EXPERT DIGEST

ISSUE 1AUG 2013

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We are pleased to welcome you to the first edition of Expert Digest a new electronic newsletter that we are producing for agricultural, environmental and rural lawyers. The newsletter will feature topical news and views that will be of interest to lawyers engaged in rural issues.

If you have any comment or suggestions for future editions we would be very pleased to hear from you.

Geoff Fairfoull, Editorgeoffrey.fairfoull@adas.co.uk

The ADAS Group is the UK’s largest independent agricultural & environmental consultancy and provider of rural development and policy advice. ADAS provides independent science-based research, consultancy and contracting services to a wide range of organisations in both the private and public sectors, throughout the UK and internationally.

The business, which is owned by a combination of private-equity funds, employs 450 staff on permanent or fixed-term contracts and draws on a further 200 people employed on contingent terms. Gross turnover is c. £38 million per annum.

The organisation was established over 60 years ago as the advisory and research arm of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and branded as ADAS in 1971. The business was privatised in 1997 and to this day remains a preferred supplier to Governments and a wide range of enterprises in the public and private sectors, throughout the UK. We aim to continue in this position in the medium to long term building on our track record and understanding of our clients’ needs to grow our business.

The guidance describes the hazards associated with keeping cattle, including bulls and newly calved cows. It suggests reasonably practicable ways of controlling hazards for walkers and other rights of way users such as horse riders

and cyclists.

Although much of the guidance in this revision is unchanged, further emphasis has been placed on the risks posed by newly calved

cows and cows with calves where a heightened maternal instinct may cause protective behaviour; particularly when a dog is present.

Those keeping cattle are also reminded that members of the public are unlikely to understand cattle behaviour and this should be taken into account when placing livestock on land. Advice on dealing with aggressive or unreliable cattle of any breed has also been revised and strengthened.

Guidance for England and Wales or Guidance for Scotland.

Welcome to Expert Digest...

The ADAS Group

Cattle and public footpaths

There have been a number of recent fatalities involving members of the public and cattle on farms. The HSE (Health and Safety Executive) has very useful guidance for anyone who keeps cattle and has public footpaths on their land.

The BHS (British Horse Society) guidance on wind turbines in England and Wales (Scotland has its own) is being much revised and updated following consultation with planning officers,

the Planning Inspectorate, wind energy engineers and developers and horse riders.

Geoff Fairfoull, ADAS Senior Equine Consultant says “It is expected that the new guidance will be consistent with the Scottish guidance,being more pragmatic with realistic recommendations for separation distances between turbines, bridleways, permissive equestrian routes and public roads used by horse riders and carriage drivers”. Advice on Wind Turbines (England & Wales) www.bhs.org.uk Scottish Wind Farm Advice Note www.bhsscotland.org.uk

British Horse Society Guidance on Wind Farms

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Safe and environmentally aware working practices are essential at all times of course, but especially when working in development, civil engineering and on utilities sites. However several schemes provide verification of a good knowledge and awareness of these practices.

Foremost amongst these is the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS). This was set up in the mid-90s with the aim of improving site workers’ competence to reduce accidents and drive up on-site efficiency. Applicants must pass a Health, Safety & Environment test. The Scheme then keeps a database of successful applicants who are issued with a card giving them a means of identification and proof of their achievements. Cards are increasingly demanded as evidence of occupational competence by contractors, public and private clients and others.

The Energy & Utility Skills Register (EUSR) is similar to CSCS. EUSR Safety Health Environment Awareness (SHEA) accreditation applies specifically to workers in the electricity, gas and water industries and EUSR Persons

OHL to National Grid workers and contractors. The rail sector has its own safety a c c r e d i t a t i o n scheme, with a basic qualification known as Personal Track Safety (PTS), with Individual

Working Alone (IWA) accreditation being available to more experienced railway workers and contractors.

A number of ADAS ecologists and archaeologists hold CSCS cards, with four gaining them since the New Year. One archaeologist holds a Northern Ireland Construction Skills Register (CSR) Safe Pass card which is equivalent to CSCS and is valid in the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

Three CSCS registered ecologists have also received EUSR (SHEA) training and now carry the relevant cards. A number of ADAS environmental consultants hold EUSR Persons OHL, PTS and IWA cards. Having this pool of staff with industry accreditations allows ADAS to respond quickly to our customers needs and avoid unnecessary delays due to the sometimes long lead in time for training courses.

All of our safety scheme card-holders are already working in the construction, civil engineering, utility and transport sectors, have a good understanding of the hazards associated with and correct approaches in, these environments. Their accreditation cards can be taken by site and project managers as evidence of their knowledge of safe working practices when on-site.

ADAS environmental consultants hold all the cards

For more details of the environments in which ADAS ecologists work or the services that they offer, please contact Peter Hancocks on 0117 982 5591 or email Peter.Hancocks@adas.co.uk.

ADAS recently held an internal training day to update experts with recent changes to the Civil Procedure Rules. A total of 15 experts took part in the one day workshop which addressed the application of CPR Part 35 Experts and Assessors and Part 35 Practice Direction. Experts also discussed the application of the RICS Practice Statement and Guidance Note ‘Surveyors acting as expert witnesses - a guide to best practice’ with particular reference to GN22 the immunity of the expert witness.

One of the experts Alan Lynne, Consultant Microbiologist said “obtain a quotation from Alan to insert about the benefits of attending the training day”

Geoff Fairfoull Geoff is an experienced equestrian expert and is frequently called upon to provide evidence in relation to horse riding accidents, horse valuations, horse behaviour, road traffic accidents involving horses, accidents at work, and accidents at riding schools. In addition Geoff has extensive experience of planning & public inquiry

work; including land use, equestrian workers dwellings, business viability, public rights of way and wind farm developments and their impact on equestrian activity.

Recent cases Geoff has provided evidence on are:• Proof of Evidence: Instructed by a wind farm developer to advise on equestrian issues raised by objectors to a wind farm development and to provide expert evidence to the Inquiry.

• Personal Injury Claim: Instructed on behalf of the claimant pursuing a claim for personal injury as a result of being kicked by a horse in a public park.

• Definitive Map Modification Order: Instructed on behalf of the land owner objecting to a DMMO to reclassify a Footpath as a Restricted Byway. Specialist equestrian evidence provided to assist with the evaluation of the user evidence.

Geoff is a horse owner and rider himself and is actively involved in the equestrian scene being a County Committee member of the British Horse Society and an Official Associate of British Eventing, frequently attending national and international events as a fence judge or steward. Geoff was also pleased to play his part as a Gamesmaker at Greenwich for the equestrian events at London 2012.geoffrey.fairfoull@adas.co.uk

Expert Training

Expert Witness Profile

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This case study outlines the effectiveness of biofilters as a key element of effective odour abatement strategies. Next month Steve Peirson will also deliver expert advice on biofilter design and management.

In March 2011, the Environment Agency (EA) published additional guidance (H4) to help companies comply with odour management rules within the Environmental Permitting Regulations. The guidance placed greater responsibility on companies to improve their odour emission reduction strategies or risk financial and regulatory penalties.

ChallengeIn 2009, at the time the EA regulations were being updated, ADAS was assisting Golden Acres, based in Bretherton, Lancashire, develop new controls to reduce odour emissions. The objectives were to reduce odours to a level which would prevent annoyance to local residents and ensure the company met conditions attached to a planning consent to expand its facilities.

Nuisance odours from food processing plants, AD facilities and waste management operations can present an obstacle to site expansion if emissions exceed strict parameters set by the Environment Agency and local authorities. ADAS helped Golden Acres Pet Food Partners, Europe’s leading manufacturer of premium own-label dry pet food, extend their plant and simultaneously reduce their odour impact. New biofilter abatement facilities have improved odour reduction levels from around 80 per cent to in excess of 97 per cent.

Working in partenership with Golden AcresADAS established a relationship with Golden Acres earlier, in 2007, by providing advice to help quantify and mitigate odour impact from the existing plant until new measures could be designed and installed as part of the planned site expansion.

During Golden Acre’s three-year project, ADAS completed an assessment which identified the most pragmatic odour reduction strategies available to the company. Principal considerations included capitalising on Golden Acres’ existing experience with scrubbers and biofilters and conducting a best available technology (BAT) assessment.

Detailed odour dispersion modelling was carried out by ADAS’s in-house Met Office modellers so that targets and specifications could be drawn up for the new odour control plant, including different options for treated air dispersion stacks.

Removing odour barriers to planning

To comply with H4 guidance the modelled schemes included a “back stop” option to use taller dispersion stacks in the event that the new biofilters did not achieve the expected level of abatement. These appraisals were used to help gain planning consent and permit variations for the factory extension and the new abatement plant.

The new odour control facilities were designed and constructed as an in-house project by Golden Acres. Odour controls include filtration to remove particulates, wet scrubbing as a preliminary odour treatment, three new pine bark biofilters and dispersion of treated air through a stack on each of the three biofilters. The new plant was based on water scrubber and biofilter technology that Golden Acres had developed itself, and which was shown in ADAS’s olfactometric testing to reduce odour emissions by between 73 and 82 per cent even at the end of its useful life.

Given the site’s potential for expansion, a key element of ADAS’s recommendation was to install an improved and substantially larger biofilter system. In this highly effective treatment system, odorous air is percolated up though damp pine bark chippings where naturally occurring microbes break down odour molecules. Pine bark is used to a depth of two metres within the three biofilters, each of which is the size of an Olympic swimming pool. The increased capacity of the new system means the abatement plant can now treat 500,000m3/hr of odorous air.

Odour reductions achievedIn February 2012, three months after the new bio-filters were installed, ADAS re-measured odour concentrations and reported a 97.4 per cent reduction in odours. The increased efficacy of the new system meant that Golden Acres satisfied both the Environment Agency and the Local Authority’s planning conditions for site expansion. Further testing has been carried out since February and the plant has been shown to achieve odour reductions in excess of 99 per cent as the biofilter microbial population has become established. With such reductions in odour concentration in treated air, the need for taller dispersion stacks was avoided. Ultimately the success of the new abatement plant has meant that Golden Acres has been able to proceed with its growth plans and also achieve a better atmosphere for residents in the area around the plant.

The Golden Acres odour control installation has been incredibly successful and reflects the care with which the installation was designed and built by Golden Acre. This type of proactive approach helps meet the public’s increasing demands for an odour-free environment as well as the EA’s robust odour abatement standards. Companies with processes that generate odours must ensure that their mitigation strategies are fit for purpose to avoid regulatory penalties and civil nuisance compensation claims as well as avoidable planning restrictions on future developments.

For more information on any of the above please contact Steve Peirson on 01964 551317 or via steve.peirson@adas.co.uk.

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Our expert witness capability extends to over 100 experts, operating in 80 specialist areas with membership of over 30 professional bodies.

All our experts are experienced consultants who are actively practicing within their particular specialism. Our experts can therefore offer practical experience along with scientific rigour and independence to ensure that the best possible expert advice available.

For more information on anything in the newsletter please visit www.adas-experts.co.uk or contact Geoff Fairfoull, ADAS UK Ltd, 11D Park House, Milton Park, Milton, Abingdon OX14 4RS Tel: 01993 851 937.

ADAS Expert Witness

The next issue of ADAS Expert Digest will be available in

November 2013

ADAS has been helping developers address their air quality assessment needs for many years. In response to a rise in requests for detailed dispersion modelling from local authorities (LAs), ADAS is pleased to announce the launch of their enhanced air quality dispersion modelling service.

Why request an air quality assessment?In UK law, the Air Quality Standards Regulations 2010 set out concentration limits for the air pollutants most likely to affect human health. LAs are responsible for monitoring

existing air quality levels and ensuring that new development complies with this legislation and planning policy. The emphasis is on the applicant to demonstrate

that a development is compliant in any planning application.

How can ADAS help you? ADAS has been screening development traffic emissions for clients for nearly 10 years. Screening provides an estimate of the intensity of a development impact on air quality, flagging up those which require further assessment as part of a planning application.

Recent increases in projected background levels of pollutant concentrations are encouraging LAs to request detailed modelling for more developments than before. Dispersion modelling provides the evidence local authorities need to assess whether a development will meet air quality requirements.

In response to this growing demand on our clients from local authorities, ADAS has extended its air quality assessment service to include the dispersion modelling software, ADMS Roads.

We are now able to offer a complete Air Quality Impact Assessment service including screening in-house, reducing the cost of the service.

How could my development affect air quality?Many developments will have an impact on air quality. Vehicles travelling to or from the development emit a range of air pollutants, particularly nitrogen oxides and dust.

ADAS enhances it’s air quality dispersion modelling offer

Industrial or agricultural developments may also produce additional pollutants as part of their processes, such as sulphur dioxide, ammonia or odour.

If you are likely to be developing in a built up urban area, in or close to an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) or close to the trunk road network, then it is likely that the Local Authority will require a detailed modelling approach.

Benefits of the ADAS serviceOur quick turn around and professional delivery reduce planning application timescales and planning risk. We have dealt with a number of LAs and their air quality/environmental health officers across the country and can predict when a more detailed assessment is likely to be necessary.

With in-house EIA and planning expertise, our approach focuses on identifying potential problems and suggesting proportional mitigation. We are able to provide both stand alone reports and Environmental Statement chapters to accompany any planning application.

To see if ADAS can assist you or for more information on any of the above please contact Sally Walker on 0113 232 1639 or email sally.walker@adas.co.uk.