Beddington FarmlandsCAMC meeting
Snuff Mill, Morden Hall Park
Thursday 29th September 2016
Attendees:
Cllr Nighat Piracha (Chair – Council Representative)
Cllr Pathumal Ali (Vice Chair – Council Representative)
Edward Sarasketa (Viridor – Owner Representative)
Andrew Turner (Viridor – Owner representative)
Marcus Kohler (Community and Technical Representative)
Sue Morgan (Wandle Valley Regional Park Trust – Community and Technical Representatives)
Action1.0 / Apologies
1.1 / Apologies were sent from:
Derek Coleman (CSG – Community and Technical Representative)
2.0 / Minutes of the last meeting and matters arising
2.1
2.2
2.3 / The minutes of the last meeting were discussed and agreed as representative of the last meeting.
The group discussed the role of the secretary and how to recruit a suitable resource. Edd Sarasketa mentioned he had engaged a number of local recruitment agencies however there were no suitable candidates and he was also unclear of the role the secretary should play. There was a brief discussion and Sue Morgan confirmed she would provide a number of contacts. It was agreed that Edd should produce a one-pager role profile for the secretary role.
Andrew Turner confirmed that since the last meeting he had received confirmation that Alistair Hayes would be leaving the London Wildlife Trust and he had not confirmed a replacement for the CAMC.
There was a brief discussion around the community representative roles and the subsequent recruitment process. Edd Sarasketa also asked if Alistair’s absence affected the ability of the group to function. It was agreed that a quorum was still met but the discussion continued around the communities expectation that the positions on the panel would be annual. The group voiced concerns over the continuity of the work of the group and also the attendance of members of the council. It was agreed that Cllr Ali would speak with Cllr Zuchowska about her ambitions to sit on the panel and the group would extend an invitation to Cllr Reynolds if appropriate.
Marcus Kohler discussed the potential to vary the meeting times to enable the panel members to attend the sessions along with the potential to enable remote attendance with the addition of wifi and phone lines. It was agreed that the meetings should take place in a connected venue where possible.
It was reiterated that it was essential a member from Hackbridge was represented on the Committee.
The Committee concluded that a sub-group be formed to act as a selection committee for future representatives, with previous shortlist being brought to the next meeting and an invitation letter drafted on behalf of the Chair. / SM
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3.0 / Viridor operations and restoration update
3.1
3.2
3.3 / Landfill operations
Edd Sarasketa offered an update for the landfill and restoration programmes at Beddington. The landfill site continues to service the South London Waste Partnership with the southern section of cell 9.c.ii being filled enabling tipping to continue in the sheltered valley formation into the winter months. Work continues to manage and upgrade the landfill gas and leachate infrastructure, this would include drilling rigs.
Two open days took place in August and September with over 50 members of the public visiting the landfill site finding the visit most interesting. Viridor will review the days and revert to the CAMC with proposals for 2017 – with lapwings, tree sparrows and a kestrel spotted.
Restoration progress
Since the last CAMC meeting the operations team have made strong progress capping the northern flank of 9.c.ii along with excavation work to create the new cell 7 for service continuation into 2017. National Vegetation Classification surveys took place over the summer and Viridor will present the findings to the group.
Mowing of c.7Ha of the meadowland was completed in August and structural work will commence to create a sustainable landform for colonisation by plant species. Tree surgery also took place by London Road (Hackbridge) to manage overhanging trees on the highway.
Marcus discussed that in the long-run Viridor might want to engage in building a volunteer network to support the management work on-site, Edd thanked Marcus for this view but also expressed concern on the grounds of Health and Safety.
Designs for the wet grassland have been received and once capping work is completed on the landfill site, vegetation clearance and excavation will commence before the winter period for the wet grassland habitats.
Viridor is working collaboratively to install an interpretation board on the western permissive footpath detailing the site history and wildlife. Viridor will also be upgrading the facilities onsite for the Bird Group to ensure continued safety in winter conditions.
Cllr Ali asked Edd if there was any linkage between the restoration programme and the construction of the ERF. Edd confirmed that the restoration programme was aligned to wildlife breeding seasons and the weather. Edd did confirm that the ERF construction did involve the construction of a new access road linking the ERF to the roundabout on Coomber Way.
There was a detailed discussion over the interpretation board. Sue Morgan stated that this was an important part of the establishing the Farmlands within the wider Regional Park, the Group were in agreement. Sue was keen to understand how this would interact with existing collateral in the wider Wandle and Beddington areas with it important to establish a clear and accessible strategy, Sue suggested that a design brief be created and tenders invited. Andrew Turner confirmed that he had intended for this to be completed using internal resource with a sympathetic look and feel. The group reached the consensus that members would send their thoughts and priorities over the Andrew and he would share his thoughts to date. / ALL
4.0 / Nature and conservation of the land associated with the MOL
4.1 / Marcus Kohlerexpressed his concern over proposals for land adjoining Beddington known as oak fields north and south of the current access road from Beddington lane.
Thames water have been undertaking ground investigations in this area following a preliminary ecological assessment undertaken by The Ecology Consultancy. Marcus was very concerned that the investigations team had not been limited in their work on site and this had resulted in the, tracking over the site as they saw fit. Ecologically, an area of Japanese knotweed was disturbed. This is an invasive plant and disturbance is illegal and could lead to further growth of the plant across the site. This had not been recognised by the ecological team. As well as a being an illegal act the disturbance of the knotweed could lead to further growth where soil has been moved. Further a significant area of reedbed had been tracked through by the site investigations trampling the Reed. This is an historic breeding site for Reed bunting on site,a target species which only breeds each year in 1-3 pairs. Marcus was very unhappy with the apparent standard of the ecological appraisal although he has stressed that he has not seen the original report. He also felt that the ground investigations were so intrusive as to affect the ecological significance of the site, potentially detrimentally affecting the ecological value for any future assessment for planning permission. The impact of development on the edge of the site can have significant impacts on the success of the restoration process as key species breed and use this buffer between the site and the urban area. This again highlights the need for Thames water to be part of this committee as their influence and plans for contiguous areas is a critical influence on the restoration process.
5.0 / Reports from Community groups
5.1 / Andrew Turner updated the CAMC around the progress of the Beddington Community Benefit Fund. The Funding Panel had first met earlier in the month and Viridor was finalising the arrangements ahead of an imminent launch.
6.0 / Reports from Sub-group[s]
6.1 / There were no sub-groups to report.
7.0 / Marketing and Communications/Community Engagement
7.1
7.2
7.3 / Andrew Turner offered a brief update on communications and community engagement around the Beddington Farmlands. The group discussed the Communications plan and shared some thoughts. Andrew confirmed that the Committee were invited to make comments by email back to Andrew Turner.
Sue asked whether it might be prudent to deploy additional resources to engage the community, develop the Viridor website and employ the warden sooner into the restoration process. Andrew confirmed that the Viridor website would be redeveloped in the coming months and that the Warden would be recruited ahead of the completion of the ERF. It was agreed Viridor would discuss Adrian Frost’s designs for access to a hide by the Western lakes.
Marcus spoke about the importance of enabling visual access to share what is happening onsite with the community. Andrew mentioned that the upcoming community newsletter would showcase some of the Farmlands along with the successful open days where over 50 community members visited the site. Following these open days Viridor would discuss the 2017 programme and revert back to the CAMC, along with arranging for a delegation of councillors to visit the site.
The group discussed the importance of understanding the ongoing access around the committed pathway out of the site by the ASDA on Beddington Lane. It was agreed that the CAMC would write a letter to Thames Water. Andrew Turner would draft an initial letter on behalf of the Chair inviting a representative of Thames to a meeting. / ALL
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8.0 / Any other Business
8.1 / Sue Morgan shared an invitation to members of the CAMC and Viridor to the launch of the Wandle Valley Regional Park Trust strategy. The event would take place on 18th November at 18.00 at City Hall. Sue also asked if there would be support for printing the document, Viridor confirmed it would consider support. / AT
9.0 / Date of next meeting
9.1 / There was a discussion around the location of the next meeting, Cllr Piracha took the action to investigate holding the meeting at the Sutton Council Offices, Denmark Road, Thursday 24th November, 14:00. Andrew Turner would send confirmation of the venue. / NP