Agenda and minutes

Councillor B Chapple OBE appointed Councillor R Carington as the Vice-Chairman of the Transport, Environment & Climate Change Select Committee for the 2022/23 municipal year.

The Chairman welcomed three new Members onto the Committee and thanked the three outgoing Members for their work. The Chairman also welcomed the new Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Environment, Councillor G Williams to the meeting and thanked Councillor P Strachan for his work over the past year. The Chairman gave an overview of the Select Committee’s portfolio and reminded Members of the importance of cross-party working.

The Vice-Chairman, Councillor R Carington, was invited to provide an update on the ongoing inquiry. The Vice-Chairman thanked all Members for their work during the inquiry and also the Scrutiny Officer’s support. The evidence gathering sessions had now concluded and the group would be meeting to consider their recommendations. The main themes that had emerged were road run-off, communication and engagement, and misconnections. It was intended that the final report would be presented at September’s meeting before then going to Cabinet.

Apologies were received from Councillors M Caffrey, E Culverhouse and S Broadbent.

Changes to membership were Councillors M Collins, M Rand and D Watson replacing Councillors K Ashman, D King and M Walsh.

Councillor R Carington declared a personal interest in Item 7 as a member of the Natural Environment Partnership.

Councillor G Williams declared a personal interest in Item 7 as a member of the Chilterns Conservation Board and the Bucks, Berks and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.

That the minutes of the meetings held on 10 March 2022 and 15 May 2022 be confirmed as a correct record.

The minutes of the meetings held on 10 March 2022 and 15 May 2022 were confirmed as an accurate record.

A follow up letter to HS2 Ltd would be drafted following a concern raised by a Member of the Select Committee related to flood assessments and work in the River Great Ouse catchment; specifically in the Steeple Claydon and Calvert area.

Public Questions is an opportunity for people who live, work or study in Buckinghamshire to put a question to a Select Committee. The Committee will hear from members of the public who have submitted questions in advance relating to items on the agenda. The Cabinet Member, relevant key partners and responsible officers will be invited to respond.

Further information on how to register can be found here: https://www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/your-council/get-involved-with-council-decisions/select-committees/

There were none.

The Committee will receive a report that provides an overview of outputs and lessons learnt from the Buckinghamshire Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) Pilot, and the proposed approach on producing the live LNRS.

Contributors:

Cllr Gareth Williams, Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Environment

Steve Bambrick, Service Director for Planning & Environment

Ed Barlow, Head of Climate Change & Environment

David Sutherland, Environment Bill Readiness Manager

Nicola Thomas, Natural Environment Partnership Manager

The Chairman invited the Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Environment to introduce the report. Before doing so, the Cabinet Member apologised for the waste collection performance issues in the south of the county.

Buckinghamshire Council had been one of five pilot authorities to prepare for a Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) between September 2020 – May 2021, and the paper outlined the findings from this process. LNRSs were established as a part of the Environment Act 2021 and would be a new system of spatial strategy for nature that would identify opportunities. Additionally, there were multiple benefits to a LNRS such as carbon reduction, wildlife addition, flood alleviation and public health. The following points were highlighted during the office presentation:-

·       The LNRS would be evidence based, collaborative and locally led. It had the potential to guide where developer payments should be invested to create or restore habitat, and would also channel external funding from other sources (e.g. new Environment Land Management scheme, Woodland Creations Funds and Carbon Offsetting).  

·       Buckinghamshire Council had been indicatively identified as the responsible authority to lead on the LNRS to cover Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes.

·       The pilot involved testing a process to collate data and establish a local baseline and narrative. This led to the creation of a Statement of Biodiversity Priorities and a Local Habitat Map.

·       The Statement of Biodiversity Priorities included:

o   A description of sub-areas and key habitats and species.

o   An opportunity for linking, increasing or improving each key habitat.

o   Wider environmental issues that nature-based solutions would help.

o   The outcomes that the LNRS sought to achieve.

·       The Local Habitat Map included:

o   Most valuable existing habitats for nature (e.g. nationally designated wildlife sites and Local Nature Reserves).

o   Map specific proposals for creating of improving habitat.

·       The pilot involved online engagement with a total of 358 stakeholders across varying sectors. These included agriculture and land managers, Town and Parish Councils, central Government and agencies, conservation groups and individuals. The engagement exercise suggested 705 outcomes, 715 actions and 228 benefits that the LNRS pilot could incorporate that needed to be reviewed and prioritised.

·       A prioritisation matrix was developed to produce a scoring system based on the outcomes that had been suggested. Key themes emerged which included aspirations for better management of habitats, more woodland, more urban trees and improved chalk streams.

·       Two illustrative maps were produced to determine a potential approach for the LNRS. Four zones were created across the map:

o   Zone 1: Protected sites and nature reserves.

o   Zone 2: Maintain and Enhance.

o   Zone 3: Restore or Recover.

o   Zone 4: Wider Landscape.

·       Five key themes were learnt from the pilot experience which was fed back to Government.

·       Most of the £140,000 awarded for the pilot was allocated towards mapping resource, technical resource to produce the prototype LNRS and external consultants to assist with stakeholder engagement.

·       Government guidance was expected in Autumn 2022 which would incorporate the learning from all five pilots and the Government’s consultation.

·       For the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

Following the tree planting season, the Committee will receive a report updating on the council’s tree planting activity.

Contributors:

Cllr Gareth Williams, Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Environment

Steve Bambrick, Service Director for Planning & Environment

Ed Barlow, Head of Climate Change & Environment

Alex Beckett, Energy & Climate Change Manager

The Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Environment introduced the report to Members and the following points were highlighted in the presentation:-

·       The Government’s England Tree Action Plan 2021-24 set out a target of 30,000ha woodland being planted annually.

·       The Council was committed to planting 543,000 trees by 2032 as part of the Bucks Tree Mission launched in 2021. 5,860 trees had planted in the first year.

·       Trees provided a wide range of ecosystem services including provisioning, supporting, regulating and cultural. Tree planting had several considerations including soil type and suitability, commercial aspects, stakeholder access and the historic environment.

·       £203,000 had been secured in 2021/22 from the Local Authority Treescapes Fund which benefited three charities, two Parish Councils and Transport for Buckinghamshire (TfB).

·       £28,000 had been secured in 2021/22 from the England Woodland Creation Offer for contractor planting at Billet Field. To date, 3,450 trees had been planted at the site. The contractor, Pryor and Rickett Silviculture, was responsible to plant (5 years) and maintain the trees (5 years). Maintenance included clearing weeds (without chemical weedkillers), inspecting and minor repairs to fences and gates, dead tree replacement, grass cutting on walking route and litter removal.

·       The Council had been featured in a Forestry Commission case study in January 2022 regarding the Bucks Tree Mission and climate change.

·       £138,000 had been set aside to replace 158 trees that had been removed from the public highway due to disease or safety concerns. Currently, 146 of these trees had been planted.

·       A 50ha site in east Buckinghamshire had a natural break in tenancy contract which was now viable for a Forestry England Woodland Partnership scheme. This site had the potential to plant over 100,000 trees.

·       Three potential contractor planting sites were located near High Wycombe (5ha and 7.1ha) and Amersham (7.44ha) with one of these sites currently supporting crop production. These could accommodate 41,700 trees.

·       Due to increased external funding support and optimising procurement, expenditure towards the entire Bucks Tree Mission was expected to remain within earmarked budget.

·       A successful 2022-23 application for Miyawaki ‘Tiny Forests’ would have the benefit of a scheme that grew three times faster thereby realising benefits sooner.

·       Further value of the tree planting scheme was carbon offsetting, which continued to increase dramatically, increase biodiversity and mental health wellbeing.

The following points were noted during the Select Committee discussion:-

·       The arrangement for £138,000 allocated towards roadside trees included the proviso that TfB would provide their own trees. These trees would be at least 10 years old so were more expensive to establish compared to whips. It was clarified that the Highways areas in the report (Aylesbury Vale, High Wycombe and Amersham) related to the TfB depot locations which serviced the whole county.

·       The trees selected in the programme design had taken into account Forest Research of a temperature change based on two degrees of latitude south of a site. Where possible, tree stock would be secured from British nurseries however procurement overseas may be required. Members requested that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

The Committee will consider the draft work programme for the municipal year 2022-2023.

The agenda contained the proposed Work Programme for 2022/23. The Committee was advised that following Member feedback, an item on Tree Protection was scheduled for the meeting on 8 September 2022 and an item on Air Quality was scheduled for 30 March 2023.

RESOLVED –

That the Work Programme be noted.

Thursday 8 September at 10am.

8 September at 10am.