GLYNNEATH CONTAMINATION - NEATH-PORT TALBOT COUNCIL COVER-UP

This video shows how the Neath Port Talbot Council breached the 1990 Environmental Protection Act and placed the health and lives of the residents of the following Glynneath streets at risk from untreated contaminated land:

Waun Gron, Brynhyfryd, Woodland Park, & Heol y Glyn and Inter Valley Road (A4109)

This is a housing development site in Glynneath.

In this video we will see how Neath-Port Talbot Council Planning Department malpractice has placed the health and the lives of the neighbouring residents at risk for the last 10 years.

We will see which elected members of the council are covering up this malpractice and are refusing to observe its purpose which is............

The Neath Port Talbot Council exists to serve and represent the interests of its citizens and communities. We strive to improve the economic, social, environmental and cultural well-being of all of our people.

We will see how Neath-Port Talbot Council have breached the 1990 Environmental Protection Act by failing to follow the Contaminated Land Strategy which is based upon the requirements of this act.

		In 2005 Neath-Port Talbot Council Planning Committee approved planning permission for a development at Heol y Glyn in Glynneath. They placed a list conditions on the planning permission which the developer had to meet in order for them to complete the development..
	condition 17 image	One of these conditions was that a "Geotechnical Survey" of the ground be submitted .
	front cover	The Geo-technical Survey was submitted to the planning department at Neath-Port Talbot Council on 26 November 2008.
	contamination evidence	The report found that of the 6 soil samples that were sent for chemical testing, 4 tested above the required safety levels for the presence of a recognised contaminant.
	arsenic slide	Three contaminants were identified above the safe level. Two of these contaminants were grade 1 classified carcinogens. Arsenic
	BaP slide	and a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon called Benzo[a]pyrene.
	human health assessment	The Geo-technical report provided evidence that the land should be remediated, that is, cleaned up because of the danger to human health.
	remediation strategy and valid report	The report also included a Remediation Strategy. A clean up operation to protect the site end users, the new home owners from the contamination.
		What identifies land as contaminated in the eyes of the UK and Welsh Governments is the identification of a source to receptor pathway and the significant possibility of harm to human health.
	source to receptor illustration	The report provided evidence of a source to receptor pathway and so identified the significant possibility of harm to human health. This being the case, the land then required further investigation and/or remediation by UK law. This law is the Environmental Protection Act 1990

		WHAT SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED? The Neath-Port Talbot Council's responsibilities at this point in time were contained in the Contaminated Land Strategy. If we look at the Executive Summary of the Contaminated Land Strategy we will see that it immediately aligns itself with Part IIA of the 1990 Environmental Protection Act and then bases it's contaminated land processes on this Act.
		The Executive summary of this document states: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY "Part IIA of the Environment Protection Act 1990, was introduced in Wales on July 1st 2001, until this time there had been no strategic approach to the identification of contaminated land. Land contamination had always been addressed during redevelopment or when the risk has manifested itself. Since 2001, all local authorities have a duty to inspect their areas, locate and ensure the remediation of all statutory designated contaminated land. END OF EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
	fading in to 82	"One of the key objectives of the council's Contaminated Land Strategy (Key Objective 4:) is to ensure that during the redevelopment of new sites, land contamination issues are dealt with effectively and at an early stage of the planning process."
		The land was identified as contaminated and so the Planning Department should have then passed on this information to the Contaminated Land Officer. There is no evidence of either department having undertaken any actions relating to the contamination.

		WHAT DID HAPPEN? The application containing the Geo-Technical survey with the contamination information was withdrawn on 2 April 2009. No reason was given for its withdrawal and the Geo-technical Survey or contamination contained within it were never referred to again during the planning process.
		If we refer to the Contaminated Land Strategy document on page 15 it states: The main objective of the conditions is to ensure suitable investigation work is carried out and that the land is remediated to a standard that is suitable for the proposed end use." If the contamination was to be dealt with, we would find it in the next set of conditions approved for the development.
		The next set of plans were approved on 23 April 2010. The conditions did not mention contamination or chemical testing and there is no record of any remediation on the site.
		Neath-Port Talbot Council have clearly ignored the 2008 contamination report. Therefore, Neath-Port Talbot Council have failed to follow their Contaminated Land Strategy.

		If we look again at the Executive Summary of the Contaminated Land Strategy we will see that it immediately aligns itself with Part IIA of the 1990 Environmental Protection Act .
		"Part IIA of the Environment Protection Act 1990.............. all local authorities have a duty to inspect their areas, locate and ensure the remediation of all statutory designated contaminated land.
		If we look at the act itself.................. Environmental Protection Act 1990 - Part IIA ........Identification of contaminated land. The opening points of which are................ (1) Every local authority shall cause its area to be inspected from time to time for the purpose— (a) of identifying contaminated land; and (b) of enabling the authority to decide whether any such land is land which is required to be designated as a special site.
		We will see that Neath-Port Talbot Council failed to observe point (b) of Part IIA of the act which required further investigation to identify if the site was a special site.
		The presence of Benzo[a]pyrene, would suggest the possibility that the land could be a special site.
		The governing authority for contaminated land in 2008 was the UK Government's Environment Agency so if we refer to two similar examples at English County Borough's, Slough and Reading we will see that they further investigated identified Benzo[a]pyrene contamination and designated land containing Benzo[a]pyrene as contaminated.
		If we then look at the information provided we will see that it is clear that the Neath-Port Talbot Council have failed to follow the processes outlined in the Contaminated Land Strategy in relation to the identified contamination The Contaminated Land Strategy is based upon Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act therefore:

IN THE ABSENCE OF ANY COUNTER EVIDENCE

IT MUST THEREFORE BE ACCEPTED THAT THE NEATH-PORT TALBOT COUNCIL IN FAILING TO FOLLOW THE PROCESSES CONTAINED IN THE

CONTAMINATED LAND STRATEGY

HAVE THEREBY BREACHED

PART IIA OF THE 1990 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT

WILFULLY ENDANGERING THE LIVES AND HEALTH OF THE RESIDENTS OF GLYNNEATH.

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The Planning Department are initially accountable for the breach.

The Planning Department are regulated by Neath-Port Talbot Council's elected council members and their decisions are overseen by a group of County Councillors who make up the Planning Committee. It is this Committee's job to undertake due diligence when overseeing the Planning Department's recommendations.

We have supplied this information to 15 Neath-Port Talbot Councillors in a 16 page document on 7 September 2020 including 13 members of the Planning Committee.

Our document offered Neath-Port Talbot Council

."The opportunity to provide counter evidence to the information and allegations made in the document"

To date (8 November 2020) no response from Neath-Port Talbot Council has been received apart from a generic statement from the Council Leader which labelled our document as "misinformation".

Previous to this we have dealt with the Council Leader and planning department. We have made them aware of the breach as far back as April 2020.

The Council Leader and the Planning Department have attempted to cover up the malpractice with generic statements such as "the contamination is low" and "the Environmental Protection Act is not enforceable during the planning process". No documentary evidence has been offered by the council to support these claims.

		If we refer again to the council's purpose.......... The Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council exists to serve and represent the interests of its citizens and communities. We strive to improve the economic, social, environmental and cultural well-being of all of our people. THE FOLLOWING NEATH PORT TALBOT COUNCILLORS HAVE BEEN MADE AWARE OF THE BREACH AND ARE COVERING UP THE MALPRACTICE BY REFUSING TO OBSERVE THE PURPOSE AND VALUES OF THE COUNCIL AND MAKE ACCOUNTABLE THE MEMBERS OF THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT WHO BREACHED THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT IN 2010.
		Councillor Suzanne Paddison (Chair) - 249 Western Avenue, Sandfields, Port Talbot, SA12 7NF. - Phone: 01639 760473 - Mobile: 07891 054074 ward
		Councillor Sean Pursey (Vice Chair) - 22 St Pauls Road, Port Talbot, SA12 6PG - Mobile: 07865 355970
		Councillor Christopher John Jones, 62 Ynys-Y-Mond, Alltwen, Pontardawe, SA8 3BA, Mobile: 07968 786699
		Councillor Dennis Keogh, 35 Wern Road, Port Talbot, SA13 2BD, Mobile: 07967 897072
		Councillor Rhidian Mizen, 11 Heol Crwys, Cwmafan, Port Talbot, SA12 9NT, Mobile: 07813 711212
		Councillor Scott Bamsey, 7 Wilden Avenue, Port Talbot, SA13 2HS, Mobile: 07478 432532
		Councillor Rosalyn Davies, 102 Heol Cilmaengwyn, Cilmaengwyn, Pontardawe, Swansea, SA8 4QN, Phone: 01792 862447, Mobile: 07989 661280
		Councillor Steve K.Hunt, 153 Dulais Road, Seven Sisters, Neath, SA10 9EY, Phone: 01639 700063, Mobile: 07850 429957
		Councillor Annette Wingrave (UDP Member (Non-voting)), 9 Pretyman Drive, Llandarcy, Neath, SA10 6HZ, Phone: 01792 812857, Mobile: 07757 949143,
		Councillor Arwyn N.Woolcock, 8 Barry Road, Lower Brynamman, Ammanford, SA18 1TU, Phone: 01269 825767, Mobile: 07977 588282
		Councillor Chris Williams
		Councillor Susanne Renkes, 65 Pentyla, Baglan Road, Baglan, Port Talbot, SA12 8DR, Phone: 01639 897818, Mobile: 07932 377022
		Councillor Mark Protheroe, 64 Harle Street, Neath, SA11 3DL, Phone: 01639 769231
		Councillor Simon Knoyle
		Councillor Del Morgan
		Council Leader - Councillor Rob Jones

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Based upon the available evidence:

That contamination was identified.

Plans containing the contamination information were withdrawn

There is no evidence of remediation and plans were re-submitted and approved without the mention of chemical testing or of any conditions that require remediation..

It is clear that the Neath-Port Talbot Council have failed to follow the processes outlined in the Contaminated Land Strategy in relation to the identified contamination

The Contaminated Land Strategy is based upon Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act

therefore:

Neath-Port Talbot Council have breached the 1990 Environmental Protection Act.