English Planning Policy and Practice - Areas subject to particular designation
Areas subject to particular designation
As well as providing a mobile telecommunications service to urban areas, there is also a requirement (and an accepted need) to provide a service in rural areas, including in the most protected landscape areas. These include National Parks (including the Norfolk Broads and New Forest), Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs), Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), Green Belts, the Heritage Coast and buildings and areas of historic and architectural importance.
PPG 8 states that in providing coverage to these areas, the highest priority should be given to protecting them. The guidance offers a number of ways of minimising the impact on these areas such as considering mast and site sharing, carefully considering siting issues and alternative designs.
When proposing development in protected areas, there should be consultation with the relevant statutory body (such as English Heritage or Natural England).
Generally
Whilst PPG 8 policy highlights the importance of siting and design, it is notable that it is only in National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty that requirements exist that proposals should not only be sensitively designed and sited but the developer must demonstrate that there are no suitable alternatives. Such a requirement does not apply to any other identified area, although the absence of a suitable alternative site has been recognised as representing a very special circumstance in justifying inappropriate development in the Green Belt. This is a discrete policy issue, distinct from the general guidance of seeking to find the optimum environmental and network solution
Ten Commitments
Central to the operators’ approach to network development is consultation with local communities, planning officers and other stakeholders on any proposed new developments. Pre-application consultation is included in the operators’ ‘Ten Commitments to Best Siting Practice’, which has existed since 2001 to help address concerns relating to the development of base stations, and which is now contained in planning guidance throughout the UK.
Sharing Sites
Mobile phone users in the UK increasingly want better coverage and greater capacity so they can access more services on their phones. While this means that new base stations will still be needed, network operators seek to share sites wherever possible. Site sharing helps reduce energy consumption and the overall environmental footprint of networks, as well as improving the quality of coverage.