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Caythorpe Gas Storage Project

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Environmental Statement Addendum Non-Technical Summary

Caythorpe Gas Storage Limited

December 2006

TOWN & COUNTRY PLANNING ACT 1990

A PLANNING APPLICATION FOR THE EXTENSION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE EXISTING CAYTHORPE POWER

GENERATION FACILITY AS AN UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE FACILITY, THE CONSTRUCTION OF A

WELLSITE AND THE DRILLING OF 6 BOREHOLES TO ACCESS AN IDENTIFIED UNDERGROUND GAS BEARING GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE, THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CONNECTION FACILITY INTO THE TRANSCO NATIONAL TRANSMISSION SYSTEM TOGETHER WITH ASSOCIATED

INTER-CONNECTING PIPELINES

AT CAYTHORPE, BRIDLINGTON, EAST YORKSHIRE

ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT ADDENDUM NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY

SUBMITTED ON BEHALF OF CAYTHORPE GAS STORAGE LIMITED

Wellesbourne House Wellesbourne Warwickshire

CV35 9JB

David Langham Dip.T.P.(Dist)F.R.T.P.I

Consultant Chartered Town Planner Thornborough Hall

Leyburn North Yorkshire

DL8 5AB Tel/Fax: 01969 625800

Email: [email protected] December 2006

THE CAYTHORPE GAS STORAGE PROJECT

PREFACE

This document forms part of a planning application which is submitted to the East Riding of

Yorkshire Council for the proposed extension and development of the existing Caythorpe

Power Generation Facility as an underground gas storage facility, the construction of a

wellsite and the drilling of 6 boreholes to access an identified underground gas bearing

geological structure, the construction of a connection facility into the Transco national

transmission system together with associated inter-connecting pipelines. The Caythorpe

Power Generation Facility is located between Rudston and Boynton to the west of

Bridlington.

The planning application consists of the following parts:

1 Supporting Statement including the planning application forms, drawings and

figures

2 Environmental Statement

3 Environmental Statement Appendices

4 Safety Report

5 Non-Technical Summary

Additional documents have been added to the Project planning applications since the main

planning application was submitted in November 2005. These are as follows:

6 Amendments to Planning Submission – May 2006

7 Application for Planning Permission – Underground 66 kV Electricity Cable and

11kV Electricity Cable Diversion – October 2006

8 Planning Application and Environmental Statement Errata – December 2006

9 Environmental Statement Addendum – December 2006

10 Environmental Statement Addendum Non-Technical Summary – December 2006

C7266/Addendum NTS final/ 291206/TLDP/CJB 1

1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 A planning application for the extension and development of the existing

Caythorpe power generation facility as an underground gas storage facility,

the construction of a wellsite and the drilling of 6 boreholes to access an

identified underground gas bearing geological structure, the construction of

a connection facility into the Transco National Transmission System together

with associated inter-connecting pipelines at Caythorpe, Bridlington, East

Yorkshire was submitted to the East Riding of Yorkshire Council in

November 2005. The planning application was accompanied by an

Environmental Statement (ES).

1.2 Before the decision was made on the planning application by the Council, a

number of modifications were made to the application details and submitted

in May 2006. These modifications involved changes to the layout of the main

Power Generation Site (PGF) to accommodate the protection of features of

archaeological interest and some improvements to the operation of the

proposed plant and equipment. Although the submission described the

archaeological reasons for the changes and reviewed impact on the

landscape, it contained no additional information in the form of an ES.

1.3 In October 2006, a second planning application was submitted for the

proposed installation of a 66 kV underground electricity cable to supply the

Caythorpe Gas Storage facility and the diversion underground of an existing

11 kV electricity cable at Caythorpe, Bridlington, East Yorkshire. This

application contained assessments of cultural heritage and ecology which

were not prepared as a full ES.

1.4 The addendum to the original ES (December 2006) provides an assessment

of the environmental impact of the modifications to the original planning

application and also of the cable installation. This document is a Non-

Technical Summary of the Addendum to the Environmental Assessment.

1.5 As required by Section 17 of the 1999 Regulations, copies of the Addendum

are available on CD-Rom at a cost of £10 or, alternatively, as a hard copy at

a cost of £10. (The Addendum Non-Technical Summary can be found on the

following web site [email protected]).


Please contact:-

R. Jones Esq.

Caythorpe Gas Storage Limited

Wellesbourne House

Wellesbourne

Warwickshire, CV35 9JB

Tel: 01789 471091

2 DESCRIPTION OF THE AMENDMENTS TO THE CAYTHORPE POWER

GENERATION FACILITY AND THE CABLE INSTALLATION

2.1 Amendments to the PGF

2.1.1 The amendments relate only to the Power Generation Facility (PGF) and not

to the Carr Plantation Wellsite, the Woldgate Above Ground Installation

(AGI) or the pipe-lines.

2.1.2 The amendments arose mainly from concerns expressed by English

Heritage about the impact of the development on archaeological features in

the immediate locality. In order to accommodate these concerns the

generator building was removed from the new development and the

transformer compound was relocated. In addition, further detailed design

work resulted in some minor modifications on the new buildings and

equipment. The revised layout of the PGF is shown on drawing

405/GSF/LP/100B (see Errata).

2.2 The 66kV and 11kV Electricity Cables

2.2.1 The removal of the generator house as a result of the new development

would require the provision of a new electricity power supply to the site in

the form of a 66kV supply. This would be taken off an existing 66kV supply

line to the south of Woldgate and brought to the site in the road verges of

Church Lane and the B1253. The route to be taken by the cables is shown

on drawing C7266/1A.

2.2.2 The extension of the PGF would also necessitate the removal of an

overhead 11kV electricity cable which would otherwise cross the extended

site. This cable would be grounded from a pole on the east side of Church

Lane and laid in the 66kV cable trench to a pole on the north side of the

B1253 opposite the PGF. The redundant poles would be removed from the

field to the east of the PGF.


3 CULTURAL HERITAGE ASSESSMENT

3.1 The amendments to the planning submission addressed the concerns raised

by English Heritage in respect of the proposed extension to the existing

Caythorpe PGF, and the supplementary information requested has

previously been provided.

3.2 There would be no impacts on the settings of Listed Buildings arising from

either the amended proposals for the Caythorpe PGF facility or from the

proposed underground electric cables. With respect to archaeological

remains, the revised area of the proposed PGF extension would require a

smaller engineered platform for the development than the submitted

proposals and therefore reduce impacts upon subsurface archaeological

remains. Potential impacts upon the setting of the Scheduled Monuments in

the vicinity would also be reduced by the removal of the existing generator

house and chimney, by reducing the volume of surplus material retained as

soil mounds within the proposed PGF extension and by reducing the

steepness of the outer (southern) slope of the proposed mounding, which

would then blend more naturally into the existing landform. Proposals for

grass cover, considered to be more in keeping with local character, would be

increased within this area. The amended proposals would ensure that the

PGF extension is well integrated within the local landscape.

3.3 All of these amendments to the proposed extension to the existing PGF

facility reduce and therefore mitigate the predicted impacts upon the

archaeological resource. The amendments to the original submission in

respect of archaeological remains are therefore considered to be a

moderate beneficial change.

3.4 The laying of the proposed underground electricity cable from the Caythorpe

PGF to Woldgate would have a number of predicted impacts upon recorded

archaeological remains. These include a scheduled area of probable

Romano-British settlement, a multiple boundary of probable Bronze Age

date and the Woldgate road, all of which are extensive linear monuments.

These sites cannot therefore readily be avoided by amendments to the

proposed route, and any alternative alignment across adjacent fields rather

than within the existing verge or highway could potentially have a much

greater impact upon archaeological remains.


3.5 Mitigation of the predicted impacts is therefore proposed on the basis of a

programme of observation, investigation and recording (an archaeological

‘watching brief’) during the course of the trench excavations. The scale and

scope of the mitigation strategy would be agreed in writing with the Humber

Archaeology Partnership and English Heritage. The laying of that length of

the cable across the Scheduled Monument would require consent from the

Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

3.6 On the basis of the implementation of this mitigation strategy no significant

residual impacts upon archaeological remains as a result of the laying of the

electricity cable are predicted.

4 ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT

4.1 The ES for the Caythorpe Gas Storage Project, submitted in 2005, included

an assessment of effects on ecology and nature conservation interests. The

addendum to the ES reviews the ecological assessment in the light of

amendments to the design of the PGF extension and also includes an

assessment of potential effects on flora and fauna arising from installation of

an electricity cable to supply to PGF.

4.2 No significant changes to the nature, magnitude or significance of the

predicted effects arising from the PGF extension are anticipated as a result

of the amended design.

4.3 The cable route has been aligned to avoid significant effects on the Boynton

Willowgarth SSSI and methods of working will avoid impacts on the Gypsey

Race SINC. The alignment also avoids impacts on other locally significant

habitats including mature hedgerows and trees.

4.4 It is concluded that, providing the recommended mitigation and monitoring

measures are implemented, there would be no significant adverse effects on

flora and fauna. The proposals are therefore considered to be in compliance

with relevant local planning policies for nature conservation.

5 LANDSCAPE AND VISUAL ASSESSMENT

5.1 The proposed GSF would not be a permanent feature of the landscape.

Following expiry of planning consent the GSF would be decommissioned

and all visible features, including soil mounds and associated planting,

would be removed and the land returned to agricultural use.


5.2 There would be no significant impacts on landscape resources. Arable

farmland is a common resource locally, the area lost to the GSF

development is not large, and much if not all of the loss would be reversible

when the land is returned to agriculture following decommissioning.

Proposed tree and shrub planting would add to new features to the

landscape, and although much would be removed following

decommissioning, hedgerow replanting and restoration works would remain,

making long term improvements in landscape character.

5.3 The GSF would achieve an acceptable ‘environmental fit’ with existing

landscape character and value. The main sources of operational-phase

effects on landscape character would arise on the one hand through the

removal of the existing generator house and chimney from the Caythorpe

PGF site and on the other hand through the expansion of the PGF site and

the construction within it of additional infrastructure features (in particular

two bulky compressor houses), together with the creation of a wellsite

platform close to Carr Plantation and the Woldgate AGI.

5.4 Careful design and siting within compact and generally well-screened sites

together with extensive landscape proposals would reduce the potential

effects of the new structures. Resulting impacts on landscape character

would not be ‘significant’ as referred to in the Environmental Impact

Regulations 1999. During the site construction / drilling and testing phase,

impacts would be due mainly to the presence of the tall drilling rig and of

various contractors’ construction compounds. Given the temporary nature of

these features in the landscape, impacts on character and value would not

be ‘significant’ in terms of the Environmental Impact Regulations 1999.

5.5 The GSF would not be widely visible from within the local landscape and

when operational would have only a limited effect on existing views. There

would be no significant impacts in private views from individual residential

properties, and publicly available views from rights of way and roads would

generally be unaffected or not significantly affected. Significant visual

impacts would be restricted to short term views from sections of one public

footpath that would reduce to no more than ‘borderline’ significance early in

the medium-term period, and in views from a limited (northern) part of

Church Lane, where ‘borderline’ significant effects at most may also occur in

the short term only. Overall the nett effect of the GSF on existing views

would be very limited. Although temporary visual impacts would arise during


the site construction / drilling and testing phase of the GSF (due mainly to

the widespread visibility of the drilling rig and of cranes used in construction)

these would not represent significant effects.

5.6 Nationally designated landscapes would not be affected by the GSF

proposal. In terms of local designations there would be no significant

impacts on the character and value of the Wolds Area of Landscape

Protection as currently defined by the East Yorkshire Borough Wide Local

Plan. Although impacts on landscape character and existing views would

occur locally, they would be limited and the GSF would not be prominent in

or harm the quality of the Gypsey Race Corridor landscape of the Yorkshire

Wolds.

6 HYDROLOGICAL AND HYDROGEOLOGICAL ASSESSMENTS

6.1 The modifications to the PGF and the laying of the electricity cables would

have no additional impact on surface water drainage (hydrology) or on

groundwater (hydrogeology).

7 TRAFFIC ASSESSMENT

7.1 The additional lorry movements (as all lorry movements associated with the

project) would approach the site via the B1253 and be timed so as to avoid

passing Boynton School at the school’s start and finish times. Employees

would travel to work at 7 a.m. and return at 6 p.m. and, as such, would not

add to peak hour flows.

7.2 The traffic flows on the B1253 are such that the traffic generated by the

construction of the works (including the removal of the electricity generating

station and cabling work) would not have a material adverse impact on traffic

matters if managed in the manner set out in the original ES.

8 AGRICULTURE AND SOILS ASSESSMENT


not change the total area of land taken out of agricultural use and therefore

there would be no increase or decrease in the development’s impact on

agriculture or soils.

9 NOISE ASSESSMENT

9.1 Background noise levels have been monitored in the vicinity of the nearest

houses and the important noise sources have been identified.


9.2 Drilling noise at any dwelling would be 40 LAeq or less. In unfavourable

wind conditions noise levels may increase to 42 LAeq, which is within the

night time criterion derived from MPS2 and below the level at which sleep

disturbance might occur.

9.3 Noise levels from operation of the site were estimated to be 30 LAeq,1hr or

less, considerably less than current ambient levels. The risk of annoyance is

therefore low. The risk is not significant and no further action is required in

relation to noise. It is therefore concluded that operational noise would not

be loud enough to cause annoyance to persons in the vicinity.

10 EMISSIONS TO AIR ASSESSMENT

10.1 The impact of mitigation measures during construction would ensure that

emissions to air arising from construction and drilling activities would create

minimal impact.

10.2 Emissions to air during normal gas storage operations would be reduced to

an absolute minimum by the use of modern equipment specifically designed

to eliminate fugitive/ uncontrolled emissions and minimise all other routes for

escape to the atmosphere. The impact of greenhouse gas emissions would

be mitigated by combusting process gas where possible to convert from

methane to the much less harmful carbon dioxide.

10.3 As a result of the removal of the generator house and its generators, total

on-site emissions to air in terms of carbon dioxide equivalent would be very

significantly reduced compared with the existing electricity generation

operational levels.

11 LIGHTING ASSESSMENT


have no additional impact on lighting.

12 SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASSESSMENT

12.1 The removal of the generator building would not increase employment

during the construction phase of the development but is likely to extend the

duration of the construction period by approximately 1 month. The laying of

the electricity supply cables would last for approximately 2 months and

would provide work for existing cable laying companies.


12.2 The two activities are therefore unlikely to add to total employment during

the construction phase. All other socio-economic benefits associated with

the Project would remain as set out in the original ES.

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