Below is real example:
Small brewery make 1,000,000 pint a year.
Waste Water is 40 m3 per day.
25,000,000 pint waste water a year.
25 Pints of water to make 1 pint of beer.
Actually 26 because of the 1 pint in the beer.
It has been around three and a half years since the start of the phosphorus Embargo on the Somerset levels this issue affects settlements far as part as with a liscom Wells and Sherborne quite a large area!
But what about the progress being made to get people building again, well there are a few things which do work and a few things which don’t, and I will describe those here.
Ultimately it can be said that for certain sites we can now almost guarantee success but the nature of these sites means that not many people will be in this favourable position for other sites in towns and particularly those in small rules settlements which are on main service the phosphorus situation remains a very thorny and stubborn issue in as part of the planning process.
Things We Could Be Getting On With
So what does work well if you are building something in the middle of nowhere and intending to use private drainage and our sufficiently far away from main strainage to avoid having to connect to it then you’re in a good position provided you have about 0.6 of a hectare for trees in the early days we were quite often recommend a small wetland for these sorts of projects but in most areas these are now rendered impossible to approve owing to natural England’s wetland assessment Matrix which is extremely overbearing assessment tool that renders wetland mitigation all but useless by the time you’ve worked out all of the uncertainties.
However woodland remains very good option and 0.6 hectares of woodland will offset a house provided it is on a very efficient private drainage system this is quite a neat little rapport which we have written quite a few of and they seem to do the trick.
For those situated within major settlements within the Parrett, Tone and Brue catchments you can expect to have a local sewage works which treats wastewater to a reasonably high level with regards to phosphorus so for example Taunton sewage works at present treats water down to 0.9 milligrams per liter which is pretty good and some other areas of lower still following recent upgrades which is helping greatly in the amount of credit that people have to buy.
So provided you can find some credit which is not very easy you can in fact move projects forward in large towns at a reasonable cost which is not overbearing as I say finding a credit is tricky but the financial side of this is generally acceptable and feasible for standard construction sites.
Face Palmus Maximus
For those people in moderately sized towns and small villages which are served by mains drainage the phosphorus embargo has left them in a real pickle for example Wellington Sewage Works has a treatment efficiency of five milligrams which means that house builders in Wellington are having to buy quite considerable amounts of credit just to offset one house in fact probably around half a kilo per dwelling which if bought from a commercial scheme can cost around £20,000 pounds which is not feasible given the price of houses in the area. Of course for prestige homes with five or six bedrooms and high specifications this Twenty Thousand pound overage becomes less important, but for affordable homes and other smaller dwellings it’s a complete disaster in terms of feasibility. The only option here is to try and build your own credit scheme which is difficult and I will expand on this below.
When Sergi Leoni made The Good The Bad and The Ugly he stopped at ugly. But we have one further category here which is diabolical and that relates to the legal morass around the issuing of phosphorus credits.
The furthest advanced schemes that we have pursued I’ve been in the Taunton and West Somerset area and although we had some early access early successes with upgrading septic tanks and using those credits to support specific planning applications for credit schemes to be used in a similar way to carbon credits (i.e. run as an account) they have to be registered registered with Taunton and West Somerset as an “official scheme” however, this is a tricky thing to accomplish, as whilst the scientific basis for creating credits whether it be from ecosystem services or drainage upgrades is well established and supported by both Natural England and the various consultees involved in the planning process, the legal system for tying donor sites to receiver a site is not very well developed.
In fact the council have been very reluctant to provide any guidance on this legal framework having run around 16 or so solicitors and lawyers in the Somerset and Devon area some of which I know personally I cannot find any information on the form of this legal agreement and as such it remains Out of Reach in fact recently we abandon the £200,000 pound phosphate phosphate credit scheme which obviously we would have been very pleased to have completed on owing to a complete lack of guidance and support with regards to the legal paperwork that is required in order to register it as an official scheme with Taunton and West Somerset now publishing the fact that they are in financial district trouble we are not overly optimistic of receiving any good advice soon.
Services Relating to Nutrient Neutrality
For many years we have been using the old paper and pen method to calculate VSC (Vertical Sky Component) and APSH (Annual Probable Sunlight Hours) and for many sites it is still possible to use this method.
However, the new BRE 209 guide has migrated from ADF values to far more complex calculation requirements, which are now only possible to do with a computer model.
Equivalent First Zone
For a long term client we have also offered to calculate Equivalent First Zone values for Existing vs Proposed Site Layout. This has been a steep learning curve for us, but we have managed to produce several sets of Equivalent First Zone calculations that indicate the maximum building possible to achieve, without compromising right to light.
So time moves on we miss our pens and our paper, but it is plain to see that the computer model does an extortionary volume of calculations in no time at all, and can derive values for very complex layouts where we mat have struggled in the past, and Equivalent First Zone Calculations they can carry out a days worth of calculations in just a few seconds.
Another day. . . another hole in the ground with water in it.
soakaway testing in wiltshire in chalk
Today we have been in sunny Wiltshire, doing some soakaway tests on a residential development site. As is obvious from the pictures above, the site is on chalk. The chalk in this instance was weather and with patience could be excavated using an. . . . excavator.
We dug the hole very closed to the location ear-marked on drawings for the actually planned crate soakaway system. The results were not too bad, as the water infiltrated at a reasonable rates.
If you require BRE 365 soakaway testing for a planning application or for design purposes we can arrange on a quick turnaround. Please contact us for a quotation.
You might be pondering the question: Which sites are exempt from BNG?
Several types of developments are exempt from Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements in the UK. Here’s a breakdown of the main categories:
Existing Planning Applications: Developments with planning applications submitted before February 12, 2024 (the mandatory BNG start date) are exempt.
Developments Below the Threshold: Projects with minimal impact on biodiversity qualify for exemption if they meet certain criteria:
Self-build and Custom Housebuilding: Small-scale self-build and custom housebuilding projects qualify if they meet all these conditions:
Other Exemptions:
Amazon Climate Pledge Friendly is an initiative launched by Amazon to assist customers in finding and purchasing more sustainable products. Here’s a breakdown of the program:
Climate Pledge Friendly Logo
Overall, this program aims to:
Earning the Climate Pledge Friendly badge on your Amazon product involves demonstrating its sustainability credentials. Here’s how you can approach it:
Eligibility Criteria:
Steps to Acquire the Badge:
Certification: Obtain relevant sustainability certifications from independent organizations.
Amazon’s Sustainability Standards: Alternatively, your product might meet Amazon’s internal sustainability standards for specific categories like “Compact by Design.”
Seller Central Application: Through Seller Central, navigate to “Products, Listings, or Inventory” and select “Climate Pledge Friendly.” Provide essential details about your product, including any certifications, and submit the application.
Additional Resources:
We have carried out life cycle assessment for many products on Amazon. From a feasibility point of view (from the sellers perspective) some work better than others.
A yoga matt is a bulky item, that is made from plastic (polymers). Plastic has a relatively high carbon footprint (1 kg of plastic might emit 8kg of CO2e) so the problem with putting a Climate Pledge Friendly Badge on a yoga matt is that it may push the cost of the yoga matt quite high, and people will stop buying it.
A 0.5kg yoga matt will require around 4kg of carbon offsets, and as such the price might increase from say £10 to £11, this might make all the difference in a competitive volume based market.
A wooden chopping board or butcher block would likely work out quite well. A 1kg wooden chopping board may emit only 0.5 kg of carbon per unit, and is sold for £12. To carbon offset would cost about £0.05 (5 pence) and as such the price barely changes.
An expensive watch may cost £100, and have arelaticly low carbon footprint, therefore any costs associated with offsets, would be proportionately small, and unlikely to impact on the sale price.
Here are the top 5 environmental issues in Exeter, Devon, UK. SWEL are Environmental Consultants based in Exeter, and are well placed to solve the below problems.
Similar to many urban areas in the UK, Exeter struggles with air pollution. Traffic congestion, domestic solid fuel burning, and industrial activities contribute to elevated levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter (PM2.5) in the air. These pollutants can cause respiratory problems, heart disease, and even lung cancer.
Climate Change
Exeter, like most places globally, is experiencing the effects of climate change. This includes rising temperatures, increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events like flooding and heatwaves, and rising sea levels. These changes pose a significant threat to the city’s infrastructure, natural environment, and public health.
Climate change will exacerbate flood risk in exeter.
Exeter City Council has made a Climate Emergency declaration, the Council’s Net Zero plan, and other sustainability initiatives: https://exeter.gov.uk/climate-emergency/net-zero-for-exeter/net-zero-exeter-2030-plan/
The natural habitats around Exeter are under threat from development, pollution, and climate change. This is leading to a decline in the number and diversity of plant and animal species in the area. The loss of biodiversity can have a knock-on effect on the entire ecosystem, impacting everything from water quality to food security.
“Government conservation policies such as rewilding, organic farming and ‘nature friendly farming’ measures can accelerate global biodiversity loss,” says Ian Bateman – University of Exeter
Exeter faces challenges in managing its waste effectively. The amount of waste generated by the city is increasing, putting pressure on landfill sites and making recycling and composting essential.
If you require a waste disposal service, it is important to check that the company and person taking the refuse away is properly licensed. If not then YOU could get fine.
While the overall water quality in Exeter is good, there are still concerns about pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage discharge, and industrial activity. Protecting water sources and reducing pollution is crucial for maintaining a healthy water supply for the city.
Sewage Works discharging in to the river Exe, such as Countess Wear Sewage Works, spilled raw sewage in to the River Exe 41 times in 2022, and other infrastructure associated with Countess Wear Sewage Works (Pumping Stations) Spilled an additional 150 times during the same period.
We were contacted re. B2 Use for Permitted Waste Activity. We have obtained waste permits in the past for Permitted Waste Activities on sites with B2 planning use, and we have also had the use contested. This is our research, to clarify the matter.
Class B2 (General Industrial):
So in conclusion B2 planning use is acceptable for some permitted waste activities provided they don’t include:
So being these exclusions are now known a number of permitted waste activities that could be included under B2 planning use these might include:
With regards to stand permit,therefore the below truncated list may apply:
However bespoke permits may also be suitable for use under B2 Planning Use.
Unfortunately it is not quite as simple as it seams.
B2 planning use allows for a variety of industrial processes, but with limitations on waste activities. Here are some examples of waste activities that might be compatible with B2 use, but remember to check with your local authority for specific regulations:
Lower-impact processing:
Important Considerations:
Here are some examples of waste activities that would likely NOT be suitable for B2 use:
It cannot be said for certain as to whether a B2 use is suitable for a Permitted Waste Activity. It probably will be provided the activity doesn’t involve :
But there are also interpretations around intensity and nature of treatments, and also local authority polices.
Whilst we not maged to find example of where a local policy may prevent B2 planning use for waste, we can envisage that “intensity” in particular could be interpreted to incorporate a broad set of meaning by local planning authorities.
This is a fairly inaccurate walkthrough of a soakaway design to BRE 365 and an estimation of costs for installation of the designed soak away.
Provided here is a worked example of a soakaway designed to BRE 365.
The soakaway is receiving water from a roof of 323m2.
The site is set of sandy clay soil. With a permeability of 9X10-6 (Reference Value)
1:100 year rainfall event. With 40% climate change allowance.
Size of Soakaway is 22 m3.
Soakaway dimensions are 2 meters by 11 meters. And consists of crate type modular system.
Below costs, for crate soakaway:
Total cost: Approximately £7000, with VAT on top probably.
Case Study
It has recently been requested of us to supply a client with a quote for BNG (Biodiversity Net Gain) Credits for a site near Chard and assessment of Carbon Credit Scoping.
This request is becoming more frequent as landowners may be interested in land use change, such as adapting disused or hard to manage land into biodiversity encouraging habitats.
Good areas to use for biodiversity credits might include boggy land, steep land, stoney land, land with poor soil and any other area of underutilized Farmland.
Kate Jewell / Farmland near Scalford
We will now describe to you a case study involving biodiversity net gain credits: The project consisted of assessing farmland which produces low yields and is hard to manage, and evaluating the current biodiversity value and understanding the ideal habitat to convert the land into. The subsequent increase of biodiversity value that can be gained with the converted land can be equated into Habitat Credits/BNG Credits. These BNG Credits can then be sold for between £9,000 and £25,000 (Squires, 2023).
The ideal habitat to be introduced was Native Broadleaved Woodland, and with 1 hectare of land enhanced from farmland this roughly equates to 5 habitat credits or £45,000.
The newly planted woodland, funded by a BNG Credit buyer, can also gain additional carbon credits (WCU’s – Woodland Carbon Units). WCU’s can be sold for a guaranteed price for up to 2055/56 and can be sold for any newly planted woodland, not just for BNG.
If you require assistance with BNG Credit evaluation or Carbon Credit Scoping, let us know.
Image: Kate Jewell / Farmland near Scalford