DEC Officer Report

Application No.: 20/00533/B Applicant: Mr Alan Presford Proposal: Installation of 28 solar panels to gable wall and installation of a heat pump Site Address: The Haven Windsor Mount Ramsey Isle Of Man IM8 3EA Planning Officer: Mrs Vanessa Porter Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 29.10.2020 _________________________________________________________________

Conditions and Notes for Approval

C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions

• C 1. The development hereby approved shall be begun before the expiration of four years from the date of this decision notice.

Reason: To comply with Article 26 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.

• C 2. The heat pump hereby approved must not result in a noise that exceeds 42 dB LAeq 5 mins where "LAeq 5 mins" means the A-weighted equivalent continuous sound pressure level over 5 minutes when measured at 1 metre external to the centre point of any relevant door or window to any neighbouring building as measured perpendicular to the plane of that relevant door or window.

Reason: for the avoidance of doubt and to safeguard the neighbouring property from unnecessary noise in accordance with General Policy 2.

• C 3. The external facing wall where the solar panels are to be installed shall be painted to match the proposed solar panels and retained as such thereafter. Reason: In the interests of the character and appearance of the site and surrounding area.

This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason.

The solar panels and the air source heat pump are considered to accord with General Policy 2, Paragraph 12.2.8, Environment Policy 22 and Energy Policy 4 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan, as well as wider Government climate change strategy.

Plans/Drawings/Information;

This decision relates to the following plans and drawings, date stamped received on 29th May 2020

• o MSE_PRES_01
• o MSE_PRES_02

This decision also relates the MCS calculations given and the correct details for the air source heat pump sent via email on the 7th September 2020 _______________________________________________________________

Interested Person Status – Additional Persons

None _____________________________________________________________________________

Officer’s Report THE APPLICATION SITE

1.1 The application site is the residential curtilage of "The Haven," Windsor Mount, Ramsey which is a double frontage four storey end of terrace property which is situated at the start of the Windsor Mount Road where it meets Ballacloan Road. THE PROPOSAL - 2.1 The current planning application seeks approval to erect 28 solar panels to the south facing elevation and to install a heat pump to the rear of the property.

2.2 The proposed solar panels are a wall mounted solar PV system comprising on 28 x 295Watt Panels which measure 1650mm by 990mm each. The solar panels are to be 'all black' as they have a black frame and black back sheet and due to the way they are constructed should not be shiny. - 2.3 The proposed heat pump is a Ecodan 14kw (PUZ-HWM140VHA(-BS) which measures 1.1m by 1.3m the noise levels provided by the product specification submitted for the application indicate that the noise emitted by the unit (at normal heating levels and tested to British Standards) would have:

• o Sound pressure level at 1m (dBA) = 53
• o Sound power level (dBA) = 67.5

PLANNING HISTORY

3.1 The previous planning applications are not considered to be specifically material in the assessment of the current application. PLANNING POLICY - 4.1 The site lies within an area zoned as Predominantly Residential on the Ramsey Local Plan 1998, Map 2. Given the nature of the application it is appropriate to consider General Policy 2, Paragraph 12.2.8, Environment Policy 22 and Energy Policy 4.

4.2 Of specific relevance to the assessment of this application is General Policy 2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 General Policy 2 states "Development which is in accordance with the land-use zoning and proposals in the appropriate Area Plan and with other policies of this Strategic Plan will normally be permitted, provided that the development:

• b) respects the site and surroundings in terms of the siting, layout, scale, form, design and landscaping of buildings and the spaces around them;
• c) does not affect adversely the character of the surrounding landscape or townscape; g) does not affect adversely the amenity of local residents or the character of the locality;

• n) is designed having due regard to best practice in reducing energy consumption."

4.3 Paragraph 12.2.8 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 states, "The Department is fully supportive of the need to secure greater energy efficiency in new and existing development and has recently introduced additional energy efficiency requirements in the Building Regulations 2003. Energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy sources are covered in General Policy 2(m) of the Building Regulations. At the same time the Department recognizes that renewable energy sources can have adverse environmental impacts. The idea of a wind turbine Installation is currently being investigated and considered by the Manx Electricity Authority. Any feasible site is likely to be exposed and have considerable visual impact. There may also be other impacts such as noise. On a smaller scale, the popularity of domestic wind turbines has been increasing in recent years in response to rising energy prices and increasing awareness of climate change. Planning applications for domestic wind turbines are unlikely to require the submission of an Environmental Impact Assessment. The Department will assess any proposals for wind turbine installations by weighing the benefits of using such renewable energy sources against the environmental impact arising in any particular site. It is likely that the visual impact would be less detrimental on a coastal site than on a rural or upland one. Accordingly: - 4.4 Environment Policy 22 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 states: "Development will not be permitted where it would unacceptably harm the environment and/or the amenity of nearby properties in terms of:

• i) pollution of sea, surface water or groundwater;
• ii) emissions of airborne pollutants; and
• iii) vibration, odour, noise or light pollution."

4.5 Energy Policy 4 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 states: "Development involving alternative sources of energy supply, including wind, water and tide power, and the use of solar panels, will be judged against the environmental objectives and policies set out in this Plan. Installations involving wind, water and tide power will require the submission of an EIA".

REPRESENTATIONS

5.1 Highway Services have No Highways Interest in this application (18.06.20).

5.2 Ramsey Town Commissioners have considered the proposal and have no objection stating, "Ramsey Town Commissioners have no objection to this proposal. The board were encouraged and supportive of alternative energy sources." (22.06.20). ASSESSMENT - 6.1 The key issue to consider in the assessment of this planning application is the potential impacts upon the streetscene and neighbouring amenity particularly with regard to noise impact.

6.2 When looking at the proposal it will comply with General Policy 2 in respect of nonrenewable energy consumption and the general support in the Strategic Plan for the installation of renewable energy installations set out in Energy Policy 4, the application is not required to provide an EIA. SOLAR PANELS

6.3 When looking at the proposed solar panels they are outside out of where they would normally be placed as they are to be placed on the south west elevation as such it is necessary to make sure that there would be no adverse impacts upon the neighbouring locality.

• 6.4The proposed solar panels are to have an all-black structure and base and should not have any elements which would reflect the light in such a way to be distracting to road users, whilst it is noted that the solar panels could potentially be seen from the main roadway of Ballacloan Road leading to the T junction with North Shore Road and North Shore Road to the east,

• Highway Services have written in to state that they have no highway interest and as such there should be no impact on road users from the proposed solar panels.
• 6.5 There is the potential that the solar panels could affect the living amenities of the neighbouring properties within Windsor Grove, specifically "An Airidh" and "Kalista," as such a letter was sent to see if they had any comments regarding the proposed works, no reply was given. Whilst this doesn't necessarily mean that there would be no affect to assist in the solar panels being as unobtrusive as possible a condition to state that the facia of the wall where they are to be situated should be painted black to limit the effect that the solar panels might have.
• 6.6 The installation of the proposed solar panels will accord with the general support given to the introduction of renewable and alternative energy sources as set out in the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016. Their introduction here is expected to help contribute to the overall operation and energy efficiency of the property which is old. In this respect the proposal is considered to comply with paragraph 12.2.8 and Energy Policy 4 of the Strategic Plan. HEAT PUMP
• 6.7 Whilst the heat pump is of a large size it is to be situated to the rear garden on the south west elevation of the property which is in a location that isn't in a public vantage point, as such the impact of the air source heat pump will be minimal and should not affect the character or appearance of area.
• 6.8 In terms of noise impact, the sound pressure level of the heat pump at 53dB @ 1 metre would not be significantly different than that expected from an outdoor oil boiler. For reference, 50dB is similar to the noise generated by light traffic, 60dB that of normal conversation or an air conditioner. During the daytime, few people are annoyed by activities with LAeq levels below 55 dB, however sound pressure levels during the evening and night should be 5-10 dB lower than during the day.
• 6.9 To protect the possibility of sound pressure levels at the night rising above a nuisance level the sound pressure levels at the outside facades of living spaces should not be in excess 45 dB(A), this is due to the assumed noise reduction being around 15 db(A) from outside to inside with the window partly open.
• 6.10 When looking at what the noise levels for the proposed equipment would be guidance has been sought from the Microgeneration Installation Standard (MCS020) as there are currently no guidance of standards within the Isle of Man Legislation that would cover noise levels matters from equipment such as air source heat pumps (ASHP) and as such the MCS020 is used by England and Scotland for their air source heat pump permitted development.
• 6.11 The applicant has filled in the MCS020 assessment which is used to ascertain what the dB(A) would be for the closest assessment position which for the assessing of this application are the two windows situated in the rear elevation of No.4 Windsor Mount which are Flat 3 & 4's bedroom windows. The final calculation of this assessment has come out at 41.2 and 41.8 dB(A) which is 0.8 and 0.2 dB(A) less than the highest dB(A) of 42 dB(A).
• 6.12 Whilst the above is evidence that the assessment done by the applicant has put the proposed air source heat pump within the recommended 42 dB(A) for the avoidance of doubt a condition should be attached to this application to prevent the dB(A) being louder.

CONCLUSION

7.1 For the above reasons the proposal is considered to comply with General Policy 2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and therefore acceptable. INTERESTED PERSON STATUS

8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019, the following persons are automatically interested persons:

• (a) the applicant (including an agent acting on their behalf);
• (b) any Government Department that has made written representations that the Department considers material;
• (c) the Highways Division of the Department of Infrastructure;
• (d) Manx National Heritage where it has made written representations that the Department considers material;
• (e) Manx Utilities where it has made written representations that the Department considers material;
• (f) the local authority in whose district the land the subject of the application is situated; and
• (g) a local authority adjoining the authority referred to in paragraph (f) where that adjoining authority has made written representations that the Department considers material.

8.2 The decision maker must determine:

• o whether any other comments from Government Departments (other than the Department of Infrastructure Highway Services Division) are material; and o whether there are other persons to those listed above who should be given Interested Person Status

I can confirm that this decision has been made by a Principal Planner in accordance with the authority afforded to that Officer by the appropriate DEFA Delegation.

Decision Made : Permitted Date: 06.11.2020 Determining officer

Signed : C BALMER Chris Balmer Principal Planner

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