Meeting Minutes 5 June 2023

Bryn Engagement Group - Minutes of the meeting held on 5 June 2023

Present

  • Councillors: N. George (Chair), A. Gair, P. Leonard, J.A. Pritchard, H. Pritchard.
  • Resident Representatives: H. David (MS), L. Price, M. Roberts, R. Bevan, G. Davies, A. Gray, J Szura and D. Voyle.
  • Bryn Group: J. Price, R. Thomas and S. Powell
  • NRW: J. Goldsworthy and G. Gardiner
  • Officers: M.S. Williams, R. Hartshorn, C. Edwards and H. Lancaster

Welcome and Introductions

Introductions were made and apologies were noted from Councillor B. Miles, V. Muxworthy, S. Spencer and K. Roberts.

Minutes of the Meeting held on the 30 January 2023

In relation to Minute No. 7 – Overview of Community Engagement – an amendment was requested to emphasise that there had never been a fire in the AD Plant at Bryn, this was noted, and it was confirmed that the minutes would be updated to reflect.

In relation to Minute No. 2 – Terms of Reference, residents’ representatives requested that the matter of the committee’s membership be looked at again with consideration to allocating an officially appointed and named seat to Nelson Community Council representative.  They felt representation from a Community Council would aid with the circulation of information and community engagement.

The Chair noted that at least 2 of the residents’ representatives in attendance were also Community Councillors and the County Borough Members on the Group were also members of Community Councils and could therefore provide feedback from meetings to Community Councils who could then disseminate information to the wider community and did not see the need to increase the committee size in this way.

Resident representatives expressed their disappointment at this comment and added that this relied upon resident’s representative to take matters forward and although present representatives were very good at providing feedback this might not always be the case.

However, a Member felt that if Nelson Community Council was represented then Gelligaer Community Council should also have a place and furthermore she had received interest from County Borough Ward Members who would also be interested in a place on the Group.

The Chair explained that the membership of the Group had been seriously considered however the emphasis had always been that this would be a group for residents, made up of residents. Increased numbers such as those mentioned also ran the risk of making the Group too cumbersome, which could impact on its ability to function well and so he although he would take the comments back to the Cabinet, he would not be making a recommendation.

Residents once again expressed their disappointment and emphasised their    opinion that this additional representation would add value to the Group.

Update from Natural Resources Wales

Natural Resources Wales presented their briefing note which provided a general overview of their regulation of the Bryn Group and confirmed that since the last meeting they had received 1 x odour complaint and 1 x noise complaint.  Over this period, they had been unable to confirm that the smell was attributable to the permitted facility, and the Regulatory Officer confirmed the response process for odour complaints.

In relation to the bund, Greg Gardner, NRW Regulatory Officer confirmed that NRW had offered a Formal Caution to Bryn Aggregates on the 25th January 2023 which was accepted on the 6th of February 2023.

Since the last meeting there had been no further inspections of the Anaerobic Digestor.  The Waste Transfer Station and Composting Facility had been inspected on the 1st March 2023 and no actions or breaches were identified.

The Chair referenced a question raised by email by Councillor B. Miles who was unable to attend today’s meeting, concerning the outputs/products derived from the AD, “I note that NRW regulate the AD plant. What monitoring does NRW carry out on the waste products destined to be spread on agricultural land? What is the human, animal and environmental risks associated with pathogens present in the anaerobic digestate and farm slurry, and how are these risks controlled?”

It was confirmed that digestate product must meet a quality protocol, once the waste is turned into product then it would no longer be regulated by NRW, and any complaints about odour in this regard would be picked up by the Council’s Environment Health Officers.

Clarification was sought in relation to the The Water Resources (Control of Agricultural Pollution) (Wales) Regulations 2021 (CoAPR) which came into force in January, The regulations combine The Water Resources (Control of Pollution) (Silage and Slurry) (Wales) Regulations 2010 (S&S Regs) and The Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations 2013 (NVZ) into one piece of legislation, harmonising definitions, and calculation methodologies. NRW confirmed that CoAPR covered the whole of Wales so approximately 35,000 farmers would need to be regulated.  NRW have received additional funding (over next 2 years) from Welsh Government for a planned programme of compliance inspections for high-risk agricultural activities. This will focus on farms producing high levels of organic manures, or importing organic manures which includes digestate, biosolids and other wastes recovered to land, so it was likely that Bryn would come under this risk managed inspection regime. NRW advised that the inspection process placed quite an administrative burden on farmers as well as well as a significant regulatory role for NRW which was why they would be inspecting on a risk basis.  It was emphasised that the regulations do not cover odour but rather it sets controls and limits for the use of nitrogen containing fertilisers

The Senedd Member welcomed the new regulations and that this would form part of the Engagement Groups terms of reference.  Given that the Local Authority regulated slurry spreading and NRW regulated nitrate levels there seems to be a cross over and clarification was sought on how this would be managed.

NRW and Environment Health Officers detailed where areas of responsibility fell to the respective organisations and the Group noted that odour from permitted activities would be regulated by Natural Resources Wales, but odour complaints generated by the Quarry, or the Farm were regulated by the Council.  However, the two organisations worked closely with each other and would share information.

Resident expressed the opinion that this was often confusing for people when reporting incidents or making complaints to know who best to contact on a particular concern. 

A further explanation was given, and it was emphasised that with the change from in-vessel composting to anaerobic digestion (which was an enclosed) process there was very little odour produced complaints regarding the AD (as this was permitted activity) should be reported to NRW.  When digestate or slurry is spread any odour complaints here should be reported to the Local Authority.  The number of complaints in relation to odour had reduced dramatically with most of the odour complaints arising now relating to agricultural activity. However, if there is any cross over, or should a complaint be made to one organisation, following investigation, apply to the other organisation then the Local Authority would contact NRW and vice versa so that there was no duplication of effort and the appropriate action be taken.

Resident’s representatives raised a concern in relation to an increase in heavy slurry lorries over the last few weeks and asked if there was a weight register for these and if a list of organisations using the Bryn site could be made available.

The Bryn Group confirmed that due to commercial sensitivities they would not release the information on its customers.  It was confirmed that lorries would carry approximately 27 ½ tonnes of slurry making the total lorry weight of 44 tonnes.

Reference was made to the Llancaiach stream that runs alongside the cycle track and monitoring a stream there and signs that had been placed in relation to pollution and clarification sought if this was still being monitored.  NRW confirmed they were not aware of any current monitoring but would make enquiries and report back.

Reference was then made to the bund contamination and residents expressed frustration that the incident had only resulted in a formal caution.

NRW explained the various enforcement options and emphasised that a formal caution was a very serious matter as once this has been served any further incidents would likely be escalated to a prosecution.

Residents believed the contamination was not confined to the bund and was throughout the farm and that this incident should have resulted in a prosecution.  NRW explained the investigation process and advised that this was the appropriate response taking into account all aspects including the seriousness of the offence, environmental impact and public interest factors.

Residents queried if written reports on Bryn incidents were available and NRW confirmed that they were, and these were publicly available and had been shared with the Local Authority.  It was noted that the bund contamination although not part of the permitted activity had been subject to an intrusive site investigation completed by a consultant and a report on this had been completed and is publicly available.

Vehicles movements and frequency were discussed, and residents’ representatives queried if there was a registration of the number of vehicles coming in to establish frequency.  The Bryn Group advised that vehicle registrations were captured on camera and advised that it might be possible to work this out and give an idea of frequency but would not give destination or origin.

The Senedd Member urged residents to continue to report to NRW and follow processes.

Reference was then made to the proposal to add an additional AD to the Bryn site and residents questioned why this was necessary.  The Bryn Group confirmed that the additional AD would allow for increased electricity production from the waste.  Residents queried if this electricity would be supplied to Caerphilly Council and the Bryn Group confirmed that this had not been decided.

Update From Caerphilly County Borough Council

As requested by residents’ representatives as the last meeting a Highways Officer attended and provided details of the 2019 traffic survey. It was noted that the survey had been very resource intensive as 20 potential routes and 5 possible destinations had been identified.

On 17th January 2019 officers carried out detailed investigations into the existing traffic conditions on Shingrig Road as well as the B4254 route which leads to Gelligaer. A 9-hour traffic survey (between 08:00am - 5:00pm) was carried out by officers at 3 separate locations in the Nelson area during which the origin and destination of all HGV and smaller 7.5 tonne vehicles travelling along B4255 Shingrig Road and B4354 Gelligaer Road were recorded.

A summary of the findings from our investigations provided the following information.

The total number of Heavy Goods Vehicles and smaller 7.5 Tonne Lorries were recorded utilising 3 observation points as outlined below and labelled 1 to 3 on the attached drawing. The observation points were manned continuously during the survey period to enable the origin/destination of all large vehicles to be determined. 20 possible routes were identified along with 5 possible destinations as outlined below and labelled A to E on the attached drawing. The survey data has been split into AM and PM and total summary formats.

  • Survey location 1 - Shingrig Road junction
  • Survey location 2 - Reed Beds entrance
  • Survey location 3 – Bryn Quarry entrance

The survey recorded all vehicles travelling to/from the following origins/destinations:

  • A - Gelligaer
  • B – Bryn Quarry
  • C – The Reed Beds
  • D – Shingrig road/Nelson
  • E – Trelewis

A total of 440 HGV and smaller 7.5 tonne vehicles were recorded within the survey zone during the 9 hour period.

The data shows that 3 main routes were the most commonly used.

  • The highest flow of all the routes was A-B/B-A (from Gelligaer to Bryn Quarry / Bryn Quarry to Gelligaer). A total of 162 vehicles were recorded (37% of the total number of vehicles recorded within the survey zone).
  • Route B-D/D-B (Bryn Quarry to Nelson / Nelson to Bryn Quarry) had the second highest flow. A total of 136 vehicles were recorded (31% of the total number of vehicles recorded within the survey zone).
  • Route A-D/D-A (Gelligaer to Nelson / Nelson to Gelligaer) had the third highest flow. A total of 102 vehicles were recorded (23% of the total number of vehicles recorded within the survey zone).

Of the 440 vehicles recorded within the survey zone, 259 (59%) utilised Shingrig road as part of their journey. This equates to a traffic flow of 29 HGVs/lorries per hour (approximately one HGV/lorry every 2 minutes) on Shingrig Road. It should also be noted that the data indicates that there was a slight increase in flow on Shingrig Road during the AM (between 08:00 and 12:00) as an additional 33 vehicles were recorded compared to the PM period.

The Officer also confirmed that a 7-day traffic survey on Shingrig Road had also been conducted in June 2022 via rubber tubes on the carriage way.  It had recorded a mean speed of 25 mph, a 7-day traffic flow of 7165 vehicles per day comprised of 29 buses, 177 lorries of various sizes and 6958 cars, motorcycles and light use vehicles.

In terms of interventions in Nelson, following safety concerns in relation to the zebra crossing at the chip shop the belisha beacons had been relocated, zebra cross warning sign introduced for south bound traffic, an advance direction sign relocated, vegetation cut back to improve visibility and bollards introduced to prevent traffic over running.  An active travel route had also been introduced on Bwl Road which provided a segregated area for pedestrians and cyclists.  It was also noted that with the introduction of the 20-mph default speed limit in September 2023 the majority of Nelson would become 20-mph. The Officer also confirmed that they had just given public notice to reduce the national speed limit from 60 to 40-mph on Gelligaer Road.

It was agreed that this information would be circulated to the Group.

Residents’ representatives noted that vehicles outside Wales were travelling to the Bryn Group outside operating hours and expressed the concern that the facility was becoming too big for its purpose and that there was a lack of transparency with the information being presented and were frustrated when requests for information were not forthcoming.

The Cabinet Members asked residents, if possible, they give as much notice as possible when requesting information as this will give both Officers, NRW and the Bryn Group time to put together the data and responses (within the limits of commercial sensitivities) in time for the meeting and hopefully prevent such frustrations.

Reference was made to a new waste strategy for the Local Authority and clarification was sought on the possible implications that this could have in terms of increased food recycling and as a result incur increased levels of traffic into the Bryn Group. The Group queried whether traffic implications had been considered in the preparation of the new waste strategy.

The Highways Officer confirmed that he would be happy to arrange another traffic survey although he had no control over the amount of traffic using the road and if the Bryn Group were operating within their permit and planning requirements then there was nothing that he as a Highways Officer could do.

NRW explained permit and permit variations procedures and application processes and it was noted that even if a variation may be submitted it may not be accepted.

In response to a number of criticisms from resident representatives on the lack of regulation NRW refuted this and advised that a lot of effort was placed on the regulation and inspection of the site knowing how impactful it can be on residents and as recent at 2019 a suspension notice had been served on Bryn and they could not take in waste for a period of 3 weeks that this had a significant impact on the Local Authorities using the site.

It was confirmed that the 4 Local Authorities using the site were Caerphilly and Merthyr Tydfil and a fall-back only for Newport and Blaenau Gwent for green waste and it was emphasised this was a contingency measure only for the latter and would be very rarely utilised.

The Senedd Member emphasised the need for the Group to continue to work in a constructive and open way and in doing so would see positive outcomes.  In relation to the new waste strategy, he made the argument that there was an opportunity now to look for an alternative waste/recycling organisation rather than relying solely on the Bryn Group based on potential for increased traffic to the site. He felt that a conversation on alternative provision should inform this strategy and the concerns raised by this Group could be used for the basis of that conversation.

The Corporate Director for Economy and Environment for clarity confirmed where the waste streams go and advised that residual waste went to the incinerator in Cardiff from transfer station in Cross Keys, they do not go to Bryn, – co-mingled kerbside recycling collection also go to the transfer station in Cross Keys and then on to England, again they do not go to Bryn.  The only waste going into the Bryn Group was food and green waste.

The Bryn Group felt that the AD Plant was being unfairly criticised and advised that only 7 Caerphilly collection vehicles entered the site per day.

Dusting Monitoring Results 

Reference was made to the data circulated within the document pack and the Environmental Health Manager confirmed that there had been no exceedances within the monitoring period.  The Officer advised that the monitoring equipment had stopped working and had been sent away to America for servicing and would be immediately reinstated on its return.

It was noted that there was no change in the data from the last inspection which was very good news.

Residents’ representatives also confirmed that their monitor was also with the manufacturer for recalibration.

Overview of Community Engagement Activity

It was confirmed that a meeting had taken place to discuss a Newsletter and the Group felt that this was something that they would prefer to do themselves.

It was agreed that minutes will be circulated within 4 weeks to allow feedback to be made in a timely manner.

The Bryn webpage was live and provided and overview of queries and questions and following this meeting the amended minutes will be added, along with any associated documents.

The Officer confirmed that the link to the webpage would be shared and asked for any engagement opportunities and suggestions to be brought forward and she would do her best to facilitate with the assistance of partners.  Reference was made to site visits to the Bryn Group which had been extremely informative and helpful.

In relation to the newsletter, clarification was sought as to how its content would be fact-checked.  The Officer confirmed that she would be happy to act as the go between in this regard.

Mention was made in relation to resident’s social media/face book page, and it was noted that access to this was only provided by administrative approval.

Community inclusion and open communication was discussed at length and alternative means of engagement were considered and the production of a newsletter it was agreed would assist for those who did not use social media.

It was noted that the webpage would be updated meeting by meeting and would therefore grow and develop as a resource.

Funding for the printing and production of the newsletter was discussed and it noted that there was strong sense from the Group that they wished to do this alone to maintain its impartiality.  However, if this was reconsidered at any time the Officer would be happy to support.

It was agreed that outside the meeting further discussions would take place on the newsletter.

A concern was voiced that the production of a hard copy newsletter in terms of reaching its target might not be the best strategy, it was agreed that time would be allowed to gauge the success of the webpage and it was also agreed that Community Council notice boards would be used to disseminate information.

Returning discussions to highway traffic movements, Resident Representatives disputed the size and numbers of vehicles recorded and felt that greater numbers were accessing the site.  The Bryn Group confirmed that vehicles may be entering the site for the other activities being carried out there (farm, quarry etc.) and were not all accessing the AD plant.

Update from Bryn Group

Members noted the updates given throughout the meeting from the Bryn Group.

Residents Representatives expressed the opinion that the Bryn Organisation has grown far beyond that of a farm and was now much more industrial in nature and these activities would be better suited to an industrial estate, rather than near residential homes.

The Bryn Group confirmed that the AD needed to remain on the farm for operational purposes, it was acknowledged that the recycle element could move but to what alternative site. 

It was acknowledged by the Senedd Member that it would not be possible at this point in time to move the facility but what residents wish to see was no further growth and the inspection and regulation of what was existing for the wellbeing of the neighbouring communities and their residents.

Questions from Residents

It was agreed that responses would be collated and posted to the webpage.

Any Other Business

None noted.

Meeting Closed At 15:20pm