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ENVIRONMENT
Noise Act 1996
Mr. Harry Greenway: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment which local authorities have
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indicated that they (a) will and (b) will not implement the Noise Act 1996 on 1 April 1997; how much expenditure will be incurred or saved in each case; and if he will make a statement. [10347]
Mr. Clappison: This information is not available centrally. However, my Department is commissioning research to establish the level and type of noise complaints service provided by local authorities in October 1996 and to track development of these services, including take-up of the new night noise offence in the Noise Act 1996.
Landfill
Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will commission research into the biodegradation rates of domestic waste in landfill sites; and if he will make a statement. [10518]
Mr. Clappison: The Department's research programme into the management of solid wastes with particular emphasis on landfill disposal processes has now been largely transferred to the Environment Agency. The waste strategy policy on landfill set out in the White Paper, "Making Waste Work", is to promote landfill practices which will achieve stabilisation of landfill sites within one generation.
Current research is directed towards a bio-chemical--bio-reactor--engineering approach to landfill to reduce the time taken for a site to become stable. Research results inform guidance set out in the revised series of waste management papers on landfill. WMP 26B, "Landfill Design, Construction and Operational Practice", published in 1995, describes the issues and indicates practices to achieve accelerated stabilisation.
Building Research Establishment Conservation Support Unit
Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 12 December, Official Report, column 304, for what reasons the recommendations and conclusions submitted by the consultant authors of the BRECSU reports 38 and 39 on ultra low energy homes were not published with the reports. [10659]
Mr. Clappison: Best practice publications, including reports 38 and 39 on low energy housing, take into account a range of inputs, including those from the participating consultants. They reflect generally accepted good practice taken from a number of sources and not just the recommendations and conclusions from individual consultant authors.
New Housing
Mr. Thurnham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to publish the findings of his Department's consultation to extend part M of the Building Regulations to improve access to new housing. [10795]
Mr. Clappison [holding answer 13 January 1997]: Given the very high response to the consultation, work on the analysis of the responses is just being completed. In the light of comments made further work is to be undertaken on the compliance cost assessment, and action on this is in hand. The findings will be considered by the
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Building Regulations Advisory Committee, along with the analysis of the responses to the consultation, prior to officials making recommendations to Ministers. Given the uncertainty of the timing of the outstanding work, it is difficult to give a firm commitment, but I hope that it will be possible to make a statement in the early summer.
Mr. Thurnham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many of his officials are currently working on his Department's consultation to extend part M of the Building Regulations to improve access to new housing. [10794]
Mr. Clappison [holding answer 13 January 1997]: There is currently one official working directly on the analysis of the consultation.
Rented Housing
Mr. Rooker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals he has for improving (a) services to tenants and (b) quality of management of rented housing in 1997. [10767]
Mr. Clappison [holding answer 13 January 1997]: In the private rented sector, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment has approved two management codes for residential property to be published by the Royal Institution of Charted Surveyors. These cover service charge and rent only properties respectively and will come into force on 17 March. Copies are available in the Library.
The Government will shortly also be implementing most of its package on houses in multiple occupation, which is contained in the Housing Act 1996. These will significantly strengthen the existing powers available to local housing authorities to control standards in houses in multiple occupation. Later in 1997 we intend to publish a code of practice for landlords and local authorities, to be followed by the introduction of a duty on landlords to ensure that their properties are safe.
Later in the year the Housing Corporation will be producing a new social housing standard. This will require registered social landlords to meet certain key standards, including a number related to housing management and services to tenants. In addition, it is further developing the performance indicator system, under which information about RSLs' management and services is made available. It is also updating its tenants' guarantees to reflect these and other developments.
We expect compulsory competitive tendering of local authority housing management and increased involvement of tenants to improve the quality of services by making them more responsive and efficient. Provisions in the Housing Act 1996 will enable landlords in the social rented and private sectors to respond more effectively to the problem of anti-social behaviour.
Mr. Byers:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will call in the decision taken by North Tyneside council to grant approval to planning application 96/02804/REM for the construction of 103 dwellings at the Victor Products site, Wallsend. [10910]
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Sir Paul Beresford:
No. Outline planning permission was granted by North Tyneside borough council for this development on 20 May 1996, and the current application--96/02804/REM--is for approval of reserved matters. The original application was advertised as a departure from the development plan, but the council considered that it should not be referred to the Secretary of State.
I am aware that there are local concerns about the proposal, particularly the density and character of the proposed housing, its impact on traffic and the need for local play facilities. I understand that council officers met local residents in November 1996 and are confident that the residents' concerns can be satisfactorily resolved.
Mr. Nigel Evans:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if planning permission will be granted for the proposed second runway at Manchester airport; and if he will make a statement. [11505]
Mr. Gummer:
Together with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport, I have decided to grant planning permission for a second runway at Manchester airport.
It is important to build on Manchester airport's success. It is already the 18th busiest airport in the world in terms of international traffic, with more passengers than Chicago. The second runway will cater for long-term customer demand. It will also create thousands more jobs and bring benefits for the whole of the north-west. This decision will be a boost for Manchester and the whole of the north-west.
A development of this scale will inevitably have impacts on the local environment, but the applicants have put together an impressive package of proposals to reduce these impacts and to seek the balance implicit in the concept of sustainable development.
Mr. Nigel Evans:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the Government response to the 19th report of the royal commission on environmental pollution on the sustainable use of soil will be published. [11506]
Mr. Gummer:
We have today published the Government response to the 19th report of the royal commission on environmental pollution, on the sustainable use of soil. Soil is a vital resource, and different activities can constrain its future use. It is necessary to seek to understand these effects more clearly in order to avoid causing unwitting damage. The commission's report provides a valuable contribution to this process.
We have accepted their main recommendations that we should produce a more explicit strategy for soil protection. We intend to publish this for public consultation in the spring. This will allow us to build on the many policies and action which are already contributing to the effective stewardship of soil. The soil strategy will draw together existing work, clarify our goals and identify clear commitments for future action. It will also address the
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overall monitoring framework for soils, including the issues of access to soil data and the better integration of existing data.
Our detailed responses to the 90 other recommendations, made by the royal commission, which cover all aspects of soil use, are also set out in the Government response. Among the most important recommendations accepted by the Government are:
Copies of the Government response are being placed in the Library of the House.
implementing the new contaminated land regime as soon as is practicable--recommendation 2. The Department of the Environment is currently evaluation the responses to its consultation on statutory guidance.
reviewing legislation relating to the Environment Agencies once they have had time to establish themselves--recommendation 4. A study of existing legislation is planned in order to identify the scope for rationalisation.
considering further ways to encourage farmers to seek advice on erosion control--recommendation 18. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, for example, is planning to issue an advisory booklet to complement the soil code in 1997.
pursuing action to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions--recommendation 41.
Among other measures, the Government are contributing to the European Union acidification strategy planned for mid-1997.
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