Buncefield: Calls for planning overhaul near major hazard sites

London - The Buncefield Major Incident Investigation Board (MIIB) has called for a major overhaul of the land planning system to achieve a better balance between the need for strategic facilities and the need for off-site social and economic development. The call comes in MIIB's review of land use planning around major hazard sites - the latest report to come out of the official investigation into the explosions and fires at the Buncefield oil storage deport on 11 Dec, 2005.

“We believe there are important benefits to be secured," said Lord Tony Newton, independent chair of the Buncefield Investigation Board. "A more cohesive system, greater collaboration between interested parties and more refined risk assessment tools can enable industry to provide the products we need while maintaining the levels of safety that everyone expects and avoiding the unnecessary blighting of development opportunities.”

The MIIB said it wants a wide-ranging review to look into the granting of consents to the site operators, as well as the planning consents for off-site developments. In particular, the Board is asking for the total population at risk to be considered for each new application; noting that the current system does not consider "the cumulative effect of developments on the so-called societal risk."

While the MIIB believes local planning authorities should retain responsibiity for planning decisions, it wants the roles of HSE, the Environment Agency and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the site operators to be more aligned with the regulatory system for ensuring safety and environmental protection at major hazard sites.

"The preferred system is one where the planning authority takes decisions that are informed by expert technical submissions on risks and control measures, including from the emergency responders, with HSE being responsible for the standards of technical submissions, and for the standards of the controls to be achieved by the planning decision process," the report stated.

The MIIB also recommended that the new system take account of improvements called for in its previous reports, for example in reducing risks through better design and operation of fuel storage sites. Currently, it said, the planning zones around flammable storage sites are not responsive to changes in risk levels although they are at other types of major hazard sites, such as chlorine manufacturing plants.

"The planning system needs overhauling to avoid unnecessary blight on off-site development whilst giving good assurance of safety and environmental protection relating to the site. The system should in future consider the total population at risk – societal risk – at each new development application. We should not continue to allow surrounding populations to increase without considering the consequences," said Taf Powell, the Buncefield Investigation manager.

“Planning decisions should take account of our other recommendations for controlling the risks arising from major hazard sites. Understanding the risks involved is an important step in reaching decisions and we have made a particular effort in our report to cast some light on the aspects of risk assessment and societal risk. What we are proposing is a tool for flexible transparent decision making which we believe will assist in achieving more consistent outcomes around major hazard sites,” Powell concluded