CONTEXT AND JUSTIFICATION
National Planning Policy Guideline 14: Natural Heritage (NPPG 14) states that planning authorities should seek to protect trees, groups of trees and areas of woodland where they have natural heritage value, or contribute to the character or amenity of a particular locality. Section 160 of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, makes provision for the serving of Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs) where it is in the interest of amenity to ensure the preservation of trees, groups of trees, areas of trees and woodland within the City. A TPO may be served in full and confirmed by the Secretary of State, or served provisionally by the Council and, where following a 28 day period to receive objections and representations and prior to the expiration of a 6 month period following the date of serving, the Council may itself confirm the Order.
It is an offence, under the Act, to cut down, top, lop or wilfully destroy any tree, group of trees or area of woodland subject to a TPO, without the consent of the Council. In addition to this, Section 167 of the Act makes provision for the planting of another tree(s) of an appropriate size and species in the circumstances where any tree, group of trees or area of woodland has been removed or destroyed without the consent of the Council. Where the offender fails to carry out the prescribed replanting, the Council may serve an Enforcement Notice requiring them to do so.
It would be inappropriate for the Council to serve TPOs on trees on Council land but the advisability of providing some form of control has been recognised in the Trees on Council Land Policy (approved 26 January 1996). This delegated the maintenance responsibility to the then Director of Parks and Recreation and gives protection to trees as if covered by a TPO. This policy ensures that trees on Council land, not protected by a TPO but which are located within a Conservation Area, are subject to the normal consultation requirements relevant to a Conservation Area in accordance with the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act, 1997.
A review of areas covered by Tree Preservation Orders is being carried out with a view to promoting additional orders on trees/woodlands considered worthy of conservation in the context of biodiversity/nature conservation, landscape and the establishment of a City green network (see policies ENV 4 - 10). Consideration will be given to serving TPOs on sites that are the subject of planning applications for development and/or adjoining sites. Areas covered by a TPO are shown on the Environmental Policy Designations maps (see Definition).
POLICY
The Council will take into account the effect of any loss of amenity when assessing any development likely to have an adverse effect on trees, groups of trees and woodlands specified in a TPO.
In assessing proposals affecting a TPO, all the following criteria must be met before a development may be looked on favourably:
(a) development proposals must achieve a high quality landscape design that respects the existing trees and local environment;
(b) where there are trees subject to a TPO on the site, a detailed tree survey (conforming to BS 5837:1991) should be submitted, including details of proposed removals and other arboricultural operations and providing the following information:
the species, trunk girth, height and spread of the canopy of each tree;
the condition and defects of each tree, life expectancy and recommendations for any remedial action; and
the amenity value of the trees and their importance to the amenity value of the site and surrounding area.
(c) the survey should be carried out by a competent arboriculturalist at an early stage in order that the impact of the development proposals on the trees can be assessed;
(d) there will be a presumption in favour of retaining all healthy and structurally sound trees which are the subject of a TPO. The proposed loss of any TPO’d tree on a development site is likely to lead to the refusal of planning permission;
(e) all development proposals must take into account TPO’d trees during the design stage. This will include sufficient spacing between proposed structures and TPO’d trees to allow for future growth, adequate protection of trees during the construction phase and the prohibition of any works under the branch spread of any TPO’d tree, including changes to existing ground levels;
(f) on sites subject to a TPO, applicants should consider details in relation to temporary protective fencing, site compound location, temporary service provision and storage of site materials and submit details of these on a drawing as part of the application;
(g) the removal of any TPO’d tree will only be allowed in exceptional circumstances, such as where the tree is a danger to public safety or is diseased, and on the understanding that appropriate replacement planting takes place. Any existing TPO’d tree that is removed as part of an agreed development scheme must be replaced with the number, size and species of new trees to be agreed with the Council; and
(h) proposals must include details of methods to be adopted, including legal agreements, to guarantee future maintenance arrangements.
Note:
See also policies ENV 12: Landscape Standards in New Development, ENV 13: Trees and Development and HER 1: Conservation Areas for further guidance.
DEFINITION
Environmental POLICY Designation
Environmental policy designations cover the built and natural heritage of Glasgow. These areas are important because of their environmental quality, biological diversity and/or their historic, architectural or archaeological significance, and contribute positively to the quality of the environment, image and diversity of the City. The different types of environmental policy designations are listed in the key of the Environmental Policy Designations maps.