Monthly Archives: September 2013

Desktop Study – London

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Desktop Study – London

Acting on instruction from a devloper in London Southwest Environmenta under took a phase 1 preliminary risk assessment for site in Southwest London.

The site comprised of two terraced houses had been repourposed as a furniture shop, the plan was to demolish these and build a modern enregy effecient multi unit residential development.

Historic maps showed that their had been little change in the building outlin, and more historc trade entries for the site did not show any environmmentallu dmaging activites having taken place on site.

The walkover survey did not identify any likly sources of contamination and so the condition was discharged.

Desktop Study London

Basement

Environmental Consultants London

Degrdation of Feed in Tariffs for Non Wind Renewables

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The February consultation on the Feed-In Tariffs (FITs) for non-solar renewable technologies, DECC has rather cleverly anounced it will be cutting feed in tariffs for non-solar renewables.

These cuts come in to force from April 2014, and see cuts of up to 20% in feed in tariffs, depdant on installed capcity in a given year.


Just as it seems we are making some head way with regards to energy independence, we get this sort of news! Do policy makers really understand how difficult it is to get a turbine through planning? If we the UK wants to move away from reliance on gas imports, then we need to see high levels of incentive such has been the case. Short sighted.

Sustainability Reporting for Care Home – Eastbourne

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Sustainability Reporting for Care Home – Eastbourne

A dilapidated care home on the south cost was earmarked for redevelopment. SWEL were asked to undertake the following reports;

Desktop Study – To assess ground conditions, the condition was passed off at this first phase.

Desktop Study Eastbourne

Sustainability Statement – Eastbourne Council have a 15% emissions reduction target, this was met via the use of CHP. Although saving met through the building fabric effieicny saving may have been more cost effective the use of CHP ment that the building could be built to the contractors standard specification.

Site Waste Managemnt Plan – These are being phased out by October 2103, but SWEL were asked to prepare one for this project in 2012.

Project – Desktop Study Stoke-on-Trent

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SWEL were approached by a private developer who was in the process of purchasing a disused industrial building.

It was unclear of the past use of the building and so a desktop study was recommended to try and pin down some of the past uses. The building had been labelled as “works” on historic maps and, there were various agency listings for trades at the premises.

It was recommended that caution should be exercised in purchasing the property as without a site investigation it was unclear as to whether the ground was contaminated.

Expert Planning Objection – Devon

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Expert Planning Objection – Devon

SWEL were approached by a grioup of residents in Devon who were concerneed by plans to build a very large calve rearing unit on land adjacent to their houses. The development had been targetted to be just below thresholds for EIA. Even so it was thought that residents would experince negative impacts in the form of noise, light, odour and nusnce (flies).

Artists Impression of Development

SWEL produced a report which outlined amongst other things the levels of noise aticipated, stating respect academic materials SWEL built a case that suggested that noise levels would be in breach of WHO recommnedations, particulalry in litght of the fact that background noise levels in the area were so low.

Comment was also made on flood risk, which proved pivotal in the planning application being refused.

Environmental Consultants Devon

Desktop Study – Plymouth

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SWEL were approached by a firm of architects in plymouth who required a desktop study for a change of use planning application. The shop in question was being developed in to flats, and the local planning authority had requested that a desktop study be provided to assess risk to future inhabitants from lowered ground quality.

Plymouth – Arial Imgae

After the initial walk over survey and review of historic maps and agency data it was concluded that ths ite was low risk, and SWEL recommneded tha the planning condition relating to contaminated land  be discharged.

Compost Permit Application – Woking

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Compost Permit Application – Woking

Southwest Environmenta Limited were approached by a company based in woking whop had been manufacturing compost for 30 years, they had been operating under a local authority license for the activity but now they needed an environmental permit, owing the the environmental permitting regulation coming in to force.

Over a period of 3 months SWEL prepared and submitted the application which owing to the bespoke nature of the permit required and proximity of the site to various nature reserves and sensitive receptors was a labourious process.

Add caption

The permit was granted after around 4 months.

Unfortionatly the environmental permitting regulations do not take in to account the benign nature of waste operations that have been taking place over 10’s of years with incident. For example despite having resdients living immediatly adjacent to site who had not complained of odours over the 30 year life span of the site, an odour managment plan was aked for, as was a Site Specific Bio-Aerosol Risk Assessment SSBRA.

 

Flood Risk Assessment – Bewdley, Worcestershire

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Flood Risk Assessment  – Bewdley, Worcestershire

Southwest Environmental Limited were approached by an individual looking to source a flood risk assessment for a property in Bewdley, Worcestershire.

The site appeared to be within flood zone 2, and cosisted of conversion of lost space in to a studio apartment. It was decided that owing to the low map resolution that it was likly the site was infact in flood zone 1, and this combined with the fact that the development was sited on the fiorst floor level, it was recommened as low risk.

Planning permission was sucessfully granted.

Flood Risk Assessment

Inert Waste Recovery Permit Application

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Inert Waste Recovery Permit Application – Dorset

Southwest Environmental Limited we asked to prepare an environmental permit application for a large landscaping scheme at a golf course in dorset. Import of materials classed as waste would be used for the formation of landscaping features.

A key part of a waste recovery permit application is the waste recovery plan which should be assessbmled in a to verfiy benefits of the waste scheme, in this instance is was thought that this benefit should proven via the use of a customer survey, of golf club memebers.

Gold club memebrs were asked whether they thought that the landscpaing scheme would improve the golf course. Results from this survey were then used to prove a benefit from the scheme.

Waste Recovery Plan

Environmental Permit Applications