedure for the draft County Development Plan was therefore concluded at the screening stage and a detailed Stage 2 assessment was not required.

  

Reason

In response to the EPA’s assertion that there is no reference in the plan to the findings of the SEA or the AA screening process it is recommended that an expanded section in relation to these aspects be included in the Development Plan.

 

Recommendation

That the amendment be adopted.