Agenda Document Pack - Environment and Climate Change Committee - 30/10/2024
North Lanarkshire Council · 30 October 2024
Back to Environment and Climate Change Committee — 30 October 2024 and its agenda
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21 October 2024 Members of the Environment and Climate Change Committee Chief Executive’s Office Archie Aitken Chief Officer (Legal & Democratic) Civic Centre, Windmillhill Street, Motherwell ML1 1AB www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk Notice is given that a Meeting of the Environment and Climate Change Committee is to be held in the Council Chamber, Civic Centre, Windmillhill Street, Motherwell, ML1 1AB on Wednesday, 30 October 2024 at 14:00 PM which you are requested to attend. The agenda of business is attached. Archie Aitken Chief Officer (Legal & Democratic) Members : Clerk Name: Karen Swan Clerk Telephone: 07919 730272 Clerk Email: swank@northlan.gov.uk H Loughran, J McPhilemy, T Carragher, P Di Mascio, K Duffy, A Duffy-Lawson, F Fotheringham, W Goldie, K Harmon, J Leckie, F MacGregor, A Masterton, M McBride, B McCulloch, M McCulloch, F McKay, C McManus, L Nolan, J Reddin, L Roarty, G Robinson, A Smith, A Thomas, C Williams, N Wilson. Page 1 of 158
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Agenda 1 Declarations of Interest In Terms of the Ethical Standards In Public Life Etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 2 Revocation of Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) in Coatbridge and Chapelhall Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) seeking approval of the revocation of the Air Quality Management Areas at Coatbridge and Chapelhall. 5 - 34 3 Investigation into the potential for a vape recycling scheme Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) providing an update on the investigation conducted to explore the feasibility and implementation of a Vape Recycling Scheme. 35 - 44 4 Review of Business Regulation Fees and Charges Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) providing an update on the review of a number of Business Regulation fees currently charged by Protective Services. 45 - 54 5 Climate Resilient Greenspaces and their Contribution to Improving Health Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) highlighting the work undertaken to improve the health and wellbeing of North Lanarkshire residents through positive activities in greenspaces. 55 - 66 6 Sustainable Futures - Tree Risk Asset Management Progress and Forestry & Woodland Operational Framework Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) providing an update on the work of the Tree Asset team in line with the Tree Risk Asset Management (TRAM) Strategy. 67 - 100 7 Petition - Bedlay Cemetery maintenance Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) providing details of a petition received in relation to Bedlay Cemetery maintenance. 101 - 110 Page 3 of 158
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8 Sustainable Futures - Live Labs 2 Decarbonising Local Roads Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) providing an update on work undertaken to develop a Centre of Excellence for Decarbonising Roads. 111 - 120 9 Land and Waste Service Review Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) setting out proposals in respect of the Land and Waste Services review. 121 - 126 10 Garden Waste Charging Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) seeking approval to introduce a charge for the uplift of garden waste. 127 - 134 11 Power Resilience Strategy and Business Continuity Submit report by Depute Chief Executive providing an update on the Council’s arrangements relevant to the Power Resilience Strategy and Business Continuity. 135 - 142 12 Community Operations Programme of Work Update Submit report by Chief Officer (Community Operations) providing an update on the proposals within the Waste and Fleet Service in line with the Council’s Sustainable Futures Programme of Work. 143 - 152 13 Contracts awarded below Committee approval threshold Submit report by Chief Officer (Assets and Procurement) notifying of the contracts awarded since the last meeting of the Committee with a value below the financial threshold requiring approval. 153 - 158 Page 4 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment & Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☐ Yes ☒ No Ref MF/PB Date 30/10/24 Revocation of Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) in Coatbridge and Chapelhall From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail RennieLy@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary The Chapelhall and Coatbridge AQMAs were declared in December 2005 for likely breaches of the statutory annual mean air quality objective for particulate matter PM10 (i.e. particulate matter with a diameter of no more than 10 microns). Subsequent further monitoring, as well as dispersion modelling exercises in and around the AQMAs indicated additional areas of exceedance. Consequently, both AQMAs were amended in April 2014 to include the pollutant Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) in addition to PM10. The boundary of the Coatbridge AQMA was also extended to include the Shawhead and Kirkshaws area of Coatbridge at this time. Air quality monitoring in the Chapelhall and Coatbridge AQMAs has indicated that measured annual average levels of PM10 and NO2 in both AQMAs have now complied with the statutory national air quality objectives for these pollutants for the past several years. This information has been duly reported within recent Annual Progress Reports on air quality that are submitted for review and appraisal to the Scottish Government and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). Review comments on the latest Annual Progress Report have advised that the Council should now proceed with the revocation of both the Chapelhall and Coatbridge AQMAs due to monitoring demonstrating several years of compliance with the air quality objectives. The Annual Progress Report 2023 can be viewed at Air Quality Monitoring in North Lanarkshire | North Lanarkshire Council . Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment & Climate Change Committee: (1) Acknowledge the contents of this report and endorse and approve the revocation of the AQMAs at Coatbridge and Chapelhall. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve the health and wellbeing of our communities Ambition statement (14) Ensure the highest standards of public protection Programme of Work One Service Item 2 Page 5 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 The Environment Act 1995 requires Scottish Local Authorities to regularly review air quality within their areas under a process known as Local Air Quality Management (LAQM). 1.2 Further to this Act, the Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations 2000 (as amended) prescribe air quality objectives for seven pollutants deemed to be the most prejudicial to health, namely – Benzene, 1,3-Butadiene, Carbon Monoxide, Lead, Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Particulates (PM10) and Sulphur Dioxide (SO2). Dates have also been set for compliance with these objectives. A statutory objective relating to the pollutant PM2.5 was also brought in through the Air Quality (Scotland)(Amendment) Regulations 2016. 1.3 This process of LAQM has been ongoing for several years now, and the Council has an extensive network of both automatic and non-automatic (passive) air monitoring equipment, located in the areas known or suspected to give rise to exposure to air pollution. Continued monitoring over the years identified six areas of exceedance of the 2010 Annual Mean objective for PM10 (particulate pollution) and this led over a period of several years to the declaration of six Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) in Coatbridge, Chapelhall, Motherwell Town Centre, Harthill, Moodiesburn and Croy. A reduction in PM10 levels over the years has led to the revocation of the Harthill, Moodiesburn and Croy AQMAs, leaving only three remaining at Motherwell Town Centre, Coatbridge and Chapelhall. Following additional monitoring the Coatbridge and Chapelhall AQMAs were amended in April 2014 to include the pollutant Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2). In addition the boundary of the Coatbridge AQMA was extended to include the Shawhead and Kirkshaws areas of Coatbridge. 1.4 Further to the declaration of AQMAs, the Council has a statutory responsibility to continue monitoring air quality within them and to prepare and publish an Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP). This is a document which details measures the Council pledges to consider to improve air quality within the AQMAs. The most recent update to the Council’s AQAP was published in 2023 and contained a variety of short and long term action plan measures NLC APR 2023 Final Amended_1.docx (live.com). 1.5 Part IV of the Environment Act 1995 outlines information relating to AQMAs. This is further supported by guidance within the LAQM Policy Guidance PG(24) and LAQM Technical Guidance TG(22). This guidance states that local authorities can amend or revoke an existing AQMA Order at any time as set out in section 83(2) of the Environment Act 1995. Where a local authority considers it necessary to revoke an AQMA the Scottish Government expects the authority to prepare a revocation proposal report containing all the evidence and supporting information to justify the revocation. This report must be approved by the Scottish Government prior to any changes taking effect. On completion of the revocation the Scottish Government, statutory consultees and all those with an interest in the AQMA as well as the public require to be notified of the revocation. 2. Report 2.1 The Coatbridge Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) was declared in 2005 for likely exceedances of the 2010 statutory annual mean objective for the pollutant PM10. Subsequent further monitoring and dispersion modelling indicated that there were also likely exceedances of the air quality objective for the pollutant NO2 and that the boundary of the original AQMA required to be extended to include the Shawhead and Page 6 of 158
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Kirkshaws areas of Coatbridge. As such the AQMA Order was then amended in 2014 to include a wider area of exceedance of the statutory objectives for both PM10 and NO2. The Coatbridge AQMA boundary is shown in the report recommending revocation. 2.2 The Chapelhall AQMA was declared in 2005 for likely exceedances of the 2010 statutory annual mean objective for the pollutant PM10. Subsequent further monitoring and dispersion modelling indicated that there were also likely exceedances of the air quality annual mean objective for the pollutant NO2. As such the Chapelhall AQMA Order was then amended in 2014 to include NO2 in addition to PM10. The Chapelhall AQMA boundary is shown in the report recommending revocation. 2.3 Following the amendments to the Coatbridge and Chapelhall AQMAs in 2014 the Council continued to monitor within these areas using a combination of automatic and non-automatic (passive) air monitors. The monitoring results showed an initial decline in levels of NO2 and PM10 in both AQMAs and then following the pandemic the levels have remained low, and well within the statutory objective limits for both pollutants. All monitoring data is submitted in an Annual Progress Report to both the Scottish Government and SEPA each year. Appraisal comments on the 2023 Annual Progress Report advised that, due to pollutant levels remaining low in the Chapelhall and Coatbridge AQMAs, the Council should proceed to revoking these AQMAs. 2.4 In line with current Scottish air quality management policy guidance, revocation proposal reports have been prepared for both the Coatbridge and Chapelhall AQMAs. These reports outline all information in relation to the AQMAs and present justification of their revocation. The reports have been appraised and accepted by both the Scottish Government and SEPA as per the revocation guidance and are attached as Appendices 1 and 2. 2.5 On completion of the revocation process all statutory consultees and other interested parties, as well as the Scottish Government and SEPA, will be formally notified of the revocation, and information also placed on the Council website. It is anticipated the revocation process will be complete and revocation will take effect from November 2024. 3. Measures of success 3.1 It is anticipated that air quality monitoring at the existing automatic air stations will continue for a year following revocation of the AQMAs to demonstrate that the decision to revoke them was justified. As such Protective Services will continue to monitor NO2 and PM10 at the existing automatic monitoring locations in Coatbridge and Chapelhall and report annually through the Annual Progress Report to the Scottish Government and SEPA on compliance with the national air quality statutory objectives. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 Revocation Proposal Report for Coatbridge AQMA Appendix 2 Revocation Proposal Report for Chapelhall AQMA Page 7 of 158
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Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 8 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the Council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Revocation of an AQMA involves the preparation of an official Revocation Order. These have been discussed and prepared with the assistance of Legal and Democratic. 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Page 9 of 158
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Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the Council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any Council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 10 of 158
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Appendix 1 Report in support of the revocation of Coatbridge AQMA REPORT IN SUPPORT OF THE REVOCATION OF COATBRIDGE AQMA, NORTH LANARKSHIRE Local Authority Officer Fiona Maguire Department Protective Services Address Civic Centre, Windmillhill Street, Motherwell, ML1 1AB Page 11 of 158
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Email maguiref@northlan.gov.uk Report Reference Coatbridge AQMA Revocation Proposal Report Status (version control) Final Date September 2024 Contents 1. Background 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Legislation 1.3 Summary of proposal Page 12 of 158
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2. Description of AQMA 2.1 Pollutants declared for and time intervals, date declared 2.2 Description and extent of AQMA 3. Description of local sources 3.1 Local sources 3.2 Action Planning measures which have been implemented 3.3 Changes to local sources from measures which have been implemented or changes to local circumstances for emission sources 4. Local monitoring equipment 4.1 Automatic monitoring in Coatbridge AQMA 4.2 Non-automatic monitoring in Coatbridge AQMA 5. Local monitoring data 5.1 Results and data interpretation from automatic monitoring site 5.2 Results and data interpretation from non-automatic monitoring sites 6. Action Plan measures and Coatbridge AQMA 7. Conclusions and recommendations 1. BACKGROUND 1.1 Introduction Air pollution is associated with several adverse health impacts including exacerbating respiratory conditions and heart disease. There is also often a strong correlation with equalities issues because Page 13 of 158
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areas with poor air quality are also often the less affluent areas. North Lanarkshire Council is committed to reducing the exposure of people in North Lanarkshire to poor air quality to improve health. 1.2 Legislation and policy To prevent, control and minimise atmospheric emissions that are harmful to human health and the environment, legislation and policies at European, national and regional levels have been put in place. European Legislation The European Union (EU) published a Directive on Ambient Air Quality Assessment and Management which came in to force in September 1996 (Union Council of the European Union, 1996). This Directive was intended as a strategic framework for tackling air quality in a consistent manner, through setting European wider air quality limit values in a series of daughter directives, superseding and extending European legislation. The first four daughter directives were placed into national legislation. A new EU air quality directive (European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, 2008) came into force in June 2008 and was transposed into the Air Quality Standards Regulations in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in June 2010). The directive merged the four daughter directives and one Council decision into a single directive on air quality. The Directive requirements have been retained in domestic legislation following the UK’s exit from the EU. National Legislation The Environment Act 1995 (HM Government, 1995) required the preparation of a national air quality strategy setting Air Quality Objectives (AQOs) for specified pollutants and outlining measures to be taken by local authorities through the system of Local Air Quality Management (LAQM). Local authorities are required to review and assess air quality within their areas under LAQM and to work in pursuit of the achievement of the statutory AQOs. Air Quality is a devolved matter and the AQOs which are relevant to LAQM have been set into regulations, namely Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations 2000 Air Quality (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2002 Air Quality (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 A summary of the relevant AQOs for this revocation report, namely Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) and Particulate Matter, PM10 is outlined in Table 1.1 Table 1.1 – Summary of AQOs for NO2 and PM10 in Scotland Pollutant AQO Concentration AQO Measured as Date to be achieved by Page 14 of 158
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Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) 40 µg/m3 200 µg/m3 not to be exceeded more than 18 times per year Annual Mean 1-hour Mean 31.12.2005 31.12.2005 Particulate Matter (PM10) 18 µg/m3 50 µg/m3 not to be exceeded more than 7 times per year Annual Mean 24-hour Mean 31.12.2010 31.12.2010 Cleaner Air for Scotland Strategy Cleaner Air for Scotland 2 – Towards a Better Place for Everyone (CAFS2) is Scotland’s second air quality strategy. CAFS2 sets out how the Scottish Government and its partner organisations propose to further reduce air pollution to protect human health and fulfil Scotland’s legal responsibilities over the period 2021-2026. CAFS2 was published in July 2021 and replaces Cleaner Air for Scotland – The Road to a Healthier Future (CAFS), which was published in 2015. CAFS2 aims to achieve the ambitious vision for Scotland “to have the best air quality in Europe”. A series of actions across a range of policy areas are outlined, a summary of which is available on the Scottish Government website. Local Air Quality Management The aforementioned AQOs have been set down in regulation for the purposes of the LAQM. The Environment Act 1995 requires that local authorities undertake a tiered appraisal of air quality within their area to establish compliance or non-compliance with the targets detailed in the UK National Air Quality Strategy, and report on an annual basis through the preparation and publication of an Annual Progress Report (APR). Where the AQOs are not met or are not likely to be met within the stated timescales for compliance the local authority must designate an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA). The boundary of the AQMA is set by the governing local authority and can be as large or as small as preferred, however it must include the area of exceedance, usually determined through air quality monitoring. Where an AQMA has been declared the local authority must thereafter prepare an Air Quality Action Plan setting out the measures it intends to put in place in pursuit of the objectives. North Lanarkshire Council has three AQMAs – Coatbridge, Chapelhall and Motherwell Town Centre. This revocation proposal report focuses on the Coatbridge AQMA. The Chapelhall AQMA is also being revoked and is subject to its own report. Following a minimum of three consecutive years of compliance with the AQOs, an AQMA may be revoked. Section 4 of Part IV of the Environment Act 1995 states that local authorities can amend or revoke an AQMA at any time as set out under section 83(2) of the 1995 Act. Where an authority considers it necessary to do this, the Scottish Government expects the authority to prepare a revocation proposal report containing all available supporting information to justify the revocation. This report must be approved by the Scottish Government prior to any changes taking effect. On completion of the AQMA revocation all statutory consultees, SEPA, businesses, members of the public and other interested parties in the vicinity of the AQMA will be notified. Page 15 of 158
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1.3 Summary of proposal Monitored concentrations of the pollutants NO2 and PM10 at the monitoring locations within and adjacent to the Coatbridge AQMA have complied with the statutory AQOs for at least nine years. As such it is proposed that the Coatbridge AQMA is revoked in its entirety for both pollutants. Monitoring in this area will continue for a period of at least a year following the revocation. 2. Description of Coatbridge AQMA The Coatbridge AQMA was originally declared in December 2005 because of air monitoring identifying likely breaches of the AQO for levels of PM10 in the Whifflet/North Road area of Coatbridge. Following this AQMA declaration an Emissions Inventory exercise was undertaken in 2007. This, combined with Page 16 of 158
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monitoring carried out over subsequent years indicated exceedances of NO2 as well as PM10 along the M8 at Coatbridge (Shawhead to Kirkshaws areas) and at Chapelhall. Monitoring reinforcing this was also reported in the 2011 Progress Report and the 2012 Updating and Screening Assessment. In the 2013 Progress Report it was suggested that a Detailed Assessment (including dispersion modelling) of the area was undertaken, and the Monklands Detailed Assessment (covering Coatbridge, Airdrie and Chapelhall areas) was carried out in 2013/14. This confirmed continued likely exceedances of the annual mean statutory air quality objectives for both PM10 and NO2 in the Chapelhall and Coatbridge AQMAs. Consequently, the Coatbridge AQMA was amended in 2014 to be declared for NO2 in addition to PM10. The geographical boundary of the Coatbridge AQMA is illustrated in Figure 2.1 Figure 2.1 Boundary of Coatbridge AQMA 3.0 Local sources of air pollution in Coatbridge AQMA A source apportionment exercise was carried out by North Lanarkshire Council in 2018 with reference to the 2017-based National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (NAEI). The data was used to evaluate the emissions contributions from multiple source types within 1km x 1km grid squares covering the Page 17 of 158
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AQMAs. For each grid square, the road sources emissions were further analysed to identify contributions from motorcycles, cars, light goods vehicles (LGVs), buses and heavy goods vehicles (LGVs) using emissions factors and vehicles split information from Department of Transport data. Dispersion modelling was used to calculate the contribution to ambient annual mean concentrations of each pollutant from the main source groups at roadside receptors at different locations within each AQMA. The 1km x 1km grid square emissions were updated for expanded regional modelling studies in 2021 and 2022 using updated versions of the NAEI with no significant variation in the dominant sources. The modelled contributions to concentrations at roadside receptors within the AQMAs are therefore dominated by the same principal sources. Table 3.1 illustrates the source apportionment for each pollutant monitored in the Coatbridge AQMA. Table 3.1 : Source Apportionment in Coatbridge AQMA Pollutant Emissions Source Apportionment (NAEI 2020) Average Contribution to Annual Mean Concentration at Roadside Receptors in the AQMA Roads Other mobile (inc. air and rail) & Machinery Combustion Plant Other including Rural/Long Range Transportation Traffic Rural Background Other NO2 75% 5% 3% 17% 48% (c.80%/20% Cars, Motorbikes & LGV/Buses, Taxis & HGV) 40% 12% PM10 36% 2% 1% 61% 10% (c.80%/20% Cars, Motorbikes & LGV/Buses, Taxis & HGV) 85% 5% It can be seen from Table 3.1 that the main sources of average contribution to annual mean concentrations of NO2 at roadside receptors in the Coatbridge AQMA are 48% from road traffic emissions, 40% from the rural background and 12% from other sources. For PM10 the predominant source of annual mean concentrations is the rural background (85%) with a further 10% from road traffic emissions. 4.0 Monitoring Equipment in Coatbridge AQMA North Lanarkshire Council has operated a number of monitoring locations in and adjacent to the Coatbridge AQMA for approximately fifteen years now. The original monitoring in place after the initial AQMA declaration was increased to determine the extent of further suspected exceedances, which ultimately led to the amendment and increase in size of the Coatbridge AQMA in 2014. A summary of monitoring types and locations in/adjacent to the Coatbridge AQMA is provided in Table 4.1 below. Table 4.1 Details of Monitoring Sites within/adjacent to Coatbridge AQMA Page 18 of 158
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Site Name/ID Site Type Type of Monitor X OS Grid Ref Y OS Grid Ref Pollutants Monitored Distance to Relevant Exposure(m) Distance to kerb of nearest road (m) CM5 – Shawhead, Coatbridge Roadside Automatic 273411 662997 NO2 PM10 PM2.5 22 20 CM6 – Kirkshaws, Coatbridge Roadside Automatic 272523 663030 NO2 PM10 PM2.5 20 8 CM3 – Calder Court, Whifflet Urban background Automatic 273674 663927 NO2 PM10 20 30 CM12 – Whifflet Cross A725 Roadside Automatic 273646 663867 NO2 PM10 16 20 DT118 – Shawhead roundabout Kerbside Diffusion Tube 273432 662965 NO2 30 2 DT119 – Kirkshaws Rd, Coatbridge Kerbside Diffusion Tube 273432 662965 NO2 30 2 DT134 – Whifflet Court, Coatbridge Kerbside Diffusion Tube 273655 664003 NO2 10 20 The diffusion tube monitoring sites have all been in place for several years (since before 2014). Automatic monitoring in the Whifflet area of the AQMA was initially sited in Calder Court, Whifflet, (identified as CM3) however a more representative location was identified, and this monitoring site was relocated in 2021 to Whifflet Cross A725 (CM12). Figure 4.1 illustrates the locations of monitoring points within the Coatbridge AQMA boundary. Figure 4.1 – Monitoring locations within/adjacent to Coatbridge AQMA boundary 5.0 Local Monitoring Data – Coatbridge AQMA Monitoring data for the period 2014 to 2023 from both the automatic and non-automatic air monitoring sites in/near the Coatbridge AQMA is presented in the tables below Page 19 of 158
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Table 5.1 Annual Mean NO2 Monitoring Results – Coatbridge AQMA Monitoring Site Monitoring Type 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 CM5 – Shawhead Automatic 32.4 36 30 28.5 20.7 20.3 16.0 14.2 13.5 14.9 CM6 – Kirkshaws Automatic 20.3 25 33 22 18.3 20.3 13.0 13.6 13 15.7 CM3 – Calder Court, Whifflet Automatic - - - - - 17.2 12.0 11.5 - - CM12 – Whifflet Cross Automatic - - - - - - - 13.9 17.2 17.2 DT119 – Shawhead roundabout Diffusion Tube 30.2 33.8 28.2 28.2 27.8 23.7 18.5 19.7 17.7 14.3 DT120 – Kirkshaws Road Diffusion Tube 36.2 34.1 30.9 31.3 26.5 24.4 18.9 20.5 16.2 14.1 DT134 – Whifflet Court Diffusion Tube 25 20.1 23 23 19.8 30.1 17.5 23.5 17.0 10.0 It can be seen from the monitoring data for NO2 that both automatic and non-automatic (diffusion tube) measured annual mean concentrations have shown a sustained reduction over the period 2014- 2023. In recent years, the post-pandemic period the levels have remained low, and well below the statutory annual mean air quality objective for which the Coatbridge is declared. Table 5.2 – Annual Mean PM10 Monitoring Results – Coatbridge AQMA Monitoring Site Monitoring Type 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 CM5 - Shawhead Automatic 13.3 16 12 14 4.9 10.0 8.0 9.1 9.4 8.7 CM6 – Kirkshaws Automatic 14.8 13 11 9 9.6 10.0 9.0 8.9 9.8 9.7 CM12 – Whifflet Cross A725 Automatic - - - - - - - 9.4 10.2 9.1 CM3 – Calder Court, Whifflet Automatic 13.1 12 12 11.4 6.9 13.5 8.0 8.5 - - It can be seen from the monitoring data presented in Table 5.2 above that the measured annual mean concentrations for PM10 have remained consistent over the past few years, post-pandemic, and have comfortably complied with the annual mean air quality objective for PM10 for which the Coatbridge AQMA was declared. Following the revocation of the Coatbridge AQMA monitoring of NO2 and PM10 will continue for at least one year at the existing monitoring locations. 6.0 Actions taken to improve air quality in Coatbridge AQMA Page 20 of 158
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With the declaration of AQMAs there is a subsequent requirement for the local authority to prepare and publish an Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP). An AQAP outlines a range of measures that the Council pledges to take to improve air quality in the AQMAs. North Lanarkshire Council has fulfilled this duty and published four AQAPs since the original declaration of the Coatbridge AQMA in 2005. North Lanarkshire Council has fulfilled this duty and published three AQAPs since the original declaration of the Coatbridge AQMA in 2005. The first AQAP was published in 2007. This was updated by the 2010- 2013 AQAP, the 2013-2018 AQAP, the 2018-2021 AQAP and the current AQAP 2023-2028. All the AQAPs contained a range of general measures aimed at the improvement of air quality across all North Lanarkshire, including the AQMAs as well as measures bespoke to the individual AQMAs where appropriate. Measures taken to improve air quality within the Coatbridge AQMA include:- • The upgrade of the M8/A8 included a re-design of the Shawhead junction which reduced congestion and allowed greater free flow of traffic through the AQMA and thus improving air quality. • Traffic light optimisation was undertaken for the traffic lights at Whifflet Cross. Again, this ensured greater flow of traffic in the Coatbridge AQMA. • Two car parks were constructed at the shopping areas in Whifflet. This enabled parking off the main carriageway so that the practice of parking on the main road is unnecessary and two lanes are available for the flow of traffic. 7.0 Conclusions and Recommendations Data from the monitoring equipment located in and adjacent to the Coatbridge AQMA has indicated sustained and ongoing compliance with annual mean statutory air quality objectives for both NO2 and PM10, for which the AQMA was declared. As such, in line with Section 83(2) of the Environment Act 1995 and statutory air quality guidance made in respect of this legislation, it is concluded that there is no longer a requirement for an AQMA in this area. As such it is concluded that the Coatbridge AQMA will be revoked in its entirety but that monitoring of NO2 and PM10 will continue for at least a year within this area following the revocation process. The current AQAP for North Lanarkshire will remain in place until its expiry in 2028. Page 21 of 158
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Appendix 2 Report in support of the revocation of Chapelhall AQMA REPORT IN SUPPORT OF REVOCATION OF CHAPELHALL AQMA, NORTH LANARKSHIRE Page 22 of 158
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Local Authority Officer Fiona Maguire Department Protective Services Address Civic Centre, Windmillhill Street, Motherwell, ML1 1AB Email maguiref@northlan.gov.uk Report Reference Revocation Proposal Chapelhall AQMA Status (version control) Final Date September 2024 Page 23 of 158
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Contents 1. Background 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Legislation 1.3 Summary of proposal 2. Description of AQMA a. Pollutants declared for and time intervals, date declared b. Description and extent of AQMA 3. Description of local sources a. Local sources b. Action Planning measures which have been implemented c. Changes to local sources from measures which have been implemented or changes to local circumstances for emission sources 4. Local monitoring equipment a. Automatic monitoring in Coatbridge AQMA b. Non-automatic monitoring in Coatbridge AQMA 5. Local monitoring data a. Results and data interpretation from automatic monitoring site b. Results and data interpretation from non-automatic monitoring sites 6. Actions taken to improve air quality in Chapelhall AQMA 7. Conclusions and recommendations Page 24 of 158
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1. BACKGROUND 1.1 Introduction Air pollution is associated with several adverse health impacts including exacerbating respiratory conditions and heart disease. There is also a strong correlation with equalities issues because areas with poor air quality are often the less affluent areas. North Lanarkshire Council is committed to reducing the exposure of people in North Lanarkshire to poor air quality to improve health. 1.2 Legislation and policy To prevent, control and minimise atmospheric emissions that are harmful to human health and the environment, legislation and policies at European, national and regional levels have been put in place. European Legislation The European Union (EU) published a Directive on Ambient Air Quality Assessment and Management which came into force in September 1996 (Union Council of the European Union, 1996). This Directive was intended as a strategic framework for tackling air quality in a consistent manner, through setting European wider air quality limit values in a series of daughter directives, superseding and extending European legislation. The first four daughter directives were placed into national legislation. A new EU air quality directive (European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, 2008) came into force in June 2008 and was transposed into the Air Quality Standards Regulations in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in June 2010). The directive merged the four daughter directives and one Council decision into a single directive on air quality. The Directive requirements have been retained in domestic legislation following the UK’s exit from the EU. National Legislation The Environment Act 1995 (HM Government, 1995) required the preparation of a national air quality strategy setting Air Quality Objectives (AQOs) for specified pollutants and outlining measures to be taken by local authorities through the system of Local Air Quality Management (LAQM). Local authorities are required to review and assess air quality within their areas under LAQM and to work in pursuit of the achievement of the statutory AQOs. Air Quality is a devolved matter and the AQOs which are relevant to LAQM have been set into regulations, namely Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations 2000 Air Quality (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2002 Air Quality (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 A summary of the relevant AQOs for this revocation report, namely Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) and Particulate Matter, PM10 is outlined in Table 1.1 Page 25 of 158
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Table 1.1 – Summary of AQOs for NO2 and PM10 in Scotland Pollutant AQO Concentration AQO Measured as Date to be achieved by Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) 40 µg/m3 200 µg/m3 not to be exceeded more than 18 times per year Annual Mean 1-hour Mean 31.12.2005 31.12.2005 Particulate Matter (PM10) 18 µg/m3 50 µg/m3 not to be exceeded more than 7 times per year Annual Mean 24-hour Mean 31.12.2010 31.12.2010 Cleaner Air for Scotland Strategy Cleaner Air for Scotland 2 – Towards a Better Place for Everyone (CAFS2) is Scotland’s second air quality strategy. CAFS2 sets out how the Scottish Government and its partner organisations propose to further reduce air pollution to protect human health and fulfil Scotland’s legal responsibilities over the period 2021-2026. CAFS2 was published in July 2021 and replaces Cleaner Air for Scotland – The Road to a Healthier Future (CAFS), which was published in 2015. CAFS2 aims to achieve the ambitious vision for Scotland “to have the best air quality in Europe”. A series of actions across a range of policy areas are outlined, a summary of which is available on the Scottish Government website. Local Air Quality Management The aforementioned AQOs have been set down in regulation for the purposes of the LAQM process. The Environment Act 1995 requires that local authorities undertake a tiered appraisal of air quality within their area to establish compliance or non-compliance with the targets detailed in the UK National Air Quality Strategy, and report on an annual basis. Where the AQOs are not met or are not likely to be met within the stated timescales for compliance the local authority must designate an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA). The boundary of the AQMA is set by the governing local authority and can be as large or as small as preferred, however it must include the area of exceedance, usually as determined through air quality monitoring. Where an AQMA has been declared the local authority must thereafter prepare an Air Quality Action Plan setting out the measures it intends to put in place in pursuit of the objectives. North Lanarkshire Council has three AQMAs – Coatbridge, Chapelhall and Motherwell Town Centre. This revocation proposal report focuses on the Chapelhall AQMA. The Coatbridge AQMA is also being revoked and this is the subject of a separate report. Following a minimum of three years of compliance with the AQOs, an AQMA may be revoked. Section 4 of Part IV of the Environment Act 1995 states that local authorities can amend or revoke an AQMA at any time as set out under section 83(2) of the 1995 Act. Where an authority considers it necessary to do this, the Scottish Government expects the authority to prepare a revocation proposal report containing all available supporting information to justify the revocation. This report must be approved by the Scottish Government prior to any changes taking effect. On completion of the AQMA revocation Page 26 of 158
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all statutory consultees, SEPA, businesses, members of the public and other interested parties in the vicinity of the AQMA will be notified. Monitored concentrations of the pollutants NO2 and PM10 at the monitoring locations within and adjacent to the Chapelhall AQMA have complied with the statutory AQOs for at least nine years. As such it is proposed that the Chapelhall AQMA is revoked in its entirety for both pollutants. Monitoring in this area will continue for a period of at least a year following the revocation. 1.3 Summary of proposal Page 27 of 158
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2. Description of Chapelhall AQMA The Chapelhall AQMA was originally declared in December 2005 because of air monitoring which identified likely breaches of the AQO for levels of PM10 at the automatic air monitoring station in Chapelhall at the junction of Main Street/Lauchope Street. Following this AQMA declaration an Emissions Inventory exercise was undertaken in 2007. This, combined with monitoring carried out over subsequent years indicated exceedances of NO2 as well as PM10 along the M8 at Coatbridge (Shawhead to Kirkshaws areas) and at Chapelhall. Monitoring reinforcing this was also reported in the 2011 Progress Report and the 2012 Updating and Screening Assessment. In the 2013 Progress Report it was suggested that a Detailed Assessment (including dispersion modelling) of the area was undertaken, and the Monklands Detailed Assessment (covering Coatbridge, Airdrie and Chapelhall areas) was carried out in 2013/14. This confirmed continued likely exceedances of the annual mean statutory air quality objectives for both PM10 and NO2 in the Chapelhall and Coatbridge AQMAs. Consequently, the Chapelhall AQMA was amended in 2014 to be declared for NO2 in addition to PM10. The geographical boundary of the Chapelhall AQMA is illustrated in Figure 2.1 Figure 2.1 – Boundary Map of Chapelhall AQMA Page 28 of 158
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3.0 Local Sources of air pollution in Chapelhall AQMA A source apportionment exercise was carried out by North Lanarkshire Council in 2018 with reference to the 2017-based National Atmospheric Emissions inventory (NAEI). The data was used to evaluate the emissions contributions from multiple source types within 1km x 1km grid squares covering the AQMAs. For each grid square, the road sources emissions were further analysed to identify contributions from motorcycles, cars, light goods vehicles (LGVs), buses and heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) using emissions factors and vehicle split information from Department of Transport data. Dispersion modelling was used to calculate the contribution to ambient annual mean concentrations of each pollutant from the main source groups at roadside receptors at different locations within each AQMA. The 1km x 1km grid square emissions were updated for expanded regional modelling studies in 2021 and 2022 using updated versions of the NAEI with no significant variation in the dominant sources. The modelled contributions to concentrations at roadside receptors within the AQMAs are therefore dominated by the same principal sources. Table 3.1 illustrates the source apportionment for each pollutant monitored in the Chapelhall AQMA. Table 3.1 Source apportionment in Chapelhall AQMA Pollutant Emissions Source Apportionment (NAEI 2020) Average Contribution to Annual Mean Concentration at Roadside Receptors in the AQMA Roads Other mobile (inc. air and rail) & Machinery Combustion Plant Other including Rural/Long Range Transportation Traffic Rural Background Other NO2 73% 10% 8% 9% 50% (c.80%/20% Cars, Motorbikes & LGV/Buses, Taxis & HGV) 35% 15% PM10 37% 8% 0% 55% 13% (c.75%/25% Cars, Motorbikes & LGV//Buses, Taxis & HGV) 85% 2% It can be seen from Table 3.1 that the main sources of average contribution to annual mean concentrations of NO2 at roadside receptors in the Chapelhall AQMA are 50% from traffic, 35% from the rural background and 15% from other sources. For PM10 the predominant source of annual mean concentrations is the rural background (85%) with a further 13% from road traffic emissions. 4.0 Monitoring Equipment in Chapelhall AQMA North Lanarkshire has operated an automatic air monitoring station for more than 20 years. This is situated at the junction of Main Street and Lauchope Street, in the village of Chapelhall, and is in the centre of the Chapelhall AQMA. Additional monitoring using Diffusion Tubes to monitor NO2 are also Page 29 of 158
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located in/adjacent to the Chapelhall AQMA. Figure 4.1 shows the monitoring locations within/adjacent to the Chapelhall AQMA and Table 4.1 outlines details of all monitoring sites within/adjacent to the Chapelhall AQMA. Figure 4.1 – Monitoring locations within/adjacent to Chapelhall AQMA boundary Page 30 of 158
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Table 4.1 – Details of Monitoring Sites within/adjacent to Chapelhall AQMA Site Name/ID Site Type Type of Monitoring X OS Grid Ref Y OS Grid Ref Pollutants Monitored Distance to Relevant Exposure (m) Distance to kerb of nearest road (m) CM1 – Chapelhall Roadside Automatic 278174 663124 NO2 PM10 PM2.5 20 10 DT138 – Main St, Chapelhall (near shops) Roadside Diffusion Tube 278037 662798 NO2 10 2 DT139 – Main St/Lauchope St Junction, Chapelhall Roadside Diffusion Tube 278178 663111 NO2 10 2 DT148 – lamp post R32, Main St, Chapelhall Kerbside Diffusion Tube 278105 663174 NO2 15 2 DT149 – lamp post R33 – Main St, Chapelhall Kerbside Diffusion Tube 278119 663075 NO2 15 2 The automatic monitor in Chapelhall has been in place for a long period of time which has enabled trend data to be established over a long period. Similarly, the NO2 diffusion tubes have also been in place for an extended period of time. This monitoring will remain in place for a period of at least a year following the revocation of the Chapelhall AQMA. 5.0 Local Monitoring Data – Chapelhall AQMA Monitoring data for the period 2014 to 2023 from both the automatic and non-automatic air monitoring sites in/adjacent to the Chapelhall AQMA is presented in the tables below. Table 5.1 – Annual Mean NO2 Monitoring Results – Chapelhall AQMA Monitoring Site Monitoring Type 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 CM1 – Chapelhall Automatic 32.7 33.5 32 33.8 27.7 21.7 18.0 14.8 13.8 18.2 DT138 – Main St, Chapelhall (near shops) Diffusion Tube 23.6 26.9 24.3 25 22.7 23.1 12.3 16.7 13.7 12.5 DT139 – Main St/Lauchope St junction, Chapelhall Diffusion Tube 35.6 33.8 30.1 39 29.4 28.1 18.1 22.8 21.1 17.0 Page 31 of 158
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DT148 – lamp post R32, Main St, Chapelhall Diffusion Tube 29.8 35.4 28.7 28.8 31.2 28.0 17.6 20.6 19.1 13.9 DT149 – lamp post R33, Main St, Chapelhall Diffusion Tube 34.4 26.8 31.9 31 26.9 29.1 17.2 20.7 16.4 14.3 It can be seen from the annual mean NO2 monitoring data that all levels have complied with the statutory AQO for annual mean NO2 for a considerable period. Although there has been a rise in measured concentrations at the automatic air monitoring station from 2022 to 2023 the levels are still well below pre-pandemic levels, and still comfortably below the AQO for annual mean NO2. This slight rise in annual mean has not been noted in diffusion tube results for 2022 to 2023. Table 5.2 – Annual Mean PM10 Monitoring Results – Chapelhall AQMA Monitoring Site Monitoring Type 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 CM1 – Chapelhall Automatic 19.2 18.5 15.4 12 10.2 10.0 9.0 9.4 9.9 9.7 Annual mean PM10 results at the automatic air monitoring station within the Chapelhall AQMA have shown a steady and sustained reduction in the period 2014 to 2023. In recent years, post-pandemic, the levels have remained stable, and comfortably below the AQO for annual mean PM10. Following the revocation of the Chapelhall AQMA monitoring of PM10 and NO2 will continue for at least one year at the existing monitoring locations. 6.0 Actions taken to improve air quality in Chapelhall AQMA With the declaration of AQMAs there is a subsequent requirement for the local authority to prepare and publish an Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP). An AQAP outlines a range of measures that the Council pledges to take to improve air quality in the AQMAs. North Lanarkshire Council has fulfilled this duty and published three AQAPs since the original declaration of the Chapelhall AQMA in 2005. The first AQAP was published in 2007. This was updated by the 2010-2013 AQAP, the 2013-2018 AQAP, the 2018-2021 AQAP and the current AQAP 2023-2028. All the AQAPs contained a range of general measures aimed at the improvement of air quality across the whole North Lanarkshire area, including the AQMAs, as well as measures bespoke to the individual AQMAs where appropriate. Measures undertaken specifically in relation to the Chapelhall AQMA include: • Anecdotal evidence suggested that HGV traffic was leaving the M8 motorway and using the route through the Chapelhall AQMA (A73) to join the M80 in the north. The declassification of the B799 Lauchope Street took place in 2012 in order that this road did not appear as a potential route on sat nav equipment, and was regarded as suitable for use by local traffic only. Page 32 of 158
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The nearby Lancaster Avenue re-named the B799 to reduce congestion in the area. This had the effect of reducing congestion through the Chapelhall AQMA. • A Detailed Assessment, including dispersion modelling was carried out on the A73 corridor in 2013/14 and again in 2019 to identify and quantify localised hot spots of elevated levels of pollution along the route, which runs through the Chapelhall AQMA. • Several different engineering solutions have been tried on Lauchope Street, Chapelhall, aimed at reducing inappropriate traffic such as HGVs as well as speeding traffic through the village. Speed restrictions and chicanes were installed in 2019 however they were removed after two years, in 2021 due their inefficacy and unpopularity with the residents. These were replaced with speed tables which have been more effective in slowing traffic through the village which has in turn led to less of a bottleneck at the main junction of Lauchope Street and Main Street at the centre of the Chapelhall AQMA. 7.0 Conclusions and Recommendations Data from the monitoring located in and adjacent to the Chapelhall AQMA has indicated sustained and ongoing compliance with the annual mean statutory air quality objectives for both NO2 and PM10 for which the Chapelhall AQMA was declared. As such, in line with Section 83(2) of the Environment Act 1995 and statutory air quality guidance made in respect of this legislation, it is concluded that there is no longer a requirement for an AQMA in this area. As such it is concluded that the Chapelhall AQMA will be revoked in its entirety but that monitoring of NO2 and PM10 will continue for at least a year within this area following the revocation process. The current AQAP for North Lanarkshire will remain in place until its expiry in 2028. Page 33 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☐ Yes ☒ No Ref PB/MM Date 30/10/24 Investigation into the potential for a vape recycling scheme From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail RennieLy@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary In response to the composite motion No. 7 raised at full Council on 20 June 2024, an investigation was conducted to explore the feasibility and implementation of a Vape Recycling Scheme, using Council facilities such as One Stop Shops, Libraries and Leisure Centres as drop off points. The primary objective was to establish accessible and visible vape recycling drop off points across North Lanarkshire and implement a consumer awareness campaign. The logistical requirements and feasibility of integrating these recycling points into Council facilities such as First Stop Shops, Libraries and Leisure Centres was assessed and deemed unfeasible due to the liability, cost and risks associated with collecting vapes in a non-retail environment. The investigation highlighted that in January 2024, vape take back became a legal responsibility of retailers in accordance with The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations 2013 with enforcement recently coming into effect. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment & Climate Change Committee: (1) Support a consumer campaign to increase awareness of vape recycling, including improvements in the current signage and information available at civic amenity sites (HWRCs) to improve visibility and accessibility of vape recycling points. (2) Endorse a targeted campaign to drive up retailer compliance and increase the availability of vape takeback facilities in retail premises legally bound to comply with WEEE Regulations. This should be done in partnership between the Council Trading Standards team and the Office of Product Safety and Standards, the enforcement agency responsible for ensuring retailer compliance with the WEEE Regulations. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve the health and wellbeing of our communities Ambition statement (17) Ensure we keep our environment clean, safe, and attractive Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Item 3 Page 35 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 A composite motion to Council on 20 June 2024 agreed to investigate the potential for a Vape Recycling Scheme, providing accessible and visible vape recycling drop off points, using council facilities such as One Stop Shops, Libraries and Leisure Centres. 1.2 The motion recommended a consumer awareness campaign promoting safe vape recycling with all stakeholders signposting to existing vape recycling bins at civic amenity sites (HWRC). 1.3 There was agreement the motion would be explored and actioned through response to the Environment & Climate Change Committee. 1.4 In 2019, single-use vapes were introduced to the market. Their popularity surged, but there was a lack of infrastructure to manage their disposal. Due to the nature of the product, particularly the lithium-ion battery they contain, vapes are extremely volatile and pose a significant environmental risk when littered or collected with other waste streams. 1.5 In January 2024, vapes were excluded from the Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS) https://dts.valpak.co.uk/ for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) requiring retailers to offer take back at their own expense. 1.6 Vapes are classified as small WEEE (Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment). The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations 2013 provide that all retailers selling small WEEE must offer a free take back service and provide customers access to written information on the service provided and what they should do with their WEEE. Retailers are not required to take back small WEEE on a like for like basis. This means they can accept any small WEEE, such as vapes, regardless of if a customer is purchasing a new product. 1.7 The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), part of the UK government’s Department for Business and Trade, is responsible for enforcing Regulations related to the takeback of vapes and other small Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). 1.8 Compliance with the current WEEE Regulations by vape producers is estimated to be low. This includes low levels of awareness amongst store owners and distributors about takeback obligations, as well as low levels of customer participation. Material Focus, an independent, not-for-profit organisation, reports an average of 7.7 million single-use vapes are sold every week in the UK and 5 million single-use vapes are binned each week. A four-fold increase since 2022 Disposable single-use vapes thrown away have quadrupled to 5 million per week (materialfocus.org.uk). 1.9 North Lanarkshire Council receives free collection of WEEE goods from our 6 HWRCs as part of the WEEE Producer Compliance Scheme (PCS). The recycling centres are located in Airdrie, Bellshill, Coatbridge, Cumbernauld, Netherton and Shotts. This is a service in which all the manufacturers pay into the scheme to fund the collection and disposal of the goods. This is a free service provided to all DCF’s (Designated Collection Facilities). 1.10 Vapes are composed of valuable resources including steel, aluminium, copper and lithium. Disposal of vapes in general waste creates a fire risk due to the lithium-ion battery inside them. It is reported that over 700 bin lorry and recycling fires have been Page 36 of 158
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caused by improper disposal of batteries in 2023 more than 700 reported fires caused by lithium-ion batteries. In May, Cambridgeshire reported seven bin lorry fires caused by lithium-ion batteries including those from vapes. Seven Cambridgeshire bin lorry fires caused by batteries - BBC News 1.11 According to the Material Focus report, 90% of the 60 local authorities surveyed reported fires caused by batteries are an increasing problem. 2. Report Investigation into the potential for a vape recycling scheme 2.1 The financial implications of introducing a Vape Recycling Scheme were investigated. Any collection facility outside a HWRC would fall outwith the Producer Compliance Scheme (PCS), resulting in a charge for collection. The costs associated with the collection of vapes, which are not collected as part of a PCS, are detailed in the table below: Item Cost Cost per kilo £12 Collection fee £45 Environment Agency Fee £10 2.2 In addition to the collection service, there is a one-off fee for the purchase of the collection containers. All costs listed are exclusive of VAT. Four 5 litre buckets cost £15, 15 litre collection tubes cost £40 each and 20 litre drums cost £45 each, as noted in Appendix A. 2.3 Due to the varying sizes and weights of vapes it is difficult to quantify the average weight that can be anticipated in each collection container. However, using the average weight for each container provides the total costs per uplift is detailed below: 2.4 The annual financial cost of introducing vape recycling containers to each of the Libraries, First Stop Shops and Leisure Centres across North Lanarkshire is not the principal concern to the officers who undertook this investigation. The primary consideration is the risks and potential liabilities associated with placing vape recycling bins in public Council buildings. These risks include the inadvertent access to used vapes by individuals under the age of 18 and the fire risk due to the presence of lithium batteries in these products. The volatility of lithium batteries can lead to dangerous situations if not handled properly. 2.5 It was concluded that, although the implementation costs may not be prohibitive, the associated risks and resource burdens which would be placed upon the Council make Collection Container size (ltr) Ave. Kgs Cost / Kg Collection Cost EA Cost Total Collection Cost 5 3.8 12£ 45£ 10£ 101£ 15 11.5 12£ 45£ 10£ 193£ 30 23 12£ 45£ 10£ 331£ Page 37 of 158
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implementation unfeasible. We are critically short of staffing resources, and it would be inappropriate to take on this role, which is not part of our remit, when we should be requiring the vape retailers to abide by their legal responsibility to provide a takeback facility. 2.6 Instead of the Council implementing recycling facilities in our buildings, we can work with enforcement partners in OPSS to achieving full legal compliance, ensuring recycling facilities are placed in all vape retail premises across the whole Council area and in the heart of communities where the vapes are purchased, normalising the consumer behaviour of buying and disposing of vapes responsibly and safely. Improving current compliance rate 2.7 To assist with the assessment of vape recycling facilities across North Lanarkshire, a vape takeback project was initiated in September 2024. The Scottish Government’s Register of Tobacco and Nicotine Vapour Product Retailers is a mandatory registration system for businesses that sell tobacco and nicotine vapour products (NVPs), such as e-cigarettes and vapes. This register was established to ensure compliance with Regulations and to help control the sale of these products. Currently, 322 premises are registered to sell NVPs across North Lanarkshire. 2.8 The Scottish Government register was utilised to identify vape retail premises across various locations including Motherwell, Wishaw, Bellshill, Coatbridge, Airdrie, Cumbernauld, Kilsyth, Newmains, Shotts, and Cleland. A total of 101 covert visits were conducted to these retailers to enquire about the availability of vape recycling bins. The findings revealed that only 24 out of 101 businesses visited provided vape takeback within their retail premise, indicating a compliance rate of just 23.7%. See appendix B for breakdown of premises visited and vape recycling bins made available to the public. 2.9 Officers from our Trading Standards services have liaised with OPSS to confirm they are progressing efforts to drive up compliance and are currently carrying out a vape enforcement campaign. 2.10 OPSS aims to check compliance of vape retailers, ensuring they provide a vape takeback facility in accordance with the WEEE Regulations through; • The availability of a waste vapes bin instore. • Information for customers stating they offer takeback and how customers can dispose of their vapes. • Records of takeback and collections for a minimum of 4 years. 2.11 In recent months, OPSS has worked with supermarkets ensuring the rollout of 10,000+ vape bins in stores. The next phase of enforcement will focus on the compliance of UK petrol stations, ensuring all filling stations selling vapes operate a takeback scheme. A phased risk-based enforcement approach will be implemented with vape retailers directly, to check for compliance on the WEEE takeback nationwide. 2.12 OPSS are developing a webinar for vape enforcement agencies, vape manufacturers, producers, importers, retailers and trade bodies on the requirements of the WEEE takeback. OPSS collaborated with the Association Of Convenience Stores and developed guidance for vape retailers, which can be accessed here: Selling Vapes | ACS | The Association of Convenience Stores Page 38 of 158
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2.13 The Scottish Government has set targets for Trading Standards to conduct education and advice visits to 20% of the 322 registered NVP retailers in North Lanarkshire. These visits aim to inform retailers about the legal requirements for age-restricted products. Additionally, officers will check if the retailers offer a vape takeback scheme and provide guidance on the importance of implementing such a scheme. 2.14 A monthly report will be sent to OPSS to pass on intelligence regarding retailers that fail to operate a takeback scheme following advice and guidance. Increasing compliance by just 10% would increase the availability of vape recycling bins in North Lanarkshire by 33, supplementing the facilities already provided by compliant businesses. 2.15 Two pieces of legislation will have an impact on the future of vaping, The Tobacco and Vaping Bill 2024, aimed at reducing smoking and vaping among young people and the ban on disposable vapes to be introduced by the Scottish Government through Regulations to come into force on 1 April 2025. The Bill is expected to include measures to reduce the appeal and availability of vaping products by regulating the flavours, contents, packaging and presentation of vapes. The ban on disposable vapes is expected to prohibit the supply of single use vapes. 2.16 While the upcoming ban on disposable vapes in Scotland aims to reduce their availability, there are concerns that new products designed to circumvent the definition of single-use vapes may still be widely available. These new vapes, although technically not classified as single-use, may remain low in price and could continue to be used in a similar manner. 2.17 This situation highlights the challenge of regulatory measures keeping pace with market innovations. It will be important for relevant authorities such as OPSS to monitor the market closely and potentially update Regulations to address these new products effectively. 2.18 Increasing the availability of vape recycling facilities in retail premises is essential for encouraging responsible consumer behaviour. By offering convenient recycling options at the point of purchase, retailers can motivate customers to dispose of used vapes properly when buying new ones. Integrating vape recycling bins in retail locations is an effective way to drive positive behavioural change. 2.19 In March 2024, Material Focus reported that over 90% of retailers were not fulfilling their statutory obligations to provide and pay for takeback and recycling of vapes. The recent project in North Lanarkshire, identifying 23% of retailers are offering takeback, shows positive progress to bring retailers into compliance. Consumer education campaign 2.20 Research by Material Focus in 2023 identified that only 17% of vapers recycle their vapes correctly. The study found that 5 million disposable vapes are thrown away each week in the UK, a fourfold increase since 2022. Five million vapes thrown away every week - research - BBC News 2.21 To align with Zero Waste Scotland’s ‘Recycle Week’ campaign which will run from 14 to 20 October 2024, a comprehensive consumer education campaign will be publicised Page 39 of 158
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through the Council’s social media channels. The campaign aims to inform the public about the risks of incorrectly disposing of vapes and promote proper recycling practices and will be repeated monthly. 2.22 The campaign will highlight the availability of vape recycling at HWRCs and the requirement for retailers of vapes to operate a takeback scheme. It is also important to note that access to our HWRCs is only available to members of the public arriving in vehicles; we do not allow public access to these sites on foot in the interests of health and safety. Material Focus offers a search tool with clear steps on how to use the search engine to find the nearest vape recycling facility by entering a postcode - Electrical recycling - Where to recycle & donate - Recycle Your Electricals 2.23 Vapes will be added to the accepted waste type through a banner on the NLC recycling centre page - Accepted and non-accepted waste types at household waste recycling centres | North Lanarkshire Council 2.24 Improved signage at the HWRCs will be implemented to increase the visibility and perceived accessibility of vape recycling. 3. Measures of success 3.1 Increased consumer awareness around vape recycling. 3.2 Improved availability of vape takeback in retail premises, increasing vape recycling facilities by a minimum of 33 bins by the end of April 2025. 3.3 Increase in the number of vapes recycled at HWRCs, reducing the risk of fires in our bin lorries and at waste recycling centres. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 Image of disposal bins available to purchase Appendix 2 Graph showing number of retail premises visited and recycling bins identified Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 40 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality- and-fairer-scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 41 of 158
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? A consumer education campaign as highlighted in paragraphs 2.19 and 2.20 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 42 of 158
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Appendix 1 Image of disposal bins available to purchase Appendix 2 Graph showing number of retail premises visited and recycling bins identified Page 43 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref IM Date 30/10/24 Review of Business Regulation Fees and Charges From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail RennieLy@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary This report presents elected members with a review of some Business Regulation fees currently charged by Protective Services in North Lanarkshire Council, a comparison with those charged by other Scottish local authorities and suggests new proposed fees which more accurately reflect the true cost of delivery of the Service. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Acknowledge the contents of this report; and (2) Endorse and approve the new fees. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve the health and wellbeing of our communities Ambition statement (14) Ensure the highest standards of public protection Programme of Work Statutory / corporate / service requirement Item 4 Page 45 of 158
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1. Background 1.1. Local authority Environmental Health services are responsible for undertaking a number of statutory functions for which they are able to charge, including: • Certificates of Compliance for Street Traders selling food; • Section 50 Certificates in relation to structural food hygiene requirements of licensed premises; • Export Certificates; and • Skin Piercing and Tattooing Licensing. 1.2. In North Lanarkshire, functions relating to food law and to skin piercing and tattooing licensing rest with Business Regulation, an Environmental Health team within Protective Services. 2. Report 2.1. One of the key principles of the approved Revenue Resources Budget Strategy is that ‘’Future charging models for services provided will be informed by benchmarking and the principles of full cost recovery. Once costs are established on this basis, future increases will be index-linked. Additionally, consideration will be given to appropriate revenue generating opportunities‘’. 2.2. North Lanarkshire Council (NLC) does not currently charge for the undernoted services and it is considered that these charges should be introduced in line with many other local authorities: • Certificates of Compliance for street traders whose vehicle is garaged within NLC but they only operate outwith our jurisdiction, and therefore do not submit a NLC street trader’s licence application. • Certificates of Compliance for street traders who operate within North Lanarkshire Council and therefore submit a street traders licence application. At the time of writing this report we are linking in with Licensing to establish the most effective way to implement this for applicants. • Section 50 certificates for fixed premises issued under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005. These details are further explained in paragraphs 2.9 and 2.10 of this report. 2.3. Currently, North Lanarkshire Council does charge for the undernoted services, however it was considered necessary to undertake a review to ensure full cost recovery: • Food Export Certificates. • Skin Piercing and Tattooing Licensing. Certificates of Compliance - Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 2.4. Under section 39 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, where a street trader’s licence application is made in respect of an activity which consists of a food business within the meaning of section 1(3) of the Food Safety Act 1990 and involves the use of a vehicle, kiosk or moveable stall, the licensing authority requires there to be produced to them a certificate of compliance which has been granted by the food authority. 2.5. Each Certificate of Compliance is valid for 3 years. Page 46 of 158
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2.6. It is the Business Regulation Team within Protective Services which certifies mobile food units as meeting the requirements of the Food Hygiene (Scotland) Regulations 2006, the structural requirements laid down in EC Regulation 852/2004, Article 4(2), Annex II, and the Scottish Mobile Traders National Food Hygiene Standard, before they can be issued with a street trader’s licence. 2.7. Protective Services issues these certificates to enable food business operators to apply for street trader’s licences from North Lanarkshire Council and from other local authorities: • For traders who intend to operate within North Lanarkshire, their application for a Certificate of Compliance forms part of their street trader’s licence application. The application fee does not currently include the fee for the certificate of compliance; and • For traders who garage their vehicle within North Lanarkshire and trade only outside of the North Lanarkshire boundaries, they do not require a street trader’s licence from North Lanarkshire Council and as such apply directly to Protective Services for a certificate of compliance, for which no fee is currently charged. 2.8. We propose to introduce a charge for Certificates of Compliance as noted in Appendix 1 to this report, regardless of whether the application is received directly by Protective Services or indirectly via Licensing in conjunction with the street traders’ licence application. Section 50 Certificates in Relation to Food Hygiene - Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 2.9. Under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005, a premises licence application and provisional licence application for any premises on which food is to be supplied, must be accompanied by a Certificate / Provisional Certificate as to the suitability of premises for which the grant of a premises licence or confirmation of a provisional licence is sought, in relation to food hygiene. 2.10. The food hygiene certificate states that the subject premises complies with the requirements of the Food Hygiene (Scotland) Regulations 2006 relating to construction, layout, drainage, ventilation, lighting and water supply concerned with the provision of sanitary and washing facilities or, in respect of a provisional licence application, will comply with the aforesaid according to proposed plans as provided. 2.11. It is Protective Services which issues these certificates upon application by the business. There is currently no charge for provision of these. We propose to charge for Section 50 food hygiene certificates and provisional certificates as noted in Appendix 1 to this report. Export Certificates 2.12. Protective Services provide businesses with Export Certificates confirming compliance with Food Safety Act 1990 and Food Hygiene (Scotland) Regulations 2006 at the time of the last inspection. Export certificates can also relate to analysis of a particular product which is analysed at Council expense, as part of Official Controls, which cannot be charged for. 2.13. Export certificates are not regarded as official controls and as such it is something which local authorities can and do charge for. Page 47 of 158
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2.14. Our current charge for export certificates which we provide is regardless of whether they are issued electronically or as physical certificates or both. Pre 2020, export certificates were issued as physical certificates, however due to the Pandemic restrictions, we started to issue electronic versions. Approximately half of the certificates we now issue annually are as electronic versions, with the remainder being issued as physical certificates or as both physical certificates and electronic versions. The preference by business can be dependent on both the importer preference and the destination country. 2.15. It was considered that a review of fees and charges should reflect the variations in the request of these, as the demand of resource from the Service varies dependent on the format requested. In addition, where certificates refer to analysis of products, it was considered that the analysis costs should be borne by the business and not the local authority, where it has not been sampled as part of Official Controls. 2.16. All samples which are taken during food law interventions which are sent to an official laboratory constitute official control samples, and are not charged for. However, there can be samples submitted for export certificate purposes which are taken at the request of the business for the purpose of the export certificates and are not considered to be official controls and as such may be charged for. 2.17. The laboratory units required for congeners (minor compounds other than ethanol that occur naturally in alcohol beverages as a result of distilling and fermenting processes) and alcohol by volume (ABV) are detailed in Appendix 1 to this report. For exporters which require further analysis beyond congeners and ABV, the price would be available on request from the laboratory as this would reflect the requirements requested and the laboratory units required. For exporters of food other than alcohol which require analysis/examination of products for export beyond sampling done as part of official controls, the price would be available on request from the laboratory, and this would reflect the requirements requested and the laboratory units required. It is proposed that all analysis/examination will be done at cost. 2.18. We propose to vary the export certificate fees depending on the format(s) requested and to introduce a sampling fee for export purposes, as noted in Appendix 1 to this report. It should be noted that other Local Authorities charge an enhanced fee for exports to China, due to additional administrative burdens that the process entails for products of animal origin (POAO). Currently we are not providing export certificates for POAO exports to China, but we will review charges accordingly if a request for certification of POAO to that destination is made. 2.19. The sampling fee would include the analysis/examination cost (as charged by the laboratory) plus an NLC sampling processing fee. Skin Piercing and Tattooing Licensing 2.20. The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Skin Piercing and Tattooing) Order 2006 (the Order) enables local authorities to licence those who carry out skin piercing and tattooing activities as a business. This licensing process is undertaken by Protective Services. The Order lays out a number of requirements in relation to key issues aimed at reducing, if not removing, risks to public health from these practices. In addition, there is a Local Authority Implementation Guide which was developed by the Scottish Licensing of Skin Piercing and Tattooing Working Group to assist local authorities in the licensing of skin piercers and tattooists. Each licence is valid for 3 years. Page 48 of 158
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2.21. The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 Schedule 1 Paragraph 1(1) includes that ‘’an application to a licensing authority for the grant or renewal of a licence, shall be… accompanied by such fee as the authority may charge under paragraph 15 below’’. Paragraph 15 includes that in determining the amount of the different fees under sub- paragraph (1) above, the licensing authority shall seek to ensure that from time to time the total amount of fees receivable by the authority is sufficient to meet the expenses of the authority in exercising their functions under Parts I and II of this Act and this schedule’’. 2.22. In terms of Regulation 2 of the Order, the carrying on of a business which provides skin piercing or tattooing is designated as an activity for which a licence under Part I of the 1982 Act is required. It was considered that a review of fees and charges should be undertaken to ensure full cost recovery for this licensing process. 2.23. A review was undertaken of the following and in all cases fell short of full cost recovery: a) Application - Premises where operator works alone, employs others or rents out space to self-employed operators. b) Renewal - Premises where operator works alone, employs others or rents out space to self-employed operators. c) Application - Self-employed operators working within a premises licence issued to another operator. d) Renewal - Self-employed operators working within a premises licence issued to another operator. e) Application Variation (regarding e.g. named employee, manager etc.). 2.24. We currently have a total of 94 skin piercing and tattooing licences. 2.25. We propose to raise the licence fees as noted in Appendix 1 to this report. 3. Measures of success 3.1. Increased cost recovery and maintenance of good governance in respect of income, assisting in the maintenance and improvement of the Council’s resource base whilst minimising financial impact on local businesses. 3.2. Continued provision of a high-quality service which enables relevant legislative compliance. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 - Proposed new fees relating to Business Regulation fees and charges. Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 49 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality- and-fairer-scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 50 of 158
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 51 of 158
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Appendix 1 - Proposed new fees relating to Business Regulation fees and charges. Proposed Fees and Charges Revision Service Current Charge Proposed Charge Scottish Average Scottish Median Numbers 2023-2024 Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 Certificate of Compliance for street trader food business 0 £137.00 £108.03 £108.63 49 LICENSING SCOTLAND ACT 2005 Section 50 Certificate in relation to food hygiene 0 £197.00 £181.82 £150.00 25 Section 50 Provisional Certificate in relation to food hygiene 0 £122.00 No detail readily available No detail readily available EXPORT CERTIFICATES Physical Certificate £63.11 £80.00 £71.47 £61.31 260 Electronic Version £63.11 £64.00 Physical Certificate & Electronic Version £63.11 £97.00 SAMPLING & ANALYSIS/EXAMINATION COSTS FOR EXPORT PURPOSES Congeners 0 16.9 Units* No detail readily available No detail readily available 15 ABV 0 3.0 Units* Congeners & ABV 0 19.9 Units* Spirits Export -For further analysis beyond congeners and ABV, price available on request & will reflect requirements requested 0 Available on Request 0 Other Foods Export-price available on request & will reflect requirements requested 0 Available on Request 0 NLC Sample processing (per sample) 0 £41.00 15 Page 52 of 158
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SKIN PIERCING & TATTOOING LICENSING APPLICATIONS Initial Application-Premises where operator works alone, employs others or rents out space to self- employed £310.24 £364.00 £408.92 £372.50 27 Renewal- Premises where operator works alone, employs others or rents out space to self- employed £213.11 £260.00 353.58 £301.00 Initial Application-Self-employed working with a premises licence issued to another operator £146.11 £282.00 320.24 £282.10 Renewal- Self-employed working with a premises licence issued to another operator £116.36 £246.00 422.18 £422.18 Application Variation (re named employee, manager etc). £49.75 £74.00 86.23 £70.00 Notes: Average and Median values both included. Scottish median and average highlighted yellow determined from limited figures available from other Las. Scottish median and average highlighted orange determined from significantly limited figures available from other Las. * Units are laboratory units, the cost of which are amended on an annual basis. Some LAs charges for export certificate are variable depending on quantities being exported. Some LAs charge the same price for renewals as they do for initial applications for skin piercing and tattooing licencing. Page 53 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment & Climate Change Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref LR/VA/HA Date 30/10/24 Climate Resilient Greenspaces and their Contribution to Improving Health From Lyall Rennie; Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail renniel@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary This report highlights some of the impactful work undertaken in the last 12 months to improve the health and wellbeing of North Lanarkshire’s residents through positive activities in our greenspaces. Using external funding from sources including Scottish Government Nature Recovery (Edinburgh Process Strand), Smarter Choices Smarter Places, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Walking for Health and Trees for Cities, together with internal one-off funds awarded to improve sustainability in parks, the Greenspace and Country parks teams continue to deliver more accessible, connected, biodiverse spaces for the residents of North Lanarkshire and our visitors to enjoy. Detail is also provided on proposed future projects to enhance the local greenspaces of North Lanarkshire. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Acknowledge the continued significant effort being made on delivering on the Sustainable Futures Programme of Work, particularly through developing nature- based adaptations to climate change. (2) Recognise the planned investment this year across a further range of activities including the delivery of further enhancement projects contributing towards tackling the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change through investing in our vital greenspaces. (3) Recognise the impact that these positive interventions can have on addressing inequalities in accessing greenspace. (4) Acknowledge the teams’ success in securing significant external funding and the wide-ranging positive impacts of greenspace projects, that bring benefits across many other service areas (health, education, active travel and climate change). (5) Endorse the continued introduction of suitable No Mow sites as identified. Item 5 Page 55 of 158
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The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve the health and wellbeing of our communities Ambition statement (16) Transform our natural environment to support wellbeing and inward investment and enhance it for current and future generations Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Page 56 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 This report provides an overview of how funding secured both internally and externally has been used to deliver towards priorities in the Sustainable Futures programme of work. Since 2021 the Greenspace and Country Parks team have successfully bid for and secured over £6.5m from external funding sources to enable projects to take place across our greenspaces. This report updates on progress since the last report to this committee in November 2023. 1.2 Work continues to facilitate participation in activities in local greenspaces that help to reduce the burden on NHS services. Greenspace Scotland’s 2023-2028 strategy1 describes the power of greenspaces in the cost-effective contribution that high quality, nature-rich and multi-functional greenspaces and blue-green infrastructure can make across the policy spectrum to: • Tackling the climate and nature emergencies. • Enhancing our lives, improving our health and wellbeing; and • Creating places. 1.3 Through many of the projects described in this report these contributions are demonstrated and their importance across the whole programme of work can be highlighted. 2. Report Countryside Ranger Service 2.1 The Countryside Ranger service has had another successful year completing the Open Space Strategy audit and conducting qualitative assessments of 671 sites (comprising 3,391 ha) across North Lanarkshire. All three temporary post holders have also moved internally to secure either permanent roles or extended temporary roles within the Community Greenspace team, retaining a valuable skill set within the council. 2.2 The team have also undertaken regular stewardship visits to the 30 priority greenspace sites that are considered areas of local importance for wildlife and people, this includes our 9 Local Nature Reserves and some sites of importance for nature conservation (SINCs). Site stewardship ensures any maintenance or anti-social behaviour issues are picked up at these sites ensuring a safe environment for users and reducing council liability risk. It also provides reassurance to users and encourages local use. 2.3 Work has continued and developed with volunteer groups at Greenhead Moss and Palacerigg Country Park, together with 7 Lochs volunteers, in carrying out practical conservation tasks as well as some path and pond construction projects. Figures reported as part of the Greenspace PI’s show that the equivalent cash value for the 2285 hours spent volunteering would be £22,850. These volunteers gain huge benefits in terms of mental and physical health from being involved in these projects, often they are individuals who have struggled with their mental health and these opportunities provide a chance to reconnect with society and their environment. 2.4 Educational visits also continue to be offered at our greenspace sites as schools are welcomed into nature to have a different and stimulating outdoor learning environment. We are also continuing to liaise with the Pathways team around sessions that we are able to offer in the 2024/25 academic year. 1 Ambitious for the Future - Strategy 2023-2028 | Greenspace Scotland Page 57 of 158
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2.5 The Countryside Ranger service is continuing to deliver successful Branching Out sessions at the three Country Parks. Branching Out is an outdoor therapeutic programme for adults who use mental health services in Scotland. Trained Countryside Rangers lead the group in various activities, including • conservation activities such as rhododendron clearance and bird box construction. • bushcraft such as fire lighting and shelter building; and • environmental art such as photography and willow sculptures. Autumn programmes have recently begun at Strathclyde and Palacerigg Country Parks. Testimony from one of the Clinical Support Workers attending with clients from a recent programme stated: “People benefit in many ways from completing the Programme. Their Mental Health improves which gives them the confidence to do other meaningful and worthwhile things such as voluntary work, return to work or seek employment and to maintain good mental and physical health”. 2.6 The Countryside Rangers also led a calendar of greenspace diary events seeing many individuals, families and interested groups undertake activities including: litter picks, invasive species removal, looking for bats and badgers during evening walks, building bird boxes and spotting wild mammals by the tracks and signs. Nature Restoration Fund (2023/24) 2.7 This funding is received as a part of the Scottish Government’s investment in Scotland’s natural environment fund projects that address the biodiversity and climate crisis by putting Scotland's species, woodlands, rivers and seas back on the road to recovery. Nature Restoration projects contribute to an increase in habitat protection, maintenance and creation, deliver against our Local Biodiversity Action Plan (LBAP) and help us to strengthen our Nature Networks2. They also provide an opportunity to increase people's understanding and awareness of local biodiversity. 2.8 In financial year 23/24 a total of £556k was allocated and used to deliver the projects outlined below, which have been reported to the Scottish Government as part of the grant process: • Seeding of native wildflower meadows across eight of our town parks with associated consultation and interpretation to involve and inform the communities about the benefits of meadows. 103ha of seeding was carried out (this is the equivalent of about a ¼ of Strathclyde County Park being covered in wildflowers). • A range of biodiversity enhancements across four cemeteries. Improvements included wildflower meadow planting (totalling an area of 3.4ha), installing bird and bat boxes, tree planting, hibernacula creation, introduction of amphibian ladders and wetland planting, some of this work continues into the autumn. • Conducting phase 1 habitat surveys (724ha) of eight of our Local Nature Reserves (LNRs) and creating updated management plans and prescriptions. The surveys identify areas of Invasive Non-Native Species (INNS). Site improvements include woodland management and enhancements at Cambusnethan LNR, Bog 2 A Nature Network is a joined-up system of places important for wild plants and animals, on land and in water. National Planning Framework 4 Page 58 of 158
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restoration works at Kingshill and Greenhead Moss LNRs, and Water Vole habitat improvements at Brownsburn LNR. Some of these works are continuing this winter. • An Invasive species management project focussing on the catchment area downstream of the Campsie Fells. This has been very successful, treatment is ongoing, and extended to include LNRs. We are also in discussions with the neighbouring Authority to see if there are any larger scale improvements we can work on in partnership. • Remembering Together planting of native trees and wildflowers as a backdrop to the council’s Covid 19 memorial in Strathclyde Country Park. The planting will benefit pollinators, which are an LBAP priority and create a stepping stone in the landscape for wildlife. • At Drumpellier Country Park (Blair Road entrance) invasive rhododendron has been removed, native trees have been planted creating a nature network to connect the landscape for bats and other species. Amenity grassland has been improved to wildflower areas. A pond has been created and 2 hibernacula built. Bee posts have been installed and the whole trail interpreted for people to learn more about the nature around them. • Some signage and interpretive artwork have been installed across various sites. This helps build public support for reducing close mown amenity grassland and increasing space for nature to thrive. • Mega Flora - A research meadows project investigating the best ways to convert amenity grass to space for nature has been carried out. 22.4ha have been seeded, plug planted and had bulbs added as well as implementing changes to their mowing regime. A public survey in Autumn 2024 was completed by over 160 people and showed that 86% of residents said they were very impressed or impressed. with the wildflower areas. The top three reasons people gave for wanting wildflower meadows were to provide vital shelter and food for wildlife, to make areas look more attractive and to reduce carbon emissions. Roughly a third of respondents provided an e-mail address and asked to be kept updated about future proposals. A report is being prepared summarising the different establishment techniques trialled, the fuel and carbon savings and an assessment of success and recommendations for any future projects. This will be available Spring 2025. Nature Restoration Fund (2024/25) 2.9 The following plans are in place for the current years allocation and will be progressed either this year or next depending on finance decisions on the best utilisation of these funds: • Places for People and Nature – Wildflower Meadows • Supporting Our Native Pollinators • Bringing Biodiversity to School Grounds • Biodiversity in Cemeteries Phase 2 • Ponds for People and Wildlife – Great Crested Newt • Invasive Non-native Species Eradication – Making Space for our Native Wildlife • Places for People and Nature – Connecting Local Nature Reserves • Reviewing our Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation. No Mow 2.10 Following a report to this committee in November 2023, selected areas across North Lanarkshire were trialled this year as ‘no mow’ sites to help create natural corridors to support and enhance local wildlife. The sites were selected by the service, with additional sites being requested by members of the public. Page 59 of 158
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2.11 Areas of longer grass and plants form habitats which can provide shelter, food and support for all kinds of wildlife like insects and birds, they also provide nesting sites for species such as hedgehogs and toads. The grasslands will enhance the ecosystem services in parks and provide benefits such as pollution control, flood reduction, and improved physical and mental wellbeing while people enjoy the grasslands and wildlife. 2.12 The eight sites were surveyed over the summer months to establish the species diversity after 3 months without mowing. The results showed that many of the sites were species rich and six of the eight have been recommended to remain as no mow or have their maintenance regime changed (to one cut and lift of arisings at the end of the flowering season or a reduction to two cuts per year). • South of Westfield Road, Cumbernauld (retain as no mow) • Lenziemill Road, Greenfaulds (retain – cut & lift at the end of September) • South Commonhead Avenue, Airdrie (unsuitable for no mow) • Innerleithan Drive, Wishaw (retain as no mow) • Coltness Road, Wishaw (unsuitable for no mow) • Gilburn Place, Shotts (retain – cut & lift at the end of September) • Stewarton Park, Wishaw (retain as no mow) • Woodilee Drive, Newarthill (recommend 2 cuts per year) 2.13 This project supports North Lanarkshire Council’s work on developing strong Nature Networks, a key requirement through the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy to protect 30% of land and seas for nature by 2030 - known as 30x30. The project also fulfils actions from the North Lanarkshire Biodiversity Action Plan, which supports the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy. It is hoped that further sites can be identified for inclusion in the project in 2025. Encouraging Walking & Cycling to and Around our Greenspaces 2.14 Five projects to the value of £105,075 were funded and delivered through the Scottish Government Smarter Choices Smarter Places programme in 2023/24: • Cycling activation (continued from previous year), a project to enable residents of North Lanarkshire to take part and use cycling as a mode of transport more often. • Introducing e-bikes to the fleet at Strathclyde Country Park, by enabling training courses for those involved with the on and off hire process, which will increase positive attitudes towards sustainable transport options. • The first stage of the core paths plan review was carried out by a consultant allowing the existing core path network to be scored against the updated criteria together with data from our condition survey. Some potential amendments to the network were identified during the internal consultation and they were also scored. GIS based maps and a final summary report were produced which will form part of the comprehensive draft core paths map for public consultation in 2025. • Production of a “Play on Pedals” digital map, providing information on physical activities, leisure pursuits, heritage and nature along with walking, cycling or scooting distances. The aim is that having this digital map will broaden residents’ knowledge of places to visit that are accessible using sustainable transport options. Page 60 of 158
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Get Walking Lanarkshire 2.15 Our health walk programme, Get Walking Lanarkshire was also part funded through the Smarter Choices Smarter Places fund and continues to be a very popular initiative reaching residents across Lanarkshire. Health walks, as well as benefiting physical health, are equally important for encouraging positive mental health. Meeting like- minded people helps participants to build their confidence and foster changes in their perceptions of their local area helping them to consider other transport options for getting to the walks or during their everyday lives. The project is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year and has marked this with some special events including four celebration walks and a video and poetry competition. The programme offers 31 Health walks per week as well as some specialist walks that are dementia friendly, cancer friendly and some British Sign Language walks for the deaf community. More than 11,300 people took part in a health walk with the project in the financial year 2023-24. 2.16 Transport Scotland has indicated that the behaviour change aspects of active travel funding have been amended for 2024/25. Funding will be provided directly to Regional Transport Partnerships to coordinate the delivery of behaviour change interventions, working closely with local authorities to identify suitable programmes and delivery partners. It is likely that the Get Walking Lanarkshire programme will not be eligible for this funding and is therefore seeking other funding options to enable its sustainability beyond its 10th anniversary year. Other ongoing projects 2.17 The Dumbreck & Garrell Project Officer is continuing to work with local groups and a new volunteer group to implement projects within Dumbreck LNR. Upcoming projects will see a focus on grassland management, celebrating salmon (with the project work delivering their return to spawning habitat in the upper reaches of the Garrell for the first time in 100years). 2.18 The Community Greenspace team are working with partners in developing projects for the ‘Nurturing Natural Connections’ project, a 5-year National Lottery Heritage funded project to further develop connections between people and nature in Cumbernauld. This project follows the previous successful completion of the Creating Natural Connections project, which enhanced greenspaces across Cumbernauld. It is anticipated that a submission will be made in February 2025 to the Lottery for a 4-year delivery phase. 3. Measures of success 3.1 Increased numbers of people being able to access wellbeing activities in parks (through projects such as Get Walking Lanarkshire, Branching Out, Greenspace Diary activities) and through the use of upgraded routes and signage, including the use of technology to access information. 3.2 Continued success in drawing in external funding to support greenspace projects in country parks and open spaces. 3.3 Increased positive public perception of the green and open spaces in North Lanarkshire and a better understanding of the nature that is protected within them. Page 61 of 158
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4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1: Example images of elements of the projects undertaken in 2023/24. Lyall Rennie Chief Officer, Community Operations 5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality- and-fairer-scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 62 of 158
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5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Positive impact of meadow creation and changes to grassland management and other habitat and species restoration noted in the main report. 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Page 63 of 158
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Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 64 of 158
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Appendix 1 Top row (l-r): ‘No Mow’ area Westfield Road, Cumbernauld; Get Walking Lanarkshire 10th anniversary walk (Forth & Clyde Canal); a pollinator (whose habitat we are managing & protecting through the Local Biodiversity Action Plan) Middle row (l-r): Countryside Ranger plug planting with school children at Dalzell Estate, Research meadows (top - Strathclyde Country Park; bottom – Ladywell Park) Bottom row (l-r): Clyde Climate Forest planting at Logans Road Motherwell, Town Park Meadow (Belhaven Park); Interpretation at Drumpellier Country Park nature trail. Images of elements of the projects undertaken in 2023/24. Page 65 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref VA/LR Date 30/10/24 Sustainable Futures - Tree Risk Asset Management Progress and Forestry & Woodland Operational Framework From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer - Community Operations E-mail renniely@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 1. Background Executive Summary This report outlines the continued work of the Tree Asset team in line with the Tree Risk Asset Management (TRAM) Strategy and the Council’s continued work toward reducing risk associated with Ash Dieback Disease across our tree assets. This report also introduces the draft Woodland & Forestry Framework, setting out the proposed management of woodland sites in council ownership over the next 12 years. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Endorse the continued and considerable amount of work of the expanded Tree Asset Team in line with the Tree Risk Asset Management (TRAM) Strategy and recognise the continuing financial burden in remediating the council’s risk in relation to tree assets. (2) Approve the development of a Service level Agreement for remediation of trees in other service areas to ensure all council owned trees are being managed for risk in line with the timescales adopted in the TRAM Strategy. (3) Approve the adoption of the draft Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework. (4) Endorse the continued contribution to the Clyde Climate Forest initiative through recent tree planting projects in Bellshill and North Motherwell. (5) Note efforts to explore external funding options for remediating medium risk Ash Dieback Disease in council woodlands. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve North Lanarkshire's resource base Ambition statement (17) Ensure we keep our environment clean, safe, and attractive Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Item 6 Page 67 of 158
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1.1 Since the last report to this committee in November 2023, inspection and remediation has been ongoing and a summary table of work achieved to date is outlined in appendix one. Remediation of ward 3 has proved challenging; initially the appointed contractor failed to carry out works (as previously reported) as large numbers of individual trees were located within amenity grass and shrub beds and adjacent to parked cars, which meant that access with the required machinery was challenging. Our own operatives have been undertaking the remainder of the identified jobs in this ward and there remain a small number of specialist jobs that we will instruct a contractor to complete this autumn / winter. 1.2 The data shows that we are on track for completing all initial inspections of high and medium risk zones within the first 3 years of the TRAM strategy, which gives us a much clearer picture of the health of our tree assets and allows us to keep on track with the frequency of inspections as set out. 1.3 Together with this positive work and to ensure that targets for remediation continue to be met in relation to the TRAM strategy (both internally and through the use of external contractors) and to continue our work to tackle Ash Dieback, the Tree Asset Management team has been expanded by 3FTE (3 arborists and 1 Project Development Officer (Arbor)). 1.4 A capital allocation was awarded in this capital programme to continue to deliver remediation of Ash dieback and TRAM priorities. 2. Report Tree Risk Asset Management Strategy 2.1 Since April 2022 when the TRAM strategy was introduced, the Tree Asset Management team has inspected red and amber risk zones in 17 council wards. Works to trees identified for remediation (including felling & pruning) have been completed in 5 wards with works scheduled or underway in a further 7 wards. Remediation of these wards (3, 7, 10, 11, 14, 18 and 20) is being scheduled over winter which will see a total of 876 trees removed across the 7 wards. 2.2 Through the TRAM strategy 1366 have been removed and plans for recovery including replanting are underway. Tree planting may not necessarily be at the same locations where trees are removed as replacement tree planting is being planned with the ‘right tree in the right place’ principle, ensuring that the maximum wider benefits are achieved. Where trees that have been removed have a specific value in that landscape they will considered for replacement in that location. Other areas within the ward will be considered in the first instance to enhance other planting sites and local greenspaces, but where this is not possible, replanting may form part of a larger network or mini forest in other wards, or in areas that will benefit from tree planting under the Clyde Climate Forest1 agenda. 2.3 To ensure no net loss of tree cover, there will be at least 1 tree planted for every tree removed as part of this process, and where larger trees have to be removed, we will aim to plant three trees in their place. This is in line the Ash Dieback Disease toolkit, although the trees may not always be at the same location. A site assessment will be 1 The Clyde Climate Forest will see 18 million trees planted in both urban and rural parts of Glasgow City Region Close over the next decade. CCF - Clyde Climate Forest Page 68 of 158
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used when determining the appropriate locations for replanting and trees of varying sizes will be used, ranging from ‘standard’ and ‘half standard’ sized trees (2-3m in height) to small whips where larger scale planting is taking place. At appropriate locations we will look to improve hedge lines and improve biodiversity in greenspaces through this re-planting programme. This varying approach allows the biodiversity of our sites to be improved and enables the enhancement of our nature networks, which in turn will provide spaces for our wildlife to move freely through the landscape. Ash Dieback Action Plan 2.4 At the time of previous reporting in November 2023, the service had commissioned a consultant to undertake driven roadside surveys of the A&B class roads in North Lanarkshire to better understand the risks associated with ash dieback on the road network. 2.5 Those surveys have confirmed that ash is a common roadside tree in this area. Tables 1 and 2 below show the distribution of ash as both degree of dieback and distribution across the network. Of 9,012 ash trees surveyed along 330 km of the A and B road network, 1,789 (19.85 %) were identified as falling within the class 3 category, and 695 (7.71 %) fell within the class 4 category. Table 1: Distribution of trees by the degree of ash dieback. Categories Instances Percentage Class 1: 100%–76% remaining canopy 2483 27.55% Class 2: 75%–51% remaining canopy 4045 44.88% Class 3: 50%–26% remaining canopy 1789 19.85% Class 4: 25%–0% remaining canopy 695 7.71% Total 9012 - Table 2: Distribution of Class 3 and 4 trees across the A and B highway network. Route type Total trees per highway No. class 3 trees (50 – 26 % crown remains) No. class 4 trees (25 – 0 % crown remains) A 3626 749 307 B 5386 1040 388 Total 9012 1789 695 Source Mott MacDonald December 2023. 2.6 This data shows that there are 2484 trees that are recommended to be removed as they are a risk to the highway, this is 28% of all roadside trees. Owing to the methodology for data capture, actual tree numbers may be higher in certain areas, such as where level of tree cover is dense and it may have been more difficult to identify individual trees growing closely together. Similarly, misidentification of tree species may result in the final number of trees requiring action being lower in places. Areas that contain a significant number of diseased trees will be prioritised for removal and works on felling some council trees will be commenced this winter. 2.7 A process to determine the appropriate method for dealing with non-council owned trees is being agreed with colleagues in the Roads Department, under powers conferred in the Roads (Scotland) Act. Page 69 of 158
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Asset management considerations 2.8 The number of trees removed both through TRAM and Ash Dieback works will be included in our carbon management reporting and will negatively impact on the council’s carbon footprint. 2.9 Without removal of diseased Ash trees, high profile council assets (including roads, schools and parks) will become increasingly at risk as they become compromised by dead trees both standing and falling. To protect the viability of our capital assets we need to both remove diseased ash and restock our tree assets in line with our biodiversity and net zero commitments. 2.10 Longer term (in the 5-10 year period) the council will need to tackle its medium risk category zones (which will include local nature reserves and woodlands) to prevent them becoming unusable assets due to fallen timber. The service is exploring options with Scottish Forestry for assistance with recently grant aided woodland planting that included Ash in the species mix. Woodland and Forestry Framework 2.11 North Lanarkshire Council has a strong and successful track record of securing grant funding from Scottish Forestry. Since 2008 we have taken advantage of Scottish Forestry Grant Schemes such as the ‘Woodlands In and Around Towns (WIAT)’ initiative, to undertake management and enhancement works at 23 woodland sites in council ownership. In addition, 12 new woodlands have been created with support from Scottish Forestry grants. 2.12 The WIAT grant scheme, a key initiative by Scottish Forestry and its partners, emphasises the economic, environmental, and social benefits of urban woodland management. It has notably improved North Lanarkshire’s woodlands through forest management, path creation, signage installation, and community engagement. Since 2015, 83 hectares (equivalent to 116 football pitches) of council-owned woodland have benefited from WIAT projects with £319,159 grant funding secured. 2.13 Many of the woodland sites that previously received funding have lapsed in effective management due to budgetary pressures and are now facing challenges with invasive species, pests, and diseases. Newly established woodlands will require essential management interventions, such as thinning, either immediately or within the next decade. The lack of structural diversity and the suppression of the woodland understory and ground flora hinder natural regeneration, which is crucial for the resilience and biodiversity of these ecosystems. 2.14 The draft North Lanarkshire Council Woodland & Forestry Framework is attached at appendix two. This management framework will sustainably manage North Lanarkshire Council’s key woodland sites, ensuring long-term health, biodiversity, and productivity. It promotes responsible public access and highlights the benefits of well- managed woodlands for both people and nature. 2.15 The plan aligns with sustainable forestry practices and aims to enhance the ecological value of woodland resources, guided by best practices and ongoing monitoring. Additionally, these woodlands will help address issues related to climate change, such as increased susceptibility to extreme weather events like droughts and floods. The plan will enhance the condition of existing woodland sites by implementing measures that improve their health, quality, sustainability, and resilience for future generations, Page 70 of 158
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and to create new woodland areas through the establishment and maintenance of trees, thereby expanding and diversifying the woodland resource. 2.16 The framework covers a period of 12 years. The first two years of this plan (2025 – 2027), will focus on producing comprehensive woodland audits. It is the intention to seek funding for the 2 year development phase from the new Future Woodlands Scotland Urban Forestry Fund to establish a greater understanding of the anticipated costs of delivery of woodland management across council sites to 2037. These audits will serve as a crucial source of information for the development of cost-effective management prescriptions tailored to each woodland site. These prescriptions will be designed with a ten-year operational period (2027 – 2037). 2.17 The framework will guide our contribution to the Clyde Climate Forest (CCF). The primary objective of the CCF is to plant 18 million trees by 2030. The project focuses on three key areas: increasing urban tree canopy, making woodland connections, and locking up carbon. This will help nature to recover and thrive, to protect and mitigate against climate change, and to create an ecologically secure environment for future generations. More trees will help the Glasgow City Region adapt to increased rainfall and provide cooling during heatwaves. 2.18 The first tree planting in North Lanarkshire took place in early 2023 in the Hattonrigg area of Bellshill and more recently in sites within North Motherwell. To date 80 ‘standard’ sized trees and 1800 whips have been planted in Bellshill and North Motherwell. The CCF plans to work with multiple local communities across the Glasgow City Region with an aim to plant up to 1000 trees in each of their target neighbourhoods. Target neighbourhoods have been selected following an analysis of low canopy cover in those urban towns most susceptible to being impacted by the effects of climate change. 3. Measures of success 3.1 Continuation of inspection of tree assets in line with timescales set out in the Tree Risk Asset Management Strategy and Ash Dieback Action Plan. 3.2 Continued increase in the number of council owned trees remediated following inspection to reduce their risk of failure in areas of medium and high risk (where failure would be likely to impact on people and property, including the road network). 3.3 Delivery of a costed and informed actions under the Forestry & Woodland Framework to provide a future of replenishment planting and new woodland schemes, together with the effective management of existing woodland assets to assist with carbon reduction and strengthening of nature networks across North Lanarkshire for the next decade. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1: Table showing breakdown of tree inspection and remediation by ward. Appendix 2: Draft Woodland and Forestry Framework. Page 71 of 158
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Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 72 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? The current Ash remediation cost is being managed within the capital allocation 24- 29. TRAM remediation costs continue to be managed within service budgets 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 73 of 158
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Tree removal under both the TRAM and ADD projects will negatively impact our carbon footprint. Negative carbon storage impact as carbon held in trees will be lost when diseased trees are cut down. However, plans are being put in place to address this loss through replanting over time via the Recovery Phase of the Ash Dieback Action Plan and longer term planting considered through the Forestry & Woodland Operational Management Plan. 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Ash Dieback Disease Communication Strategy in place to update as further ward remediation of trees progresses. It is likely that public concern will grow as ash dieback disease becomes more evident and remediation involving significant felling creates impacts on the landscape. 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? Ash Dieback is recoded and managed as a Service risk. 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Page 74 of 158
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If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 75 of 158
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Appendix 1 Appendix 1: Breakdown of Tree Inspection and Remediation by Ward. Ward Inspected Remediated Replacement Tree Planting 1 Kilsyth May-23 May-24 Oct-24. 338 trees (69 standards, 260 whips) 2 Cumbernauld North July-22 May-24 Planned as part of wider project delivery Nurturing Natural Connections (winter ’25/26) 3 Cumbernauld South Sep-22 ongoing Planned as part of wider project delivery Nurturing Natural Connections (winter ’25/26) 4 Cumbernauld East Jun-22 May-24 Planned as part of wider project delivery Nurturing Natural Connections (winter ’25/26) 5 Chryston, Stepps & Muirhead Apr-24 6 Gartcosh, Glenboig & Muirhead Apr-24 7 Coatbridge North Jun-23 Oct/Nov-24 8 Airdrie North May-24 9 Airdrie Central Jum-24 10 Coatbridge West Mar-24 Oct/Nov-24 11 Coatbridge South Mar-24 Oct/Nov-24 12 Airdrie South 13 Fortissat 14 Thorniewood Jun-23 Tenders out Nov-24 15 Bellshill May-22 Jan-24 Mar-24 1047 trees (47 standards, 1000 whips) 16 Mossend and Holytown 17 Motherwell West May022 Jan-24 18 Motherwell North May-23 Tenders out Nov-24 19 Motherwell South and Ravenscraig 20 Murdostoun Jan-23 Tenders out Nov-24 21 Wishaw Jun-24 Page 76 of 158
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Appendix 2 Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 2025 - 2037 Page 78 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 13 Document control Title North Lanarkshire Council Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework Owner Hayley Andrew, Community Greenspace Manager Contact andrewh@northlan.gov.uk Governance Group Insert name Author Pardeep Chand, Tree Assets Manager Contact chandp@northlan.gov.uk Revision History Number Originator Date Review Commenced Revision description/record of change Document Approvals Number Governance Group Date approval granted Date approval to be requested (if document still draft) 1.0 Consultation Record (for most recent update) Status of document consulted upon Stakeholders consulted/date Strategic Alignment • Improve North Lanarkshire's resource base. Next review date Review Date Page 79 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 14 Executive Summary Our woodlands play a vital role in our communities and have a significant impact on our local environment and well-being, bringing the following benefits: 1. Biodiversity: Urban trees and woodlands provide habitat for a wide range of wildlife. They act as stepping stones, allowing birds, insects and other animals to move through the landscape safely and find food and shelter. 2. Health : Spending time in green spaces has positive effects on our physical and mental health. Trees improve air quality, reduce stress and encourage people to be outdoors, contributing to overall well-being. 3. Cooling Effect: Our community woodlands help keep our towns and urban areas cool. They provide shade, reducing the heat island effect caused by concrete and asphalt surfaces. 4. Air Quality Improvement: Trees absorb pollutants and release oxygen, contributing to cleaner air. They also mitigate the impact of heavy rainfall by absorbing excess water and reducing flooding risk. 5. Amenity Value: Urban trees and woodlands make our living spaces more beautiful. They soften the harsh urban environment, adding colour and texture to streets, parks and gardens. Despite their importance, woodlands face threats from development, disease and climate change. The North Lanarkshire Woodland & Forestry Framework serves as a strategic guide for the sustainable management of Council-owned woodland assets over a 12 -year period and identifies opportunities for woodland creation. This operational plan prioritises the enhancement and management of existing community woodlands rather than large, forested areas. The detailed management prescriptions will specifically apply to community woodland sites and newly created woodlands. By adhering to this plan, the Council aims to safeguard the public’s woodland assets for future generations. Page 80 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 15 Contents Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Contents ................................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Table of Contents ............................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 2.0 Our Woodlands ................................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 2.1 Woodland Extent ................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 2.2 Policy Context ..................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 2.3 North Lanarkshire Open Space Strategy ............................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 2.4 Scottish Forestry Grant Scheme Initiatives ........................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 3.0 Objectives .......................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 3.1 Aims & Objectives ............................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 4.0 Our Woodlands: The Benefits ......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 4.1 Ecosystem Services ............................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 4.2 Biodiversity ......................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 4.3 Health & Wellbeing............................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 4.4 Carbon Credits .................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 4.5 Clyde Climate Forest ........................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 5.0 Our Woodlands: The Challenges .................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 5.1 Climate Change ................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 5.2 Invasive Species .................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 5.3 Deer .................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 5.4 Ash Dieback ........................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 6.0 Our Woodland Sites ......................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 6.1 Site Selection ...................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 6.2 Community Woodlands ...................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 6.3 Woodland Creation Sites .................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 7.0 Monitoring & Review ........................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 7.1 Activity Programme ............................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 7.2 Asset Management System ................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 8.0 Finance and Funding ........................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 8.1 Finance ................................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Page 81 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 16 1.0 Introduction This Woodland & Forestry Framework will allow for delivery of sustainable management of key woodland sites owned by North Lanarkshire Council. Whether it is a small community woodland or larger afforested land, we are committed to ensuring the long-term health, biodiversity and where appropriate, productivity of the woodland in respect to timber harvesting. The plan acknowledges the value of responsible public access to woodlands for recreational purposes and recognises the positive impact that woodlands have on health and well-being. A well-managed woodland benefits both people and nature. It provides clean air, recreational opportunities and a haven for wildlife. The plan will also identify opportunities for tree planting and woodland creation on council owned land which will help contribute to the objectives of the Clyde Climate Forest and also mitigate for the loss of ash trees due to to ash die back disease. We will ensure that the standards for the planning, design and sustainable management of forests and woodlands in North Lanarkshire will use an approach based on internationally recognised science and best practice, with the right tree, planted in the right place and for the right reasons. During the first two years of the plan, we will conduct woodland audits in our key woodlands. This development phase will result in costed plans spanning a 10-year period, which will guide the implementation of management prescriptions where necessary. Additionally, we will perform site assessments to identify new areas suitable for woodland creation, which will be carried out over the duration of the plan. The Woodland & Forestry Framework is a strategic document that outlines the broad aims for the management and enhancement of our woodland resources. The primary aims of this plan are as follows: • Improvement in Woodland Condition: The first objective is to improve the overall condition of our woodland sites. This involves implementing measures to enhance the health and quality of our sites, ensuring their sustainability and resilience for future generations. • Woodland Creation: The second objective is focused on the creation of new woodland areas. This involves the establishment of new trees and the maintenance of existing healthy trees, contributing to the expansion and diversification of our woodland resource. These aims align with our commitment to sustainable forestry practices and our goal of enhancing the ecological value of our woodland resource. The implementation of these aims will be guided by best practices in forestry management and will be subject to ongoing monitoring and evaluation to ensure effectiveness. Page 82 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 17 2.0 Our Woodlands 2.1 Woodland Extent Woodlands play a crucial role in providing a multitude of ecosystem services, encompassing educational, health, and fitness opportunities. Additionally, they contribute to carbon regulation and hold significant cultural heritage and amenity value. North Lanarkshire’s woodland ecosystems consist of diverse components, including mature trees, young saplings, and standing or decaying deadwood. A wide variety of species rely on these woodland landscapes for their survival. According to the National Forest Inventory approximately 10,000 hectares of woodland cover exists in North Lanarkshire. This accounts for 21% of North Lanarkshire’s land which is higher than the national average (18%). Much of North Lanarkshire’s woodland area is composed of coniferous plantation, which has limited biodiversity benefits in comparison to native woodland. Any future woodland creation schemes to be delivered through this plan will focus on native broadleaf species. Currently, native woodland covers approximately 2916 ha of the local authority land area (6.2%). Ancient Woodland, which in Scotland is defined as land that is currently woodland and has been continually wooded since 1750, covers approximately 461 ha (1.1%) of land in North Lanarkshire. Ancient Woodland is an irreplaceable resource and vitally important as it includes remnants of Scotland’s original woodland and usually has much richer wildlife than that of more recent woodland. 2.2 Policy Context This Woodland and Forestry Framework will compliment and contribute to a number of national and local strategies and policies. Scotland’s Forestry Strategy 2019–2029 is the Scottish Government’s long-term framework for the expansion and sustainable management of Scotland's forests and woodland. By 2070, Scotland aims to have more forests and woodlands that are resilient, economically valuable, and integrated with other land uses. The strategy focuses on objectives such as economic growth, environmental quality, and community well-being. Key priorities include sustainable management, expansion, efficiency, adaptability, and environmental benefits. Under the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 planning authorities in Scotland must prepare a comprehensive forestry and woodland strategy. This strategy aims to guide decisions concerning the management, conservation, and sustainable development of forests and woodlands across the country. By addressing land use, development, and environmental impact assessments, the strategy will ensure a holistic approach to tree and woodland management. The Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Act 2019 mandates that Scotland reaches net zero by 2045, covering all greenhouse gases. To achieve this, many of the policies and proposals have been outlined in the Climate Change Plan 2018 – Page 83 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 18 2032. These policies span various sectors, with focus on nature-based solutions such as woodland creation. Trees play a significant role in mitigating climate change by sequestering carbon. Approximately 6.2 million tonnes of harmful CO2 are removed from Scotland’s atmosphere each year, contributing to greenhouse gas reduction. The Plan for North Lanarkshire is a high-level strategic document that outlines a long- term vision for North Lanarkshire - a vision where North Lanarkshire is the place to Live, Learn, Work, Invest and Visit. The Woodland and Forestry Operational Framework will contribute to several key ambition statements detailed in The Plan. The Forestry and Woodland Strategy for Glasgow City Region 2020 sets out a positive vision for woodland expansion within the Glasgow City Region which North Lanarkshire forms a part of. The aim of the Strategy is to guide woodland expansion providing a policy and spatial framework to optimise the benefits for the local economy, communities and the environment. The strategy involves collaborative efforts from eight local authorities within Glasgow City Region, along with Scottish Forestry, NatureScot, and the Glasgow and Clyde Valley Green Network Partnership. Further polices and strategies relevant to this document can be found in Appendix 1 2.3 North Lanarkshire Open Space Strategy North Lanarkshire Council has a legislative requirement under The Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 to prepare and publish an Open Space Strategy. This Strategy is intended to set a strategic framework of Council’s policies and proposals regarding the development, maintenance, and use of green infrastructure. To facilitate this strategy, an Open Space Audit of Council owned land has been carried out in recent years and included areas of woodland. The Open Space Audit collated data on a Quality Assessment adapted from Greenspace Scotland and revised to fit a ‘North Lanarkshire’ approach. The Quality Assessment comprises of six categories: Access, Place Quality, Care and Maintenance, Function Use and Activity, Safety and Biodiversity - Supporting Ecological Networks. Scoring 1 - Poor to 5- Excellent. The audit captured other aspects i.e. site classification, opportunities to increase climate resilience, blue/green infrastructure, renewable energies, and Invasive Non-Native Species. Much of the data collected for NLC woodlands will help inform and update woodland management plans. A public consultation was also carried out as part of the Audit which revealed that woodlands were an important greenspace accessed for recreation by communities. Page 84 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 19 2.4 Scottish Forestry Grant Scheme Initiatives Scottish Forestry Grant Schemes (SFGS) provides financial support for both the creation of new woodland and the sustainable management of existing woodland. Since 2008, NLC has taken advantage of SFGS such as the ‘Woodlands In and Around Towns (WIAT)’ initiative to undertake management and enhancement works at 21woodland sites in NLC ownership. The WIAT grant scheme is one of the most significant initiatives undertaken by Scottish Forestry and its partners and highlights the role of urban woodland management in delivering economic, environmental and social benefits. It has particularly benefitted woodlands in North Lanarkshire and has included urban forest management operations, path creation, signage installation, and community engagement. Since 2015, the total area of NLC owned woodland benefitting from WIAT projects is 83 hectares (the equivalent of 116 football pitches). Page 85 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 20 3.0 Objectives 3.1 Aims & Objectives This Plan will allow the Council to focus on managing key woodland sites and creating new woodlands. The objectives are as follows: Objectives 1 Plan and Organise Sustainable Woodland Management 2 Maintain and Enhance NLC Owned Woodland 3 Maintain Ecosystem Services and Resilience 4 Promote Biodiversity 5 Maintain Public Access Page 86 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 21 4.0 Our Woodlands: The Benefits 4.1 Ecosystem Services Woodlands provide a large number of environmental benefits, which are also known as ecosystem services. Ecosystem services are the benefits that humans receive from nature and natural processes and help contribute to quality of life. Ecosystems services include: 4.2 Biodiversity Woodlands constitute a vital component of our natural environment, playing an indispensable role in supporting biodiversity and maintaining robust ecosystems. A diverse array of organisms, including various animal species, fungi, lichens, and plants are heavily reliant on these woodland habitats for essential resources such as food, shelter and breeding sites. Research has consistently demonstrated that well-managed woodlands contribute significantly to enhancing biodiversity. As trees mature and grow larger, the habitat undergoes changes, thereby providing a range of diverse niches that can accommodate various species. A substantial proportion of our woodlands are composed of blocks of similar-age trees. However, the implementation of active management can greatly enhance their biodiversity. This can be achieved by creating varied habitats and preserving old growth features, which are vital for maintaining ecological balance and diversity. Woodlands have been identified as a priority habitat within the North Lanarkshire Biodiversity Action Plan 2023 -2027. This underscores the importance of our ongoing commitment to the preservation and enhancement of our woodland resources, and the key role they play in our broader biodiversity conservation efforts. Page 87 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 22 4.3 Health & Wellbeing Woodlands play a crucial role in promoting health and well-being and visiting woodlands has been linked to improved mental health. A recent report by Forest Research estimated that visits to UK woodlands save approximately £185 million in treatment costs annually. Regular visits to woodlands have been associated with reduced incidences of depression and anxiety. During the pandemic, access to trees, woodlands and natural environments became even more important for maintaining our well-being. Regular contact with greenspaces, including woodlands, is linked to better physical health. It reduces chronic stress, helps combat obesity and improves concentration. Woodlands provide an ideal setting for physical activity, whether it’s walking, jogging, or simply enjoying nature. Spending time in woodlands can reduce stress and improve mood. The Get Walking Lanarkshire project make use of NLC owned urban woodlands such as Newarthill Community Woods to deliver health walks which benefit communities across North Lanarkshire. 4.4 Carbon Credits The Woodland Carbon Code (WCC) issues carbon units which represent measurable amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) removed from the atmosphere by trees as they grow – one unit is equivalent to 1 tonne of carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere. The WCC allows new woodland planting schemes to calculate the total carbon sequestration their woodland will achieve over the lifetime of the trees. Once a Woodland Carbon Unit (WCU) has been independently verified, then it can be used by companies including Local Authorities to report against UK-based emissions or to use in claims of carbon neutrality or Net Zero emissions. Two most recently planted NLC woodlands have been registered with the Woodland Carbon Code and are in the process of verification of WCUs for these sites. As part of the operational strategy NLC are committed to registering all new woodlands with the Woodland Carbon Code, with WCU being used to inset against the residual Council CO2 emissions that will remain even where climate adaptation methods are introduced. 4.5 Clyde Climate Forest The Clyde Climate Forest (CCF) was launched in June 2021 and has since seen over 1.2 million trees planted in both urban and rural areas across the Glasgow City Region, comprising eight local authorities. NLC has committed to supporting the delivery of the CCF and to embed CCF targets into their own plans and policies, in turn helping toward the authority’s own Net Zero ambitions. The primary objective of the CCF is to plant 18 million trees by 2030. The project focuses on three key areas: increasing urban tree canopy, making woodland connections, and locking up carbon. This will help nature to recover and thrive, to protect and mitigate against climate change, and to create an ecologically secure environment for future generations. More trees will help the Glasgow City Region adapt to increased rainfall and provide cooling during heatwaves. Page 88 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 23 The first tree planting in North Lanarkshire took place in early 2023 in the Hattonrigg area of Bellshill and more recently in sites within North Motherwell. To date 80 ‘standard’ sized trees and 1800 whips have been planted in Bellshill and North Motherwell. The CCF plans to work with multiple local communities across the Glasgow City Region with an aim to plant up to 1000 trees in each of their target neighbourhoods. Target neighbourhoods have been selected following an analysis of low canopy cover in those urban towns most susceptible to being impacted by the effects of climate change. Page 89 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 24 5.0 Our Woodlands: The Challenges 5.1 Climate Change In 2019, North Lanarkshire Council declared a Climate Emergency. Climate change has far-reaching impacts on our lives and for future generations. Locally, climate change is expected to lead to a higher likelihood of warmer and wetter winters, and warmer and drier summers than currently experienced. In addition, more extreme weather events such as storms are anticipated to occur more frequently and lead to more localised flooding and heat stress. Woodlands can play a vital role against the effects of climate change: • Urban Cooling - Urban trees and woodlands play a vital role in creating sustainable, resilient towns. They help reduce the Urban Heat Island effect by providing shade, releasing moisture through evapotranspiration and reflecting sunlight. Their canopies lower local temperatures, improve human comfort, and contribute to a healthier urban environment. • Carbon Sequestration – Trees serve as highly effective carbon storage systems. Through photosynthesis, they absorb atmospheric carbon dioxide and lock it up for centuries. On average, one hectare of native broadleaf woodland will store 300 - 350 tonnes of carbon over a 100-year period. 5.2 Invasive Species Invasive non-native species (INNS) can have a significant impact on woodland ecology. INNS can outcompete native plants and animals, leading to a reduction in biodiversity. For example, invasive plants like Japanese knotweed or Himalayan balsam can dominate woodland habitats if left unmanaged, crowding out and eradicating native flora. INNS can change soil composition, nutrient cycling, and water availability which affects the overall health of woodlands. Some invasive plants release chemicals that inhibit the growth of other plants, altering nutrient availability and soil structure. Rhododendron is one of the most common and invasive shrubs and it is present within many of our woodland sites. It can form dense thickets and shade out native plants. If left uncontrolled, it eventually dominates the woodland habitat, excluding other plant life. Its extensive root system and leaf litter are toxic to many other plants and will be a priority species for removal within our woodland sites. INNS prevention and control is a priority withing the North Lanarkshire Biodiversity Action Plan. 5.3 Deer Deer play an important role in seed dispersal and forest regeneration. However, their presence also leads to woodland damage through browsing pressure. The primary deer species found in North Lanarkshire is Roe deer and there is a concern that they limit native woodland regeneration and establishment through grazing. Roe deer have no natural predators therefore there is a significant population of Roe deer in Scotland. In 2019, Nature Scot commissioned a data gathering exercise looking at sustainable deer Page 90 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 25 management in North Lanarkshire to help inform future deer management within the Council’s landholding. The project involved desk-based research, site visits, and consultations with relevant NLC staff, partners, and other stakeholders. The report identified key recommendations based on the gaps in knowledge and the need for a more focused deer management approach. NLC does currently lack a specific deer management strategy within its strategic plans, policies, and guidance related to development, biodiversity, and open space. Much of the deer management undertaken by North Lanarkshire Council is indirect management such as erecting deer fencing to exclude deer from newly planted woodland sites. As part of this Woodland & Forestry Operational Plan, North Lanarkshire Council will commit to a position statement for deer management for Council owned woodlands. 5.4 Ash Dieback Ash dieback disease, scientifically known as Hymenoscyphus fraxineus, is a severe disease affecting ash trees. The fungus attacks both leaves and stems and infiltrates the tree, blocking the movement of water through the trunk which leads to leaf loss and gradual die back of the tree crown. Younger trees are usually fatally affected, while older trees may experience mortality due to a combination of factors, including root pathogens like honey fungus. The disease is widespread across Scotland and has been present since at least 2012. Scottish Forestry estimates that 50-75% of all ash trees in the country may be lost within the next twenty years due to ash dieback. Ash trees are a common species within our woodlands and wider environment (e.g. roadside verge planting) and were a common species to plant within our historic woodland creation sites. The loss of ash will significantly alter the composition of our woodlands and hedgerows, leading to a major change in the landscape and will disrupt ecological interactions and reduce biodiversity. A key objective of this Woodland & Forestry Framework is to ensure that ash trees within our woodland sites are appropriately managed and that replacement planting is carried out. Tree planting will be planned with the ‘right tree in the right place’ principle adopted Page 91 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 26 as well as following the UK Forest Standard (UKFS), ensuring that maximum benefits are achieved. Tree planting programmes may not necessarily be at the same locations where trees are removed. Managing the disease and dealing with the impact on woodlands will come at a significant cost. Ash dieback on Council owned land is being guided by an Ash Dieback Management Plan alongside a Tree Risk Asset Management Plan. Page 92 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 27 6.0 Our Woodland Sites 6.1 Site Selection It is important to note that not all council-owned woodland falls within the scope of this plan. The primary focus of this management strategy is on existing woodland sites that meet the following criteria: • Community Use: The sites are frequently used by local residents and communities, indicating a high level of public interest and engagement. • Significant Tree Cover: The sites comprise substantial woodland and tree cover, contributing to their ecological value and potential for carbon sequestration. • Historical Management: The sites have been subject to previous funding or management efforts, providing an established framework for ongoing maintenance and improvement. These criteria serve as the guiding principles for the selection and prioritisation of woodland sites under this management plan. The overarching goal is to optimise the use, preservation and enhancement of these valuable natural resources in a manner that aligns with community needs, ecological sustainability and available funding. Page 93 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 28 The sites encompassed within this strategic plan have been categorised into two distinct groups: Community Woodlands and Woodland Creation Sites. This classification is based on the unique characteristics and objectives of each site category. • Community Woodlands: These sites are primarily focused on providing recreational and educational opportunities for local communities, whilst also contributing to the enhancement of local biodiversity and the sequestration of carbon. • Woodland Creation Sites: These sites are newly created woodlands which contribute to the expansion of our woodland resource and increase carbon sequestration. It is important to note that the management prescriptions for each site category will differ, reflecting the unique objectives and requirements of each category. This tailored approach ensures that the management strategies implemented are optimally suited to the specific needs and characteristics of each site, thereby maximising the effectiveness of our woodland management efforts. A number of these sites may have designations such as Country Parks, Local Nature Reserves and Town Parks. However, this strategy will only focus on the woodland habitats within these designated sites and ensure the effective management of woodland habitats, contributing to the overall health and resilience of our woodland resources. The sites included with this plan is shown in Table 1 Table 1 : Woodland sites listed by category. Community Woodlands Woodland Creation Sites Broadwood Auchenkilns Brownsburn Benhar Road Cairnhill Woods Blairlinn Calderbank Calderbank Station Wood Cambusnethan Carbarns Chapelhall Forgewood Coltness Woodlands Millcroft Colzium Estate Palacerigg Climate Emergency Woodland Cumbernauld Community Park Sandyknowes Dalzell Estate Strathclyde Country Park Children's Woodland Drumpellier Luggie Glen Low Wood Drumpelllier Country Park Kingshill Moodiesburn Glen Newarthill Old Mine Nature Park Palacerigg Country Park Petersburn Woods Ravenswood Riccard Johnston Shields Glen Smithstone Mosswater Strathclyde Country Park Page 94 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 29 6.2 Community Woodlands Woodland audits of these sites will be carried out in the first two years of the plan. The majority of our community woodland sites possess historical woodland management plans. These historical plans are scheduled to be updated during the development phase of this plan, which will involve a comprehensive assessment of the current woodland status. This process will establish management proposals and prescriptions for 2027 – 2037. The audit will primarily concentrate on woodland compartments within these sites, excluding other areas of conservation and biodiversity interest such as peatlands and grasslands, and provide us with management aims, objectives and recommendations for future woodland management. An Asset Value Assessment will also be carried out which will consider the asset value of trees and woodland, both in financial terms and the broad range of economic and environmental benefits they provide. The Woodland Audits will consider and evaluate the following areas of management interest: 1. Context and Objectives: A description of the woodland’s location, size and purpose, identifying specific conservation goals, recreational uses and timber production opportunities 2. Inventory and Assessment: Assess the current state of the woodland and evaluate: • Tree Species: Identify the tree species present and their distribution. • Age Structure: Understand the age distribution of trees. • Health and Condition: Evaluate the overall health of the woodland. • Biodiversity: Document wildlife habitats, priority species and ecological features. • Soil and Site Conditions: Consider soil types, drainage and topography. 3. Stakeholder Engagement: Engage with stakeholders such as local communities and carry out consultations where woodland improvements are being carried out by grant funded schemes such as WIAT. 4. Silvicultural Strategies: Silviculture refers to the science of growing and tending forests. The audit will outline strategies for: • Thinning: Removing some trees to improve growth conditions for others. • Regeneration: Planning for new tree establishment. • Harvesting: If timber production is a goal, describe sustainable harvesting practices. • Invasive Species Control: Address invasive plants or pests. 5. Biodiversity and Habitat Management: Detail opportunities to enhance biodiversity such as: • Creating Wildlife Corridors: Explore opportunities for creating and enhancing woodland areas to improve habitat connectivity. • Nesting Sites: Install bird and bat boxes or protect existing nesting and roosting sites. • Deadwood Retention: Leave fallen trees to retain habitat for invertebrates. Page 95 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 30 6. Outdoor Access: Consider and identify access opportunities. 7. Progress Reporting and Monitoring: Establish a monitoring system to track progress toward objectives. 6.3 Woodland Creation Sites The Forestry & Woodland Framework is designed to assess the condition of woodlands that have been established by the local authority over the past 15 years. The audits conducted on these sites will serve to identify and schedule key management interventions. These interventions are particularly pertinent for newly established and maturing woodlands and may include actions such as thinning and the removal of deer exclusion fences. A key focus of the plan is to identify locations and deliver new woodland planting schemes. During years 1 and 2 of the plan, a GIS based exercise will be carried out to identify suitable areas of Council owned land that can be used for woodland creation schemes. Several sites will then be selected to be taken forward for woodland creation. Page 96 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 31 7.0 Monitoring & Review 7.1 Activity Programme In the initial two years of this plan, the primary focus will be on producing comprehensive woodland audits. These audits will serve as a crucial source of information for the development of cost-effective management prescriptions tailored to each woodland site. The diagram below outlines the key milestones that will be delivered during the development phase of this plan. These prescriptions will be designed with a ten-year operational period in mind. For further details regarding the Development Phase Programme, please refer to Appendix 2 of this report. This approach ensures systematic and cost-effective management of our woodland resources. 7.2 Asset Management System The Woodland & Forestry Framework will use an asset management system to allocate specific management prescriptions to each site. This system will also facilitate the tracking and recording of progress and will improve the efficiency of reporting procedures. The Council currently possesses a substantial amount of data and maps relating to both present and historical woodland management in paper format. A key output of this plan is that all key woodland sites will undergo digitisation and mapping via a Geographic Information System (GIS) based platform or other asset management system. This transition to a digital format will streamline both management processes and reporting mechanisms, thereby promoting operational efficiency. Page 97 of 158
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Woodland & Forestry Operational Framework 32 8.0 Finance and Funding 8.1 Finance Securing sufficient internal resources and external funding is essential for the successful implementation of this Woodland and Forestry Operational Framework. This involves identifying funding sources, such as Scottish Forestry grants and other grants offered through organisations such as Future Woodlands Scotland. North Lanarkshire Council has a strong and successful track record of securing grant funding from Scottish Forestry. Since 2008 we have taken advantage of Scottish Forestry Grant Schemes such as the ‘Woodlands In and Around Towns (WIAT)’ initiative to undertake management and enhancement works at 23 woodland sites in NLC ownership. In addition, 12 new woodlands have been created with support from Scottish Forestry grants. Since 2015, the WIAT initiative has brought in £319,159 of grant funding for woodland enhancement projects and the plan is to build on this success and seek additional funding to further support our efforts throughout the duration of the Plan. Detailed budget planning is essential to allocate any available resources efficiently across the two different project phases – the development phase and the delivery phase. Following the completion of the development phase, a detailed cost estimate will be produced for the management and maintenance of our key woodland sites for a period of 10 years. Exploring partnerships with environmental organisations and even local businesses may provide financial support and create new opportunities. Regular financial reviews and reporting will ensure accountability and allow adjustments to the plan as needed to meet goals and objectives within a reasonable and achievable budget. Over the next 5 years, North Lanarkshire Council has allocated £3.5 million to manage ash dieback disease across its assets. This allocated budget will be used for tree removal and importantly, replacement tree planting will be carried out too. Page 98 of 158
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Appendix 1 Strategies and Policies relevant to the Forestry and Woodland Operational Plan Local • The Forestry and Woodland Strategy for Glasgow City Region 2020 • The Plan for North Lanarkshire • North Lanarkshire Biodiversity Action Plan 2023-2027 • North Lanarkshire Development Plan Local National • Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 • Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 • Climate Change (Emissions Reductions Target) (Scotland) Act 2019 • Scotland’s Forestry Strategy 2019–2029 • Scottish Biodiversity Strategy to 2045 The Forestry & Woodland Operational Plan supports the following plans and strategies Page 99 of 158
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Appendix 2 Development Phase Programme Page 100 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☐ Yes ☒ No Ref LR/VA Date 30/10/24 Petition to keep Bedlay cemetery staff and improve maintenance From Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail renniely@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary A petition has been received regarding Bedlay cemetery maintenance. This report outlines the petition request, the service consideration of the petition and provides a response. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Consider the petition and its request for the council to: a. reconsider their decision and retain the experienced cemetery staff, empowering them with adequate resources for performing regular maintenance. b. reconsider the proposed staff realignment and uphold Bedlay cemetery maintenance standards. (2) Consider that in response to a) the service has confirmed that all staff are being retained and new maintenance machinery has been made available to the cemeteries team. (3) Consider that in response to b) the service has reconsidered the position but proposes the most effective use of cemeteries staff resource and machinery resource to improve standards is by creating a well resourced interment team, based at New Monkland cemetery, with grounds care supported by the cemetery’s asset team in line with the model being used across North Lanarkshire cemeteries. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve the health and wellbeing of our communities Ambition statement (17) Ensure we keep our environment clean, safe, and attractive Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Item 7 Page 101 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 The following petition was received by the Community Partnership Manager with 1,753 signatures recorded via the change.org website. The petition was initiated on 1st August 2022 by Councillor Greg Lennon. As the local Councillor, I have been asked to create this petition by local residents. The Moodiesburn Community has made clear that it is deeply saddened by the proposed changes to relocate the dedicated staff from our local Bedlay Cemetery. This cemetery is more than a resting place for our beloved departed; it is a beacon of our community's culture, history, and collective memory. The recent alterations enacted by North Lanarkshire Council have left the site with sub- standard maintenance in the cemetery, detracting from its dignity and hampering its conservation. The cemetery's current conditions demonstrate a concerning lack of upkeep which, if left unchecked, may irreparably damage this valuable local heritage site and our loved one’s final resting place. With the council proposing to displace the current, dedicated cemetery staff, our community fears this will lead to further deterioration in the level of care and upkeep the cemetery receives. Any progress made on the eagerly-anticipated cemetery extension will potentially be undermined by these drastic changes. This issue is not only personal to those with loved ones resting there; it underscores our whole community's sentiments about local heritage conservation. Therefore, we urge North Lanarkshire Council to reconsider their decision and retain the experienced cemetery staff, empowering them with adequate resources for performing regular maintenance. This is an earnest call for action to ensure our communities loved ones' resting place is treated with the respect and care it deserves. We owe it to our community, present and past. Please sign this petition to press North Lanarkshire Council to reconsider the proposed staff realignment and uphold Bedlay Cemetery as a valued and integral part of our community. 2. Report 2.1 Due to the absence of new lairs at Bedlay cemetery reopenings have been reducing over the last 5 years. It has now reached the point where an average of approximately 1 burial per week is undertaken. Two gravedigging staff were based at Bedlay cemetery which did not provide adequate resilience should sickness or holiday absence arise and the resultant declining standards in the cemetery reflect this. 2.2 With the introduction of extra staff resources into the Cemeteries Asset team over the last twelve months the asset team now have adequate resources to undertake the upkeep of Bedlay Cemetery. It is important that we utilise gravediggers skills fully to ensure an efficient interment service. The new model of locating a larger team of six gravediggers at New Monklands cemetery will better utilise the staff and machinery resource available to the service across the cemetery estate. A similar model is used across Benhar, Shottskirk and Stane cemeteries. 2.3 These changes were part of a realignment across the North Area cemeteries. The proposed changes were developed in consultation with the cemetery chargehands and presented to staff in June and no adverse comments were received. The Trade Unions Page 102 of 158
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were also notified of the proposals in an update meeting on 26th June and raised no concerns. 2.4 It should be noted that the petition started on 1st August citing concerns about declining standards in the cemetery, but the changes to staffing outlined above were not put in place until 5th August 2024. This would then support the Council position that the previous staffing arrangements were not addressing the declining standards. 2.5 The petition requests that the council reconsider their decision and retain the experienced cemetery staff, empowering them with adequate resources for performing regular maintenance. The service has confirmed that all staff are being retained, and the gravedigging and chargehand staff skills will be fully deployed in the new model. Additional machinery resources have been brought in for the Cemetery’s Asset maintenance team. 2.6 The petition also requests that the “Council reconsider the proposed staff realignment and uphold Bedlay Cemetery as a valued and integral part of our community”. The staff that have been relocated are chargehand and gravedigging staff. Their Job role is predominately interment duties with some grounds care. We have Cemetery’s Asset operatives whose job role in the summer is grounds care, it is therefore not appropriate to employ staff on a higher graded salary to undertake predominately grounds care, now that burials have fallen to a low level. Should the proposed cemetery extension go ahead in the future the service will review staffing levels accordingly. Aligning the grounds care to the cemetery’s asset team provides better resilience, better monitoring and harmonises standards across the cemetery estate. Current Cemetery Condition and recent improvement actions 2.7 Works undertaken by the Cemetery’s Asset team since the new model commenced on 5th August includes: • Work on levelling and topping up lairs as required • Groundwork to improve the cemetery entrance • Grass cutting and strimming week commencing 12th August. An initial short cut was required to remove moss build up which had accumulated due to irregular maintenance. Subsequent cuts have been longer and the turf has responded well. • New waste bins were installed week in August with regular waste service uplifts • Initial feasibility study has been undertaken to improve drainage on site with associated path works. Proposed monitoring 2.8 The Cemetery’s Asset team will keep a condition record (including weekly photographs) of the cemetery over the rest of the growing season (to October). 3. Measures of success 3.1 Improved standards in Bedlay cemetery grounds care. Page 103 of 158
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4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 Condition photos 30th August 2024. Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 104 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 105 of 158
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 106 of 158
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Appendix 1 Condition photos 30th August 2024. Page 107 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☐ Yes ☒ No Ref LR/JA Date 30/10/24 Sustainable Future - Live Labs 2 Decarbonising Local Roads From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail renniely@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary This report provides Committee with an update on work undertaken in partnership with Transport for West Midlands, Amey and Colas to develop a Centre of Excellence for Decarbonising Roads, developing, identifying and sharing best practice for low-carbon material deployment on local roads in North Lanarkshire Council (NLC) and the wider UK as part of the ADEPT Live Labs 2: decarbonising local roads programme. The contents of this reports set out recommendations to ensure the maximisation of carbon reduction, collaboration and communications benefits from the project led by NLC. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment & Climate Change Committee: (1) Acknowledges the content of the report and the carbon, collaboration and communications work undertaken to date for the Live Labs 2 project; and (2) Agrees that the adoption of appropriate low-carbon materials trialled through the Live Labs 2 programme is incorporated into business-as-usual activities for road maintenance, where appropriate. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve North Lanarkshire's resource base Ambition statement (17) Ensure we keep our environment clean, safe, and attractive Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Item 8 Page 111 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 Live Labs 2 is a three-year, £30million, UK-wide programme funded by the Department for Transport, (DfT), through the Association for Directors of Environment, Planning and Transport, (ADEPT), that will run until March 2026, with a 5-year subsequent monitoring and evaluation period. 1.2 The ADEPT programme consists of seven projects, grouped by four interconnected themes, all being led by local authorities working alongside commercial and academic partners. 1.3 Following the success of the ADEPT SMART Places Live Labs 1 programme and its focus on innovation across local roads, Live Labs 2 concentrates on how to decarbonise local road infrastructure and assets, bringing innovation to a sector that is traditionally risk adverse. 1.4 North Lanarkshire Council, working with Amey Public Services LLP, submitted a bid in November 2023 to develop a Centre of Excellence for the Decarbonisation of Local Roads (CEDR). Following the submission of an Outline Business Case in April 2023, NLC were awarded £4.56m to be joint lead authority on the CEDR theme, working alongside Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) who were awarded £4m, making this a joint £8.56m programme. 1.5 Funding is provided in three tranches with £1.825m having been received in the first year (June 2023) and £1.369m issued in June 2024. The funding is focused on the live labs project and those areas identified within the project business case and cannot be directed to business-as-usual road maintenance activities. 1.6 The council and Transport for West Midlands are operating a one programme, two hub approach to deliver the objectives of the Live Lab project. The council are supported in the North Hub, with TfWM working with Colas in the South Hub. 2. Report 2.1 The construction, renewal, adaptation, and maintenance of the UK’s local roads assets make a significant and ongoing contribution to our greenhouse gas emissions, climate change impacts and future resilience. Materials are at the heart of everything we do and embodied carbon in materials represents 40% of the total carbon yield in roads, with additional carbon from scopes 2 (indirect emissions from purchased electricity, heat or steam) and 3 (other indirect emissions from sources not owned or controlled by the council, such as supply chain) significantly adding to the whole life carbon cost of the materials on our roads. 2.2 Despite rapid advancements in materials and manufacturing, the industry has been slow to adopt new innovations, especially on low caron materials. There are many reasons for this, including restrictions placed on contractors and suppliers by the specifications of long-term contracts. The industry has added to this through uncoordinated trials, and siloed working practises which leads to wasted resources, duplication work and stagnated progress. This dramatically limits value for the taxpayer, and scalability, with individual councils tasked with evaluating unproven methods and balancing upfront investments with payoffs in resilience and de-carbonisation. 2.3 This Live Lab theme consists of two core elements: Development of a UK Centre of Excellence for materials decarbonisation in local roads, comprising standards, Page 112 of 158
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knowledge management, a cloud-based database, global network scanning, and systematic carbon measurement and, • A materials testing programme identifying and trialling the top global innovations on the North Lanarkshire Public Road network. 2.4 Since mobilisation in April 2023, the council have procured Amey OW Ltd to be our project delivery partner and to coordinate numerous workstreams that achieve the core objectives identified in the Outline Business Case, including: • Identification of leading low-carbon materials for use across the local roads sector, from asphaltic solutions to line-marking; • Live trials of low-carbon materials on the council road network, in order to build industry confidence and provide the data required for robust technical, carbon and operational assessments; • Development of a carbon and technical evaluation framework to enable widespread industry adoption of low-carbon materials and determine the potential for whole lifecycle carbon savings, and; • Address barriers to innovation and decarbonisation in the local roads sector, such as behavioural change, standards and specifications, procurement and siloed working between local authorities. Achievements to date on the critical workstreams are outlined below. Communications 2.5 One of the key aims of the project is to develop resources that will provide the opportunity to share knowledge and tools across the UK local roads sector. Raising awareness of the project is a key first stage in achieving this. 2.6 Working with the council’s Communications Team and our Partners, achievements to date include:- • Creation of the CEDR website at decarbonisingroads.co.uk; • Launch of a LinkedIn page with over 750 followers; • Presentations at industry events including Road EXPO Scotland, SCOTS Annual Conference, PIARC World Road Congress, Live Labs 2 EXPO and APSE Highways and Winter Conference; • Press releases on live trials, website launch. Innovation Scanning 2.7 Live Labs funding provides an opportunity to trial the most promising innovative materials in live scenarios, where local authorities would not normally take risk due to limited budgets. This project allows trials of more innovative approaches where there is a higher risk of both success and failures. Page 113 of 158
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2.8 Two methods have been implemented to ensure that CEDR has knowledge of the most relevant innovations available: - • Inclusion of an Innovators area within the CEDR website where suppliers can register details of their products. • Employment of Connected Place Catapult (CPC), proven specialists in sourcing and identifying low-carbon innovations from across the globe. Market Scanning 2.9 Materials identified through supplier engagement and / or global scanning are assessed though an innovation funnel developed for the project. Engineers from the council and Amey are supported by a partnership network, including material specialists from Transport Scotland, Nottingham University and Aston University; to ensure relevant screening is undertaken and only the most promising innovations are considered for live trials. 2.10 Technical and carbon innovation reviews have been undertaken for pothole materials, road marking, signage and resurfacing materials. These reviews consider several key elements including strategic alignment, scalability and adaptation, risk and safety and value for money. Carbon Baselining 2.11 Development of a carbon baseline for the council’s Roads and Infrastructure activities undertaken in 2022/23 was required for future benchmarking purposes. Working with the Future Highways Research Group (FHRG), accounting for carbon emissions across Scopes 1,2 and 3 for sites & premises; staff & contractors; vehicles and plant; and purchased products and services, was undertaken in line with the FHRG’s Carbon Calculation and Accounting Standards (CCAS). 2.12 Work is ongoing to build upon the initial analysis and to fully understand the carbon emissions from lifecycle planning, with a goal to produce a detailed process map so that the largest carbon emissions can be identified as the largest potentials for reduction. 2.13 The ongoing partnership with the FHRG will enable whole-life carbon profiles to be created for any low carbon materials which are taken to trial. Behavioural Change 2.14 As part of the project Thinks Insight & Strategy were employed to undertake in-depth behavioural research to determine barriers to change and the adoption of low-carbon innovation in local authorities. Further evidence was provided through an FHRG roundtable exercise. Key learnings were that decision makers and engineers are currently focused on (in priority order) cost; effectiveness / longevity; business change required to innovate; and ease of procurement. 2.15 CEDR is currently working with Connected Places Catapult on developing the information and tools, including an industry playbook, to enable behavioural change, promoting an increased emphasis on whole lifecycle carbon reduction within the decision-making process. Page 114 of 158
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2.16 A further workstream has commenced with SafetyTech on developing an Innovation Sandbox to identify and tackle blockers for suppliers and to enable more flexible industry standards that would support scaling of successful innovations. Work is ongoing to identify local innovators, within the field, who could benefit from this workstream. Knowledge Bank 2.17 The key infrastructure supporting the objectives of CEDR is a Knowledge Bank. The Knowledge Bank will provide the facility to share the information all local authorities require to make evidence-based decisions about how to decarbonise local roads. The current timescale is for an online portal with trial outcomes and a collaboration space for local authorities to go live by the end of December 2024. 2.18 Thinks Insight & Strategy also assisted in the development of the specification and build of the Knowledge Bank to help ensure that innovations and materials are brought to the attention of key audiences. Thinks Insight & Strategy undertook in-depth qualitative research with End Users, consulted with suppliers and used best-practice from behavioural science to assist in the design of a Knowledge Bank that best meets users’ needs. Live Demonstrators 2.19 Over the lifespan of the project around £2m has been allocated to undertaking live trials of low carbon materials on the Public Road network within North Lanarkshire. The first year of Live Lab was focused on mobilisation; procurement; relationship management; and developing and enabling processes and procedures. 2.20 The first live trials were carried out earlier this year and are summarised as follows:- • Pothole materials – five different low carbon materials were used for permanent repairs at trial sites on six A, B and C class roads across North Lanarkshire. A standard permanent repair material (hot rolled asphalt) was used as a benchmark. The work was carried out between February and April. Regular inspections are ongoing to monitor condition and performance. • Road surface rejuvenator – trials of a surface treatment material were undertaken in Coatbridge in May. The manufacturer claims this preventative treatment rejuvenates the bitumen within the asphalt and thereby extends the life of the carriageway. Typical treatment is required at year 7 after the surface has been laid and then again at five year intervals. Cores were taken before and after this treatment has been undertaken and are currently being assessed by the University of Nottingham. • Push-off insulated asphalt trailer – the vehicle has higher levels of insulation than traditional vehicles used to transport hot materials from quarry to site. In addition the wagon pushes the material from the wagon, improving the homogeneity of the mix temperature thereby reducing the risk of the formation of cold spots (likely future defects) when laying. • Biogenic (bio-based) binder in asphalt - an asphalt solution that reduces the carbon footprint of road surfacing. The integration of biogenic materials into the bitumen captures and stores CO2, even when recycled, acting as a carbon sink. This asphalt requires less energy to produce, operates at lower temperatures for enhanced safety, and may offer an extended lifespan. Page 115 of 158
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• Road marking materials – trials of a variety of the latest road marking products, including water based, biogenic thermoplastic and MMA, (Methyl Methacrylate) were undertaken at a number of locations across North Lanarkshire during July and August. Evaluation of their performance is ongoing. 2.21 Nottingham and Aston Universities, acknowledged as leaders in the road material, field are providing support for these demonstrator trials and also testing / assessment of materials for lifecycle analysis. This provides an additional layer of expertise and confidence in any outputs. 2.22 Trials planned in the near future includes:- • Anti-icing additive to asphalt – two footway resurfacing schemes planned in October / November using an additive that prevents the formation of ice on the surface. This would negate the need for gritting during adverse weather, although it is anticipated that the effectiveness will decline through time. • Pothole trials 2 – learnings from the first pothole trials undertaken earlier in 2024 are currently being evaluated with a view to initiating further trials to determine which materials provide the most effective solutions in different scenarios. • Plant based materials – trial of reed-based signage material (the sign housing rather than the reflective facing) in November 24. • Carriageway resurfacing – major trials of the latest asphalts including various bio- binders such as lignin and in-situ recycling techniques are planned to commence from Spring 2025. CEDR is looking at ways of amalgamating the most promising innovations to gain further benefits. Partner Network 2.23 The involvement of a wide range of Partners from across all corners of the local authority roads sector, industry and beyond to harness the best from a network of advisors, industry experts, suppliers, innovators, and academic partners, is critical to the delivery of a project of this scale. 2.24 The key Partners in the North Hub include Transport Scotland, the Scottish Collaboration of Transport Specialists (SCOTS), FHRG, Mineral Products Association (Scotland), Office of the Scottish Road Works Commissioner, Nottingham University, Aston University, National Highways and Thinks Insight. Overview of Governance Arrangements 2.25 In July, Arup were awarded the five-year contract which will continue beyond the three- year programme, to examine whether programme objectives have been met and to understand the effectiveness and efficiency of each Live Lab and its knowledge sharing with the wider sector. 2.26 Both Arup and the ADEPT Commissioning Board are reviewing progress in all Live Labs regularly to ensure the funding is committed appropriately. 2.27 The council and TfWM hold monthly Steering Board meetings to review progress, budgets and to provide strategic direction to the programme. Page 116 of 158
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Benefit Realisation 2.28 The medium-term objective is to transition successfully trialled whole-life lower carbon materials into business as usual wherever possible. Scalability is a factor considered within the evaluation criteria and the balance between cost versus reward is critical, particularly with the current pressures on resources. 2.29 Therefore while the initial trial results are now being considered, further analysis and academic work is required to be undertaken to provide confidence that manufacturer claims are accurate. This relates to both material performance (longevity) and environmental product declarations (EPD’s). 2.30 The provision of EPD’s is an evolving industry and the Department for Transport recognise the challenges involved to both suppliers and material purchasers. 3. Measures of success 3.1 The deployment of low-carbon materials across North Lanarkshire roads and the wider UK which furthers the sector’s transition to decarbonisation which in turn will contribute to delivery of the council’s net zero ambition. 4. Supporting documentation The following documents support this report:- 4.1 Outline Business Case submitted to ADEPT and the Department for Transport: https://www.adeptnet.org.uk/documents/north-lanarkshire-council-live-labs-2- strategic-outline-business-case 4.2 Website for Live Labs 2 programme with North Lanarkshire Council and Transport for West Midlands: www.decarbonisingroads.co.uk 4.3 Update blog published by the Project Manager on the ADEPT website: https://www.adeptnet.org.uk/news/live-labs-2-blog-%E2%80%93-update-north- lanarkshire-and-centre-excellence-decarbonising-roads 4.4 Interim behavioural change report commissioned as part of the NLC Live Labs 2 project: https://decarbonisingroads.co.uk/news/behaviour-change-to-fight-climate- change-mapping-the-behavioural-journey-of-material-decarbonisation/ Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 117 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 118 of 158
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? The purpose of this project is to reduce carbon on NLC Roads & Infrastructure activities. 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 119 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref LR Date 30/10/24 Land and Waste Service Review From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail renniely@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary The purpose of this report is to provide Members with an update on the proposals outlined in the previous report to committee on the service review being undertaken across Waste services. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Agree with the proposal to formally offer a revised working pattern of a condensed 4 day working week (37 hrs) Tuesday to Friday to Waste Operatives and Drivers. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve the health and wellbeing of our communities Ambition statement (17) Ensure we keep our environment clean, safe, and attractive Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Item 9 Page 121 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 The previous report approved at committee on 21 August 2024 detailed a review of Land and Waste services, which highlighted a need to address inefficiencies in service delivery including shift patterns, staffing levels and vehicles. 1.2 A full options appraisal was carried out in respect of waste service delivery models with the most feasible options taken forward for consultation with trade union representatives and employees. 1.3 Consultation with Trade Unions and employees was carried out via a survey and on a one-to-one in person basis throughout June. Of the 231 employees affected, 90% of these returned completed option forms, with 78% indicating a preference to move from the current 7 over 14 day work pattern to a static 4-day (37 hour) compressed week. 1.4 Initial projections have demonstrated that this could deliver a more efficient service and release an annual revenue saving of circa £1million. 1.5 The 3 signatory Trade Unions subsequently clarified that the move to the compressed working week if agreed by their members was to be at no detriment to salary. 1.6 Although this cannot be accommodated by the Service, a one off payment could be offered to offset the reduction in salary for up to an 18 month period. 1.7 Following completion of the consultation with all stakeholders, further advice was sought from Legal Services and Human Resources the outcome of which was that a condensed working week (37 hrs) with a Tuesday-to-Friday working pattern was a viable proposal. 1.8 Following approval at Committee the service will formally offer this new working pattern to trade union representatives and employees with a proposed implementation date of 1st April 2025. 2. Report 2.1 From 1 November 2023, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) published guidance placing an immediate ban on waste upholstered domestic seating (WUDs) containing persistent organic pollutants (POPs) from being sent to landfill under the Persistent Organic Pollutants Regulations 2007. As of this date all WUDS material was banned from landfill and measures had to be put in place to ensure all classifications of WUDS are correctly collected, transported, stored and destroyed in accordance with the legislation. 2.2 This has caused issues around the cost of collection/storage and treatment of this waste stream. Waste Resources face challenges around securing additional storage facilities at Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs); dedicated separate additional collections for fly-tipped materials; and resourcing a separate bulky waste collection service from households. 2.3 No additional funding has been provided by the Scottish Government for this change in legislation, however, the proposed new model will incorporate these additional Page 122 of 158
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costs and deliver a more efficient service, releasing an annual revenue saving of circa £1million. 2.4 Failure to secure the new proposed working pattern will require an additional 18 FTE waste operatives and drivers to deliver the changes to meet the requirements for the uplift of materials containing POPs with an additional cost of £700k. 2.5 If the new working pattern is accepted, then a full communications strategy will be developed to ensure all key stakeholders (employees, residents, elected members) are fully informed and engaged. 3. Measures of success 3.1 Improvement in the efficiency of waste collection routes. 4. Supporting documentation N/A Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 123 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Although there are no impacts with this report, it is fully expected that a revenue saving in the region of £1 million could be achieved if the service was to move to a compressed four day working week. 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If approved then formal engagement and contractual changes will take place in accordance with relevant procedures. 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Page 124 of 158
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Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 125 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref LR Date 30/10/24 Garden Waste Charging From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail renniely@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary The purpose of this report is to provide Members with a proposal to introduce a charge for the collection of garden waste. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Approve the proposal to introduce a charge of £40 per annum for the uplift of garden waste. (2) Agree that a further report is provided to Committee in Cycle 1 2025 providing further detail on the operation of the scheme. (3) Note that the introduction of the charging scheme may result in a decrease in the Council’s recycling rate. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve the health and wellbeing of our communities Ambition statement (17) Ensure we keep our environment clean, safe, and attractive Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Item 10 Page 127 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 In 2017, the Council introduced a combined food and garden kerbside waste collection service as part of the introduction of the three-weekly collection cycle. The Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012 place a statutory obligation on local authorities to provide householders with a food waste collection service. Although there was no statutory requirement to provide residents with a garden waste collection service, the Council allowed residents who had been provided with a brown bin to deposit unbagged, compostable garden waste free of charge. 1.2 To date, approximately 110,000 households currently participate in the brown bin collection for commingled food and garden waste. 2. Report National Position 2.1 As councils across the country look for ways to reduce budgetary pressures, charges for garden waste collections have become increasingly common. Currently, six councils in Scotland do not offer kerbside garden waste collection for residents, and one of these will begin providing a chargeable service starting in April 2025. Of the remaining councils, 22 operate a chargeable garden waste permit scheme, which leaves North Lanarkshire as one of only 4 councils providing a free of charge garden waste collection service. 2.2 The councils who operate a permit system charge residents between £30 and £60 (an average of £44.20) each year. Full details on the position across all local authorities is contained within Appendix 1 to the report. Introduction of Garden Waste Permits 2.3 It is proposed that a similar garden waste permit scheme is introduced in North Lanarkshire for the provision of the non-statutory service. Residents who wish to participate in the scheme would be required to purchase a permit for each bin containing garden waste. This permit, which will be unique to an individual address, will be in the form of a sticker which will be attached to the brown bin. 2.4 For those residents who do not wish to purchase a permit and use the bin solely for depositing food waste, then no permit would be required as food waste would still be collected free of charge. However, any bin presented without the relevant permit and containing garden waste will not be emptied and will be appropriately tagged to outline why it was not uplifted. 2.5 In line with the average cost for this service within other local authorities, it is proposed that the cost of the permit would be £40 per annum. However, Table 1 below provides a comparison on the impact of savings to the Council with annual charges of £35 - £50. Page 128 of 158
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2.6 The scheme would allow a resident to present one brown bin containing garden waste on each scheduled collection day until the end of that financial year. Should any resident have more than one bin, then a separate permit would be required for each bin. It is proposed that garden waste uplifts are continued to be suspended during the Christmas and New Year period to allow Waste Services to prioritise the collection of residual and recyclable waste as tonnages of these waste streams increase over this period, while garden waste tonnages are at their lowest. 2.7 Based on an annual charge of £40 per annum, delivery of this permit scheme will generate an overall net annual income to the Council of approximately £1.5m following removal of the administration costs. Of this income, £0.720m will be generated from the Council’s Housing Revenue Account as the costs for the uplift of the garden waste will be incorporated within the rental costs for the properties. The overall saving figure also assumes a 30% uptake across all non-Council properties receiving the current service and is net of the potential additional residual waste costs which may be experienced if residents deposit garden waste within the residual black bin or at recycling centres. 2.8 To maximise the additional income to the Council, it is anticipated that the charging scheme will commence on 1st June 2025. From information gathered from other local authorities who have introduced such a scheme, they have stated that it takes approximately 9 months for introduction. The purpose of this report therefore is to gain approval for the scheme from Committee which will then allow sufficient time for the Waste Service to introduce the scheme by the start of the new financial year. This period will allow the necessary administration of the scheme to be established and the development of a full communications strategy to ensure residents are aware of the new charge as well as the alternatives if they do not wish to participate in the service. To provide members with information on what this strategy will include (purchase arrangements, frequently asked questions etc.) it is proposed that a further report is submitted to Committee in Cycle 1 of 2025 providing full details. Risks and Considerations 2.9 It should be noted that the Scottish Government are currently considering proposals to make garden waste collections mandatory. If this proposal is approved the Council would no longer be able to charge for the collection service; however, should a charging scheme already be in place, it would be expected that appropriate compensatory funding would be made available to local authorities in respect of the new statutory obligation. Page 129 of 158
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2.10 The collection of garden waste accounts for around 15% of the Council’s current recycling rate of 46.6%, with approximately 22,000 tonnes collected each year from kerbside and recycling centres. The introduction of the charging scheme could potentially have a negative impact on recycling rates depending on the level of uptake. It should be noted however, that evidence from other local authorities suggests that there is little or no impact upon recycling rates once implemented. It should be further noted that grass and green waste is a sustainable product, and it is therefore questionable as to why this is included in recycling statistics, as the focus should be on non-sustainable items. 3. Measures of success 3.1 Introduction of a successful charging scheme for garden waste. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 – Garden Waste Charges Scotland. Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 130 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? There is an anticipated income generation from the introduction of this charge. The exact level will be dependant on the levels of uptake across the local authority area. 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☒ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 131 of 158
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The service will look initially at the use of the council’s CRM system to management the payment, however, if the timelines for the introduction cannot be delivered internally then an external system will be utilised. Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☒ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? There is a potential for additional garden waste to be disposed of through the residual waste stream and an overall reduction in the Council’s recycling levels. 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? A large communication campaign will be require for this to ensure all residents who have a food/garden waste bin are aware of the charge 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? There is a risk the councils recycling rate could fall significantly. 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 132 of 158
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Appendix 1 - Garden Waste Charges Scotland Local Authority Service Charge Cost(£) Aberdeenshire No No n/a Aberdeen City Yes Yes 30 Angus Yes Yes 50 Argyll and Bute No No n/a City of Edinburgh Yes Yes 35 Clackmannanshire Yes Yes 48 Dumfries & Galloway* Yes* Yes* 40* Dundee City Yes Yes 45 East Ayrshire Yes Yes 30 East Dunbartonshire Yes Yes 50 East Renfrewshire Yes Yes 52.5 East Lothian Yes Yes 35 Falkirk Yes Yes 45 Fife Yes No 0 Glasgow City Yes Yes 50 Highland Yes Yes 35 Inverclyde Yes Yes 42 Midlothian Yes Yes 40 Moray Yes Yes 50 Western Isles Yes No 0 North Ayrshire Yes No 0 North Lanarkshire Yes No 0 Orkney Islands No No n/a Perth & Kinross Yes Yes 40 Renfrewshire Yes Yes 40 Scottish Borders No No n/a Shetland Isles No No n/a South Ayrshire Yes Yes 50 South Lanarkshire Yes Yes 50 Stirling Yes Yes 50 West Dunbartonshire Yes Yes 60 West Lothian Yes Yes 50 * Note Dumfries & Galloway will introduce a garden waste collection service April 2025 Page 133 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref AM/ MM Date 30/10/24 Power Resilience Strategy and Business Continuity From Andrew McPherson, Depute Chief Executive E-mail mcphersona@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07939280467 Executive Summary The report provides an update on the Council’s arrangements relevant to Power Resilience Strategy and Business Continuity. Recommendations It is recommended that Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Approve the ongoing improvements to the Council’s business continuity and resilience planning arrangements. (2) Support the implementation of North Lanarkshire Council’s Power Resilience Strategy. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority All priorities Ambition statement All ambition statements Programme of Work Statutory / corporate / service requirement Item 11 Page 135 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (CCA) and the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning) (Scotland) Regulations 2005 define local authorities as Category 1 Responders. 1.2 The CCA requires Category 1 responders to uphold various plans to ensure that they can continue to exercise their functions in the event of an emergency; this includes maintaining comprehensive Business Continuity Plans (BCPs). 1.3 For Category 1 responders to help others in the event of an emergency, they first need to be able to keep their own crisis response capabilities going. Category 1 responders must be able to continue to deliver critical aspects of their day-to-day functions in the event of an emergency, if any impact is to be kept to a minimum. 1.4 Services within North Lanarkshire Council should not only look at the resilience of internal structures and processes, but also those of organisations they rely on, or deliver services through. Maintaining a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) ensures services think about internal and external disruptions which could affect their ongoing activities or capabilities which underpin service provision. 1.5 Additionally, it is the duty of the Resilience Planning Unit (RPU) to forward think and plan for any risks which may occur; this is derived from the National Security Risk Assessment (NSRA). 1.6 An example of such a risk is a National Power Outage (NPO) which is a complete (or partial) shutdown of the Great Britain (GB) electricity system, where the planning assumption is that full power restoration could take up to seven days. 1.7 The timeframe to a full power cut is likely to be less than 2-minutes, meaning there will be no preparation time. The planning arrangements for dealing with the consequences of such an event and the recovery process, are described under the term Power Resilience. 1.8 Within the last United Kingdom Government National Risk Assessment, NPO was rated as a medium likelihood with significant impacts. Consequently, the Scottish Government have requested that in addition to normal business continuity arrangements all public bodies should have a stand-alone Power Resilience Strategy which would be enacted in the event of an NPO. 2. Report 2.1 The overall resilience and business continuity arrangements were extensively tested throughout the Council’s response to the pandemic. The maintenance of all critical services throughout the period of the pandemic demonstrated the robustness and depth of the resilience and business continuity arrangements in place. 2.2 A fundamental principle of any resilience response is the ‘Review’ phase. The purpose of this is not to assign blame but to highlight areas of improvement in the overall Page 136 of 158
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response to an incident, identify their cause and introduce changes which will prevent a recurrence in any future response. 2.3 To complement the review process, the Council’s Internal Audit team undertook an evaluation of the current corporate resilience arrangements and issued a report with their findings. The report concluded that there was a ‘reasonable assurance’ that effective business continuity and resilience planning measures were in place; however, several improvement actions were also identified and agreed: • Changes were suggested to the framework in place for documenting individual Services’ business continuity and disaster recovery arrangements to enhance the quality and completeness of the corresponding plans. • Corporate and individual services’ business continuity and disaster recovery arrangements would benefit from a robust, formalised review process. • Formal testing of business continuity and/or disaster recovery arrangements must be undertaken consistently across the Council in line with corporate expectations. • Management should review and document the roles and responsibilities of Business Continuity Champions to clarify corporate expectations regarding their business continuity duties. 2.4 In response to the review process in section 2.3, the RPU implemented the following: • A formal review of the existing Business Continuity (BC) arrangements • Identified Business Continuity Champions for 22 Council Services in order to undertake a Business Impact Analysis (BIA) and work towards creating their own individual service Business Continuity Plans (BCP). • Identified service roles and responsibilities in the Business Continuity Planning process (i.e. Plan Authorisers are Chief Officers, BC Champions are reviewers). • Collated responses and created 22 service BCP’s and 1 Corporate BCP. • Put in place a Business Continuity Champion Group which will meet quarterly. • Created a guidance document for reviewing BCP’s. This can be found at InsideNL - Business Continuity Documentation - All Documents (sharepoint.com) • Commenced the process of exercising Business Continuity alongside a Corporate identified risk (Power Resilience). • Differentiated Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning (DRP) – ICT are now the main point of contact for DRP. • Collaborated with the Council’s Internal Audit team to ensure that business continuity arrangements met the standards identified in their review • Implemented a formal review and assurance process, ensuring all plans are regularly reviewed and tested. Going forward this will allow for a more consistent approach towards Business Continuity Planning across all Council Services. 2.5 To promote resilience, Services are being encouraged to use their Business Continuity arrangements to create separate scenario plans where necessary. 2.6 The RPU have followed the Scottish Government’s request that, in addition to normal business continuity arrangements, all public bodies should have a stand-alone Power Resilience Strategy. This strategy would be activated in the event of any failure of an NPO. Full details of the Council’s Power Resilience Strategy are provided in Appendix Page 137 of 158
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1. Please note that all appendices have been removed from this document due to the sensitive and personal information contained within them. 2.7 To mitigate the effects of an NPO, the following arrangements have been introduced: • Identified 9 Public Assistance Centres (PAC’s) • Purchased 9 portable generators: Currently awaiting the installation of fixing points at PAC’s as noted in appendix 2. • Acquired 20 Satellite radios - Communication strategy is ongoing • Supplied and fitted information boards externally at all primary schools. • Compiled a list of power resilience volunteers • Purchased 80 handheld UHF radios and augmented winter community Power Resilience grab bags in line with ongoing work between RPU and the Community Partnership Team. • Collaborated with services to identify critical arrangements (see Power Resilience Strategy, Appendix 1) 3. Measures of success 3.1 Effective Resilience and Business Continuity Planning to ensure the delivery of critical services in the event of a major incident. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 – Power Resilience Strategy Appendix 2 – Map of Public Assistance Centres Andrew McPherson Depute Chief Executive Page 138 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 139 of 158
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? Having effective resilience and business continuity arrangements in place across the organisation will reduce the risk associated within a number of service areas. The risk with regards to Power Resilience, is a stand-alone corporate risk which requires effective planning in line with Scottish Government request. 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 140 of 158
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Appendices Appendix 1 – Power Resilience Strategy • Power Resilience Strategy 2024.pdf Page 141 of 158
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Appendix 2 – Map of Public Assistance Centres • 1 Airdrie Airdrie @home Centre 2 Clark St Airdrie ML6 6HD 2 Viewpark Viewpark Community Education Centre Old Edinburgh Rd Viewpark G71 6PG 3 Chryston Gartcosh Hall Lochend Rd Gartcosh G69 8AB 4 Coatbridge Charlotte Toal Centre Dundyvan Rd Coatbridge ML5 1DN 5 Cumbernauld Muirfield Community Education Centre 1A South Muirhead Rd Cumbernauld G67 1AX 6 Kilsyth Garrel Vale Community Education Centre Duncansfield Kilsyth G65 9JW 7 Motherwell Pat Cullinan Community Centre Logans Rd Motherwell ML1 3PB 8 Shotts Shotts Leisure Centre Benhar Rd Shotts ML7 5EP 9 Wishaw Pather Community Centre Caledonian Rd Wishaw ML2 0HZ Page 142 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref LR Date 30/10/24 Community Operations Programme of Work Update From Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail renniely@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07855 193500 Executive Summary The report builds on previous reports and provides an update on the proposals within the Waste and Fleet Service in line with the Council’s Sustainable Futures Programme of Work. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate change committee: (1) Note progress against the Bellshill new fleet workshop, office accommodation and welfare facilities. (2) Supports the work associated with the introduction of an Eco Park within the Bellshill complex. (3) Note the decision not to progress with a Materials Recovery Facility or Waste Transfer Station at Dalmacoulter. (4) Note update on progress with Solar Farms. (5) Endorse the actions now being taken to meet statutory requirements relevant to the collection and storage of materials containing Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). (6) Support the progress and actions proposed to allow the decarbonisation of the Council fleet. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve North Lanarkshire's resource base Ambition statement (3) Maximise the use of our marketable land and assets through improved development in business and industrial infrastructure Programme of Work Sustainable Futures Item 12 Page 143 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 Previous reports to Committee have outlined the ongoing rationalisation exercise to be undertaken across Waste Resources to allow consolidation of the service within key depot facilities. However, several issues and developments have resulted in a change to the planned operating model and this report provides an update on the depot position and the projects contained within the Sustainable Futures programme of work. 2. Report SARIS and Bellshill Complex 2.1 As previously reported to Committee, due to structural faults within the previous Fleet depot facility, this required an immediate evacuation of the building. This resulted in the Fleet service being located within the Souterhouse Depot at Coatbridge and all Waste services co-located at the Albert Street (Motherwell) and Wardpark (Cumbernauld) depots. 2.2 In line with the Strategic Asset Review and Investment Strategy (SARIS) of the Council, the initial proposal was to create a super depot facility at Bellshill from which Waste and Fleet Resources would operate. This in turn would allow a rationalisation of the waste and Land Services depots across the Council area. 2.3 Since the initial move from Bellshill, the previous Fleet building has now been demolished and a new purpose-built facility delivered within the same site. There has been a delay in the ‘go live’ date for the new facility due to power connection issues, but it is expected that the depot will be occupied by mid-November with the fleet workshop fully operational by February 2025. 2.4 The original intention was to co-locate the Fleet and Waste services at the Bellshill facility, however, since this initial decision was taken a number of events have taken place which will now see a repurposing of the space within the facility. 2.5 Principally this was due to the expansion of the bus fleet within the Council. Following the failure of several school bus contracts at the start of the school term in August 2022, a decision was taken to purchase additional coaches to the Council fleet to mitigate the risk of future market failure. Over the last two years this has grown to 15 coaches. Further, over the period of the next 12 months, the responsibility for school transport will be passed from the Education service to Fleet. The purpose of this move will be to maximise the existing fleet capacity and determine where efficiencies can be made across the entire school transport provision. This will also cover the current ASN transport provision which currently costs the Council over £11 million. The intention will be to provide a more effective and sustainable transport provision for all children. 2.6 Following this decision to increase the bus fleet, with a potential to increase it even further, the additional bus provision will preclude the ability to co-locate the Waste service at Bellshill. Going forward, the Waste service will now be located permanently at the existing facilities at Wardpark and Albert Street. 2.7 This change to the operational delivery will allow the new facility to be repurposed to provide further rationalisation in line with SARIS. The office-based Community Operations services (Roads, Protective Services, Built Environment) will all be located Page 144 of 158
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at Bellshill allowing further services to be located within the Civic Centre. In addition, plans will now be developed to turn a section of the facility into an operational hub. In particular, this will allow a centrally located welfare provision for the Home Support team 24 hours per day. 2.8 On full occupation of the Bellshill facility, further rationalisation of Land Services depot facilities will be carried out in line with SARIS, providing a capital receipt for the Council through the sale of any depot deemed surplus to requirements. Bellshill Eco Park 2.9 As detailed later in this report, there are several limiting factors which are slowing down the progression of the Council fleet to net zero. To address this challenge, the Fleet service have been investigating alternative approaches in partnership with the private sector and public partners. 2.10 Previous reports detailed a proposal to deliver an EcoPark facility in conjunction with Scottish Power Energy Retail Limited (SPERL). This project is no longer being taken forward with SPERL due to delivery issues impacting significantly on timescales. Additionally, due to insufficient capital funding, the service needs to look at a model which provides a full turnkey ‘Charging as a Service’ solution, including site upgrades, EV charging infrastructure and vehicles. 2.11 Location of such a facility on the footprint of the old Fleet depot at Bellshill will allow easy access from all the main arterial routes across Scotland – M8, M74 and A80. Discussions have commenced with the blue light services, public partners and neighbouring local authorities to make them aware of the project. It is also anticipated that the facility will be opened to the private sector to encourage the switch from fossil to clean energy solutions as the net zero commitment from the Council applies across all business sectors within its area. 2.12 Further updates on this project will be provided to Committee at future committee cycles. Dalmacoulter Landfill Facility 2.13 Previous reports to committee discussed the potential to use of Dalmacoulter Landfill site for a Material Recovery Facility (MRF). 2.14 At present, the Council must negotiate contracts for the disposal and processing of its recyclable and bulky items on a regular basis. From previous tender processes, we are aware that many companies do not apply for these contracts or are ruled out from award of any tender due to them being uncompetitive as they are not based locally within North Lanarkshire, and the resulting transport costs for the material exclude them from any contract award on a cost basis. By providing a waste facility within the heart of the Council area we then remove this barrier for companies to apply for contracts as they would have a central base from which to collect the material. This in turn opens up the full potential of the marketplace to the Council for any future contracts which in turn will drive down the costs of our waste service to the benefit of the Council Tax payer. 2.15 In light of the above, and as previously reported, the Waste service applied for and was granted full planning permission for a material recovery facility (MRF) for the Page 145 of 158
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hardstanding area at former Dalmacoulter landfill site for the sorting and bulking of waste which is then sent for treatment at another plant. 2.16 Waste Resources have investigated alternative funding routes including securing capital funding; however, this project is no longer a viable option due to insufficient funding being secured. The Council will now market the land with the accompanying planning permission. Although the facility will not be operated by the Council, it is anticipated that there will still be a cost benefit to the Council as the private sector will establish such a facility which in turn will deliver a more competitive tender process for future waste contracts. Further to this, a much improved capital receipt will be delivered for the Council due to the site already having the appropriate planning permission. Wardpark Facility 2.17 Investigation has been carried out into the use of Wardpark facility for a Waste Transfer Station (WTS). Planning consent was obtained which would have allowed the bulking of waste collected within the North area of the authority and reduce the number of vehicle movements to disposal outlets which may be remote from the point of collection. 2.18 As with Dalmacoulter, funding routes were considered but the cost of providing this facility set against the capital outlay did not deliver a reasonable payback period. Solar Farms at Auchinlea and Dalmacoulter Landfill Sites 2.19 The Council has engaged the services of a private consultant to determine the viability of the footprint of the closed landfill sites at Dalmacoulter and Auchinlea as potential solar farms. There are already existing grid connections at the sites so the costs associated with the establishment of any solar farm will be significantly reduced as it is the grid connection which very often determines the viability of such projects. 2.20 The consultant worked alongside the council’s planning team to determine the extent of the information required for the planning applications. A suite of reports have been completed including the Preliminary Ecological Appraisal (PEA) Report, Solar PV Glint and Glare Assessment, Flood Risk Assessment and Transport Statements for both Auchinlea and Dalmacoulter. Additionally, capping assessments were completed for both sites. The PEA highlighted the likely requirement for species specific surveys, particularly migrating birds. When it was determined that this was required it was found that the season to begin these works had passed and would need to wait for the next season for completion. 2.21 As PV Solar Farms were relatively new to the planning process in Scotland, the regulations and requirements surrounding them were not solidified. After further discussions with the planning team, additional requirements for the application have been identified. It was deemed that the species-specific surveys were indeed a requirement as well as a Land and Visual Impact Assessment LVIA) at an additional cost of £26k per site. 2.22 An update on this will be provided in future report to committee. Page 146 of 158
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Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) and Household Waste Recycling Centres 2.23 The UK Government adopted The Stockholm convention and the EU POPs Regulations (EU 2019/1021) under the Persistent Organic Pollutants Regulations 2007. 2.24 Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are organic chemical substances which pose a risk to human health and the environment due to their persistence in the environment, bioaccumulation through the food chain and long-range environmental transport across a wide geographical range. POPs are present in a variety of manufactured materials including car parts, electronic equipment, upholstered domestic seating, and some firefighting foams. 2.25 The POPs regulations have been in force since 3 December 2007 in England however these were never adopted by the Scottish Government. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) on 1 November 2023 published guidance placing an immediate ban on waste upholstered domestic seating (WUDs) containing persistent organic pollutants (POPs) from being sent to landfill, with the caveat that no enforcement action in respect of any failure to do so would take place before 31 January 2024. 2.26 As of this date, all WUDS material was banned from landfill and measures had to be put in place to ensure all classifications of WUDS are correctly collected, transported, stored and destroyed in accordance with the legislation. 2.27 This has caused issues around the cost of collection/storage and treatment of this waste stream as it now has to be collected, stored and disposed of separately from all other waste streams. No additional funding has been provided to local authorities to assist in this change. 2.28 The Waste service has faced challenges around securing additional storage facilities at Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs), dedicated separate additional collections for fly-tipped materials falling under the guidance, and resourcing a separate bulky waste collection service from households. 2.29 There have also been barriers to communicating the need to collect this material separately to the public as there has been limited national guidance with no national campaign being delivered to help support delivering this message to householders. 2.30 To address this issue, Waste Resources submitted a capital bid to secure funding to upgrade HRWC’s to enable the acceptance of tipper vehicles and meet statutory obligations, this would allow material collected by Land and Housing to be taken direct to HWRC’s rather than disposal outlets, improving efficiencies and reducing costs. Due to the limited funding allocated, it will not be possible to have a dedicated facility at all HWRC’s and the service is therefore looking into the possibility of adopting a similar approach to many other local authorities by limiting the number of sites which accept WUDS. 2.31 Additional resources are also required to provide dedicated separate additional collections for fly-tipped materials and separate bulky waste collection service from households. This is currently being carried out utilising current resource at an additional cost and a service review outlined in a separate report to this Committee is being undertaken to provide this additional capacity. 2.32 In addition to the changes highlighted for POPs, the recycling centres will also be Page 147 of 158
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changed to accommodate the disposal of waste arising from the work of Land Services and Housing, along with improved welfare facilities within the centres. Providing this more locally based operating model will allow employees from the Land and Housing services to operate close to their area of operation and reduce the number of vehicle movements by providing local disposal outlets. This will deliver operational efficiencies and a reduction in carbon emissions. Recycling Improvement Fund (RIF) 2.33 A previous report to committee provided an update to replace the ageing ‘blue node’ facilities at all communal recycling points throughout North Lanarkshire. 2.34 The Council has a number of flatted properties which are provided with a weekly residual waste collection only, and access to recycling is only achieved through communal recycling points. There were previously 91 such sites accepting paper, and co-mingled plastic and metal. 2.35 Since the introduction of these sites over 10 years ago, we have seen a continued decline in the quality of recyclate collected and the fabric of the containers themselves. This is due to several factors including: • Deterioration of the node containers due to this type of container no longer being manufactured and difficulty in sourcing replacement parts. • Fly tipping around the sites. • Collection crews find the containers difficult to manoeuvre due to their design and there are issues with locking mechanisms. This has led to lids not being closed correctly, allowing for bulky non target recycling material to be deposited. 2.36 To address the above issues, the Waste service secured £276k from Zero Waste Scotland’s RIF for an enhanced Communal Recycling project. Existing node facilities were replaced with 1100l ‘lid in lid’ bins and enhanced recycling services were introduced with food waste housing units and textile recycling banks. 2.37 This project has been implemented and the sites are monitored routinely. This has resulted in a significant improvement in the quality of recycled material across all sites. Contractors are reporting very low contamination levels, with Glass, Metal, Plastic averaging 89% target waste and paper and card 99%. Decarbonisation of Council Fleet 2.38 At present the Council has 759 vehicles split into the following categories: Vehicle Type Total number Cars 311 Light Goods Vehicles (LGV) 225 Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV) 54 Passenger vehicles 99 Other 70 Total 759 Page 148 of 158
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2.39 As detailed in a previous report to Committee in August 2023, due to prohibitive costs and emerging technology, it would not be the intention to move away from standard diesel engines for our HGV fleet for the next two to four years. This position will be kept under constant review by the Fleet service to determine whether there can be any acceleration of this depending on any significant changes in price or technology. 2.40 The focus will therefore be on moving towards a net zero position for all other vehicles. At present we have a total of 536 such vehicles, 26 of which are electric. The intention will be to move towards a low emission solution for all such vehicles by 2030. 2.41 Running in parallel with the move to a low emission fleet is the increase in electric charging infrastructure across the Council area. As detailed to Committee on 1st May 2024, the increase in public charging infrastructure is being taken forward at a Glasgow City Region level and further progress reports on this will be presented to Committee at a future date. Of equal importance is the increase in charging infrastructure at the Council’s own depots and office locations. 2.42 To date we have upgraded the power capacity at both the Bellshill and Wardpark depots and increased the number of charging points within some depot and office locations to give the following charging capacity: Location Charging Outlets Getting Better Together (GBT), Shotts North Lanarkshire Council, Albert Street Depot, Motherwell North Lanarkshire Council, Bellshill Depot North Lanarkshire Council, Canyon Road Depot, Wishaw North Lanarkshire Council, Civic Centre, Motherwell North Lanarkshire Council, Fleming House, Cumbernauld North Lanarkshire Council, Lady Anne Depot, Airdrie North Lanarkshire Council, Netherton Depot North Lanarkshire Council, Reema Depot North Lanarkshire Council, Shotts Depot North Lanarkshire Council, Souterhouse Depot, Coatbridge North Lanarkshire Council, Stobcross Depot North Lanarkshire Council, Strathclyde Country Park North Lanarkshire Council, Wardpark Depot, Cumbernauld 4 2 52 2 24 4 2 6 4 2 8 2 12 6 2.43 This capacity will increase over the coming years and will be dependent upon the increase in numbers of electric vehicles and the availability of necessary funding. Coupled with this, and as referenced above, the Fleet service is investigating alternative funding models and partnership with the private sector. ‘Charging as a Service’ solution is a fully supplier funded model with no up-front Capex required from the Council and includes full-service delivery from construction, install and ongoing management with the option to include vehicles. This solution will provide flexibility to add or deduct vehicles and increase capacity when required. Page 149 of 158
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3. Measures of success 3.1 The delivery of more efficient front-line services within North Lanarkshire and reduced financial and environmental costs associated with the delivery of these services. 4. Supporting documentation N/A Lyall Rennie Chief Officer (Community Operations) Page 150 of 158
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Page 151 of 158
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? As detailed in the report, the initiatives being taken forward will contribute towards the Council’s ambition of net zero by 2030. 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services. 5.11 Children’s rights and wellbeing impact Does the report contain any information regarding any council activity, service delivery, policy, or plan that has an impact on children and young people up to the age of 18, or on a specific group of these? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact and the provision that has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the relevant Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). If Yes, has a Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) been carried out? Yes ☐ No ☐ Page 152 of 158
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☐ Yes ☒ No Ref JMcK/CPT Date 30/10/24 Contracts awarded below Committee approval threshold From James McKinstry, Chief Officer (Assets and Procurement) E-mail McKinstryJ@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07939 281 102 Executive Summary In accordance with the Council’s General Contract Standing Orders (“GCSOs”), GCSO 21.10 requires a summary report be presented to members with details of contracts awarded since last committee, specifically for the spend range: • over £50,000 but below £500,000 for supplies or services; and, • over £500,000 but below £2,000,000 for works. Recommendations It is recommended that the Environment and Climate Change Committee: (1) Acknowledge the contract awards made since last committee reporting cycle. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority All priorities Ambition statement All ambition statements Programme of Work Statutory / corporate / service requirement Item 13 Page 153 of 158
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1. Background 1.1 The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 section 81 requires local authorities to “…make standing orders with respect to the making by them or on their behalf of contracts for the supply of goods or materials or for the execution of works.”. 1.2 The Council’s General Contract Standing Orders (“GCSOs”) set out the council’s specific procurement procedures and responsibilities at all spend levels, and include the reporting requirements of procurement activity, including contracts awards, to committee for either approval or acknowledgement. 2. Report 2.1 In accordance with GCSO 21.10, this report summarises the contract awards since last committee, specifically for the spend range: • over £50,000 but below £500,000 for supplies or services; and, • over £500,000 but below £2,000,000 for works. 2.2 If you require further information regards the contract awards reported, please refer to the lead service area / Chief Officer detailed in the appendix. 3. Measures of success 3.1 All requirements contracted contribute to either the council’s programme of work and/or fulfil a statutory requirement. 3.2 All contract awards secure best value for the council in accordance with their evaluation criteria. 3.3 All necessary diligence has been undertaken in the evaluation and appointment of contractors. 3.4 All contract awards are logged in the council’s contract register. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 – Summary of contracts awarded. James McKinstry Chief Officer (Assets and Procurement) 5. Impacts 5.1 Impacts considered as part of the contract award procedures are recorded in the individual contract award reports held by the lead service area. Page 154 of 158
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Appendix 1 – Summary of Contracts Awarded Contract Ref NLC-CPT-24-001 Title Road Coring 2024-28 Classification Services Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operation) Competiti on Governance Lower Threshold Regulated Procurement, procured in accordance with The Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 AND The Procurement (Scotland) Regulations 2016 Procurement Route Single Stage Procedure No. of Expressions of interest 7 No. of Bids Received 4 Award Criteria Most Economically Advantageous Tender 40% Quality 60% Evaluation Scores – Successful 84.40% Evaluation Scores – Unsuccessful 79.99% to 38.12% Award Details Value £175,535 Contract Duration 24 + 12 + 12 Contractor Name Stanger Testing Services Ltd Contractor Size Small Contractor Location South Lanarkshire Status - Payment of Living Wage? Yes Status - Living Wage Accredited? Yes Impacts this section highlights which impacts were considered for this contract award procedure Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty ☐ HR Policy Impact ☐ Data Protection Impact ☐ Environment / Carbon Impact ☐ Risk Impact ☒ Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact ☐ Financial Impact ☒ Legal Impact ☐ Technology / Digital Impact ☐ Communications Impact ☐ Armed Forces Covenant Duty ☐ Further details regarding these impacts can be obtained from the Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Page 155 of 158
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Contract Ref NLC-SLP-23-105 Title Local Transport Strategy Development Classification Services Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Pamela Humphries, Chief Officer (Place) Competiti on Governance The Framework terms & conditions, with adherence to the council’s GCSO 13 on 3rd party frameworks Procurement Route Call-off following Direct Award using Third Party Framework No. of Framework Contractors 12 Award Criteria Best Value assessment, in accordance with the Framework Information Comments This contract has been awarded using the Scotland Excel Framework - Engineering and Technical Consultancy Framework, Lot 2 Traffic and Transportation Services as the procurement route. Award Details Value £135,000.00 Contract Duration 12 Contractor Name AECOM limited Contractor Size Large Company Contractor Location Glasgow Status - Payment of Living Wage? Yes Status - Living Wage Accredited? No Impacts this section highlights which impacts were considered for this contract award procedure Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty ☒ HR Policy Impact ☐ Data Protection Impact ☐ Environment / Carbon Impact ☐ Risk Impact ☐ Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact ☐ Financial Impact ☒ Legal Impact ☐ Technology / Digital Impact ☐ Communications Impact ☐ Armed Forces Covenant Duty ☐ Further details regarding these impacts can be obtained from the Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Contract Ref NLC-SLP-24-041 Page 156 of 158
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Title Purchase of 5 Tractors Classification Supplies Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) Competiti on Governance The Framework terms & conditions, with adherence to the council’s GCSO 13 on 3rd party frameworks Procurement Route Call-off following Direct Award using Third Party Framework No. of Framework Contractors 7 Award Criteria Best Value assessment, in accordance with the Framework Information Comments This contract has been awarded using the Scotland Excel Framework 1522 - Grounds and Plant Equipment, Lot 4 Grounds Vehicles, Tractors and Equipment as the procurement route. Award Details Value £325,000.00 Contract Duration One off purchase Contractor Name Hamilton Bros (Engineering) Ltd Contractor Size Medium Contractor Location South Lanarkshire Status - Payment of Living Wage? Yes Status - Living Wage Accredited? No Impacts this section highlights which impacts were considered for this contract award procedure Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty ☐ HR Policy Impact ☐ Data Protection Impact ☐ Environment / Carbon Impact ☐ Risk Impact ☐ Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact ☐ Financial Impact ☒ Legal Impact ☐ Technology / Digital Impact ☐ Communications Impact ☐ Armed Forces Covenant Duty ☐ Further details regarding these impacts can be obtained from the Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Page 157 of 158
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Contract Ref NLC-CPT-24-013 Title Treatment & Disposal of Waste Upholstered Domestic Seating containing Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Classification Services Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Lyall Rennie, Chief Officer (Community Operations) Competitio n Governance The Dynamic Purchasing System (“DPS”) terms & conditions, with adherence to the council’s GCSO Procurement Route Mini Competition using a Third-Party Dynamic Purchasing System (“DPS”) No. of DPS Contractors 33 No. of Bids Received 4 Award Criteria Most Economically Advantageous Tender 30% Quality, 70% Price Evaluation Scores – Successful 87.80% Evaluation Scores – Unsuccessful 66.94% to 35.15% Comments The procurement approach was a Mini-competition using the Scotland Excel DPS for Treatment and Disposal of Recyclable and Residual Waste (27/17) - Lot 11 Treatment and Disposal of Bulky Waste. Award Details Value £476,000.00 Contract Duration 9 months Contractor Name Dow Group Limited Contractor Size Medium Contractor Location South Lanarkshire Status - Payment of Living Wage? Yes Status - Living Wage Accredited? No Impacts this section highlights which impacts were considered for this contract award procedure Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty ☐ HR Policy Impact ☐ Data Protection Impact ☐ Environment / Carbon Impact ☐ Risk Impact ☒ Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact ☐ Financial Impact ☒ Legal Impact ☐ Technology / Digital Impact ☐ Communications Impact ☐ Armed Forces Covenant Duty ☐ Further details regarding these impacts can be obtained from the Lead Service Area / Chief Officer Page 158 of 158