Spodden Valley update - one year on

One year on: update on the progress of the planning application for the development of the former TBA Site

Rochdale MBC Planning and Regulation Services have had a number of enquiries regarding progress on the work being undertaken by consultants advising the Council on the land contamination issues relating to the site.

Background
On receiving the planning application in December 2004, the Council sought expressions of interest from appropriate consultants to assist them review the information and proposals relating to land contamination, and related health concerns arising from the application.

In February 2005, Atkins Global were selected to review both the information submitted by the applicant and to assess what further information is needed to decide if the proposals can be carried out safely.  The consultants advised that the work was best split into two distinct reports; one for asbestos issues and one for other contaminants. The work on these reports began in April 2005.

Both reports will advise on what further investigation work is required and set out the issues that any remediation scheme must address. The asbestos report will also give comment on sampling accuracy and techniques employed by the applicants and what further work needs to be undertaken. The consultants have had access to all the information supplied by the applicant and held by the Council and they have obtained information independently from local people.

Ken Smith, Head of Planning and Regulation Services said:

“It had been anticipated we would have had the report by now, but the consultants undertook some further work, which led to some delay.  Additionally, they have advised that they consider their conclusions regarding the asbestos contamination issue should be reviewed by specialists, The Institute of Occupational Medicine, before the final report is sent out to us.  We are expecting this to be completed by late December or January.”

When the report is received the service will notify all interested parties as soon as officers have had time to assess the work, to ensure that the consultants have fulfilled the Council's brief   i.e. that the report covers the issues they were to address.

Ken Smith added.

“It is not envisaged that the report will provide all the answers.  It will hopefully lead us into the next stage of the planning process – to advise the applicant companies what further investigation work they need to do, and what further information we require regarding the contamination of the site and its remediation, in order for the application to be progressed. 

This will be in addition to other matters not relating to contamination, which have already been raised with the applicants, which require further information and/or amendments to the submitted application.”

When the service has received all further information the application will be re-publicised.

It is likely that following receipt of further information from the applicants relating to contamination, the service would be looking for its consultants to assess this.

Ken Smith concluded:

“I would like to emphasise that only when (or if) we are fully satisfied that all contamination issues have been properly and satisfactorily addressed, and that the proposals are acceptable in planning terms, would we be going to the Planning Sub-Committee with a recommendation to grant permission.  We anticipate this will not be for quite a while.”

Response from Save Spodden Valley campaign:
SSV co-ordinator Jason Addy welcomed the Council’s update on the efforts being made to investigate the serious contamination issues of the Spodden Valley.

“I met with Atkins Global in late October to discuss the history of the former TBA site based on the research done by the campaign and all the contributions made by local people and former workers. Information from the many testimonies of conditions in the factory and the amount of dust and waste produced were presented to the independent consultants. Over 100 pages of T&N documents have been handed over together with historic photographs of the site and a map on its underground mine workings.

“Over the past year a lot of information has been gathered.

Thank you to all those who have helped with this information: at many of their requests, their identities have remained anonymous”.

A public publication date for the Atkins report remains uncertain. Campaigners are concerned about the lack of time to study the finished report:

“It has been suggested that a public meeting is planned for 19 January as a chance for local people to have their say following the publication of the Atkins Report.

“The experts who have volunteered to help SSV were hoping to have copies of the Atkins Global report over the Christmas holidays, unfortunately we still do not know on what date the report is to be published. This will be an important report, it would be unfortunate if we don’t have chance to thoroughly digest its content before any public meetings in January”.