Photo: Neil Terry
Lancashire County Council has confirmed that some lorries visiting Cuadrilla’s fracking site near Blackpool have not followed the agreed route, in breach of planning conditions. But the council said it won’t be taking action against them.
Opponents of the operations at Preston New Road, Little Plumpton, have complained that some delivery lorries had turned right into the site – against an instruction in the traffic management plan (TMP).
The TMP, a condition of the planning permission granted by the Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid, requires all heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) to turn left in and left out of the site.
In a statement today, the county council said the breaches had been the result of police advice relating to protests and enforcement action would not be “appropriate or expedient”.
Andrew Mullaney, head of planning and environment, said:
“The County Council is aware that a relatively small number of HGVs have not followed the approved route as contained in the traffic management plan.
“It is understood that the instances of HGVs turning right into the site have been a result of police advice and instruction relating to protestor activity.
“The County Council is in regular contact with the police and Cuadrilla regarding this issue and has impressed upon the police the importance of vehicles following the approved route as contained in the Traffic Management Plan (TMP).
“Whilst I acknowledge that some HGVs have not complied with the routing controls, at present I do not consider that it would be appropriate or expedient for the County Council to take enforcement action against the site operator.
“This is because the number of HGVs visiting the site at present is low, the turning movements are taking place within the traffic light controlled area and in a location where there is police control of the traffic.
“These conditions are very different from the conditions for which the TMP was designed. The TMP was designed to reduce safety risks when there is a large number of HGVs, and there is 50mph traffic in both directions. Neither of these conditions currently exist at the site. The current right turn manoeuvres are therefore not resulting in a danger to highway safety.”
According to the TMP:
“Strict use of the permitted routes will be a condition of the contractual arrangements of all supply orders and subcontracts. Non-compliance with the permitted routes will therefore represent a legal breach of contract.”
Campaigners have been recording what they regard as breaches of the planning conditions.
Today they alleged (see photos below, clockwise from top left): there had been waiting outside the site access; lorries with loose material had not been sheeted; HGVs leaving the site had not used wheel-cleaning facilities; a vehicle had an inadequately inflated tyre. All photos are by Ami Roberts.
Community liaison group
Another condition of the planning permission at Preston New Road was the submission of a scheme for the establishment of a community liaison group.
The scheme was approved on 4 January 2017 but no meetings of the group have yet been organised or held.
The scheme includes the terms of reference for the group:
- The meeting will be chaired by the County Councillor for the Fylde West Division
- Westby with Plumptons Parish Council will write to residents living within a certain distance of the site inviting them to put their names forward. It will then select six names to attend meetings
- People who live along the HGV route to junction 3 of the M55 will be able to put their names forward for membership
- The group will also include one member to represent Kirkham Town Council, Medlar-with-Wesham Town Council and Greenhalgh-with-Thistleton Parish Council, with the representative rotating between the three councils
Mr Mullaney said Lancashire County Council had been helping to set up the group.
“Although it’s not our responsibility, we have been helping to get it up and running, which includes helping the parish council to identify and choose people to be on it. This involves contacting people in the parish and near the site, asking them to reply by 6 February to the parish council if they’re interested. The parish council will then take the decision on who they put forward for the group.”
Preston New Road Action Group has asked that meetings of the group include reports on compliance with planning conditions.
Categories: Regulation
DRILL OR DROP? 
Gold standard regulations! Got to love them!
We have a CLG set up (it’s not meeting at mo. because no activity by Hutton!) but the CLG panel decided by Hutton whether or not the people had expressed an interest. Choosing people who could be more influenced?
My partner was told she could attend the second meeting and had to wait OUTSIDEuntil she was ‘approved’ to attend.
A preapproved attendee, councillor Ms. Catherine Cutts (surely on community side!’) restricted which information could be shared outside the meetings!
Surely the ‘L’ part of the title doesn’t stand for ‘Limited’!
[Edited by moderator to include councillor’s title]
It is so wonderful that these people have found a productive calling in life! Calling out tires that need proper inflating is crucial and the impact of these actions should not be belittled by anyone.
Sounds right up your rally pennywise, you colonials do have a tendency for wanting to blow things up don’t you? Seems to us there is enough inflated egos over there to blow up the entire world. Perhaps a blowing up job is something you would like to apply for?
[Comment removed by moderator]
[Edited by moderator]
Intelligent discussion on the pros, cash for the elite, and cons, toxic wasteland, wipeout of tourism and farming, ill health inflicted upon the Fylde community, of Fracking would be most welcome!
So it starts, first the police approved contractual breaches of the TMP, vehicle safety and maintenance failures, vehicular cleanliness and security and load safety procedures fall by the roadside.
Slippery slopes all down the road.
Gold Standards? What a joke!
“It is understood that the instances of HGVs turning right into the site have been a result of police advice and instruction relating to protestor activity.”
No protestors = no breaches of the TMP. Did you miss this bit Phil C? No wonder the Council are not going to follow this up.
No fracking, no protesters, no police, no council TMP, no highway narrowing by the fracking operators, no pollution, no problems. We can all go about our business and institute true energy security with investment into true renewable wind, tide, water turbine, Tesla energy generation, advanced renewable energy production and storage. And most of all, no fossil fuel white elephants.
I doubt very much that the police would have instructed an HGV to carry out such a dangerous manoeuvre except in an emergency!
What’s the point of having planning regulations if the council can’t be bothered to enforce them? Cardboard standard, more like.
Whats the point of having planning regulations if protesters ensure they are broken in accordance with Police advice? Why not stop protesting and let them get on with it?
Because the local community doesn’t want the Fylde countryside turning into a toxic chemical wasteland. That’s why!
Paul – I’m not sure why you think that for example a truck coming in in the wrong direction is a result of the protest – can you please explain? Please read what people are saying has happened before pontificating
A badly inflated tyre – well blame the protestors. Wheels not being cleaned – it’s those jobless hoi polloi! Come on Paul – we know you’ll defend the industry until it falls over but have some self respect!
The quote was from the article above. Did I read it incorrectly?
“It is understood that the instances of HGVs turning right into the site have been a result of police advice and instruction relating to protestor activity.”
Perhaps I misunderstood but I don’t think so?
“have some self respect” says the angry one! I think that you ought to be out there checking tire pressures and wheel cleanliness, Refracktion. This work is right on your level!
“In a statement today County Council said the breaches had been the result of police advice relating to the protests and enforcement would not be ‘appropriate or expedient’.
Surely the Council do not expect us to believe that the breach carried out by the driver of an Ashcroft’s gravel truck on January 9th was the ‘result of police advice’. On this occasion, the last delivery of the day stopped at the correct end of the work area as if he intended to enter that way but suddenly shot past the work area intending to reverse into the work area from the wrong end – totally against the traffic plan. When protectors went to prevent the truck from doing this the driver began deliberately reversing the truck, knowing there were people behind it, trapping the protectors between the truck and the fencing. He ignored all attempts to stop him, even ignoring the police banging on the cab door and continued reversing. He was only stopped when someone leaped onto a ladder on the side of the truck. Even then he tried to dislodge her by jolting the truck. I know this is is true as I was one of the people involved in this terrifying event.
This was a definite breach of not only the traffic plan but a clear example of total road rage which was in NO WAY the ‘result of police advice relating to protests’.
Pauline, I just hope that none of the protesters was hurt! Who would be qualified to check tire pressure if that happened? LOL
And why no police action so far I don’t understand!
I think it’s very conclusive now. There is no trust in any authority. It is now up to the people to assert its own standard of regulation, which basically means, the only gold standard is no fracking.
Just waiting for the headline announcing a ragtag protester has caused an accident. (edited by moderator).
Why ‘…Ragtag’
We are out in the freezing cold starting a process we believe will prevent the Fylde countryside being turned into a toxic chemical wasteland.
We will wear our warmest clothing while we do this!
When the fracking threat is over, on the Fylde and elsewhere, we will smarten up and party!
(Comment removed by moderator)
You would be amazed at the status and qualifications of people on the roadside!
I personally work evenings while most people are watching TV or in the pub.
A nearly flat tyre on a HGV is a serious problem by the way, bad accident on the way. Possibly on the M55!
Pennywise, please keep on giving us your daily reports of all the pollution accidents and poisoning of air water and land in your own country, and don’t forget to keep us updated on the ongoing gagging of the EPA and the crushing of freedom of speech by your newly incorporated oil and gas industry representative junior executive. We love to read how you fight tooth and nail for human rights and the environment over there. Your protection efforts on behalf of the Standing Rock situation is always edifying and informative. It is always a pleasure to read your factual and objective missives on the fight for freedom, moms apple pie and the American way, so gratifying to know you have your finger on the pulse of the emancipation of the native peoples and your condemnation of the pseudo militaristic thuggery of the police and the hired mercenaries to crush free and open protest, and your undying fight to free us all from the clutches of the liberal globalist elite.
Well done keep it up,
Have a beautiful day.
The usual word that councils use in not enforcing breaches of planning conditions is “expediency”. LCC have rolled it out here as expected. The interesting wording which Drill or Drop highlight is LCC reference to “legal breach”. This reference in a TMP is unusual.
This is ridiculous argument from anti fracking brigades. The protestor mob force the traffic change that cause dangerous conditions to local traffic and the police advice the change to keep it safe and Caudrilla took the advice to keep it sage. And the anti fracking mob still whinge. Do they want Caudrilla to not take the police advice and stick to the route that was disrupted by the protesters to cause accident just to keep to the original plan. It sound like these protesters prefer their own regulation over the public safety and local police advice. What a joke.
Cuadrilla’s fracking application for this site were correctly turned down by both Fylde Borough and Lancashire County Councils. One of the reasons being concerns about traffic problems.
The access is dangerous and needs temporary traffic lights to facilitate large vehicles turning into the site.
An access compound was created so manoeuvring lorries did not collide with passing
Traffic, including equally large vehicles often traveling too fast for safety!
Remember please, no fracking, no traffic problems, no Protectors, no toxins!
Simple?
Peter, correct me if I am wrong, but didn’t the planning officer in Lancs give an okay to the traffic plan in the application?
The reasons reported in the press included traffic concerns but were strangely quiet on concerns about pollution worries.
hballpeenyahoocom maybe the planning officer had been kept in the dark.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/fracking-report-blocked-suppressed-minister-vote-parliament-a7439496.html
Jack, it doesn’t appear that this report specified issues related to traffic planning approval at Lancs. I’m not sure why the report would impact the planning officer’s approval of the traffic plan.
hballpeenyahoocom
I just raise the point that if the planning officer had been in receipt of all the information when taking into account, ALL aspects of this application. Different restrictions, conclusions and recommendations may of been put in to place.
I can’t agree with that Jackthelad. None of that information would have a bearing on the traffic plan. None of that information would have had a bearing on anything, because it wasn’t meaningful anyway.
The traffic situation was approved with conditions! The lorries breached the conditions by approaching the site from the wrong direction necessitating a dangerous right turn across oncoming traffic!
No justification for this manoeuvre! Should have carried on to the next roundabout, maybe one mile, then circled back!
If the police advised the manoeuvre they were totally wrong!
If there had been a 999 incident one-off breaches could be excused! So long as no other injury or damage resulted.
Apparently Cuadrilla have a history of disregarding planning conditions and getting away with it!
Here on the Fylde Coast our Borough and County Councils are not corrupt, therefore will stand up to them, backed up by the local community!
Go away Cuadrilla, you are not wanted here or anywhere actually!
That was polite wasn’t it?