Venue: Meeting Room, Frondeg, Pwllheli, LL53 5RE.. View directions
Contact: Bethan Adams 01286 679020
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APOLOGIES To receive apologies for absence. Minutes: Noel Davey (Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales), Arfon Hughes (Nefyn Town Council), Laura Hughes (National Trust) and Alun Price (Natural Resources Wales). |
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DECLARATION OF PERSONAL INTEREST To receive any declaration of personal interest. Minutes: No declarations of personal interest were received from any members present. |
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URGENT ITEMS To note any items that are a matter of urgency in the view of the Chairman for consideration. Minutes: The Llŷn AONB
Service Manager referred to
the matters below: Landscapes of the Future of Wales It was noted that conservation bodies had recently expressed concerns in the press as to the content of the draft report of the review. It was emphasised that there was general consensus among the partners involved in the review regarding the content of the draft. In terms of the timetable, it was reported that an
amended report would be circulated among partners before an event
is held to present the final report of the review during the Summer. It was explained that the report noted proposals to encourage collaboration, financial savings, attracting funding (but did not note that more funds would be available from Welsh Government) and supported the continuation of the Sustainable Development Fund. A member
noted that early discussions about the review had referred to the Welsh Government contributing financially toward the AONB and that officers would
elevate the protection element of the designation. A member
noted that the Council had received a higher than average grant increase by Welsh Government for 2017-18 and that officers
from Gwynedd had been at
the forefront of providing
the evidence to justify changing the distribution formula to reflect the true cost of care in the countryside. The member added that
consideration should be given to replicating this work in
relation to the AONB. The Llŷn AONB Service Manager asked the member to confirm the name of the officer with whom he
could contact in relation to this. Nova Innovation
Application Reference was made
to an application by Nova Innovation
on behalf of Ynni Llŷn
to the Crown Estate for the right to develop a possible tidal energy plan near Bardsey Island. It was noted that the Tudweiliog Community Council Representative had come across a consultation leaflet that did not refer to the Joint Committee. The representative further mentioned that the form referred
to the AONB but that there was no reference
to consultation with the Joint Committee. She suggested that
Ynni Llŷn should be contacted
and a request be made for more information
about the project and to inform the Crown Estates that the Joint Committee should be consulted with regarding the plan. A member
noted that he had been given
to understand that this was only an
initial consultation involving the possibility of setting up such
a scheme. The Tudweiliog Community Council Representative noted that the document stated that the next step would be to apply to the Crown Estates for a licence.
This would, therefore, be the time to submit the Joint Committee's input to the consultation. RESOLVED to contact Ynni Llŷn to request more information about the project and to inform the Crown Estates that the Joint Committee should be consulted regarding the plan. Llanaelhaearn Community Council Letter It was reported that the Chairman was in receipt of ... view the full minutes text for item 3. |
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The Chairman shall propose that the minutes of this committee, held on 22 November 2016, be signed as a true record. Minutes: The Chair signed the
minutes of the previous meeting of this committee held on 22 November, 2016, as
a true record, subject to the following corrections: ·
Change
the sentence 'It was noted that the Joint Committee meetings would most likely
be held in Pwllheli after the closure of the
building.’ in the second paragraph on page five to read 'It was noted that when
the building closes, it is most likely that meetings of the Joint Committee
will be held in Pwllheli.' ·
Change
part of the second paragraph on page seven to read ‘…He drew attention to the
fact that there were more current studies in relation to wind turbines and
solar farms, noting that the sites for wind turbine clusters which had been
proposed on technical grounds by ARUP Associates in 2012 had been ruled out by
later studies which considered landscape sensitivity. The draft JLDP also
designates the area around Rhoslan as the only
priority search area in Dwyfor for large solar farms
due to landscape issues as well as the capacity of the national grid.’ |
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LATEST PROJECTS FROM THE LLŶN AONB UNIT PDF 303 KB To consider the report of the Llŷn AONB Projects Officer. Minutes: The Llŷn
AONB Projects Officer submitted her report on the work of the AONB Service. The
following projects were expanded upon: ·
Getting rid of Untidy
Road Signs; ·
Llŷn Circular Cycle Routes; ·
Interpreting Tre'r Ceiri; ·
Ffynnon Aelrhiw Project. A member noted that he was aware that the poet Joseph Sherman had
composed poetry associated with Tre'r Ceiri and that he would send them on to the AONB Service. The Llŷn AONB Service Manager referred to
the presentation received at the previous meeting in relation to the Rhodd Eryri plan, which is a
pilot scheme in which visitors contributed to local conservation work. He noted
that he had attended an event held in Llanberis to
celebrate the success of the first year of the plan. He noted that 45 businesses
were now members of the plan and that a collection of £3,500 had been made with
the aim of collecting £10,000 by September. In response to members' observation in
relation to a similar project in the AONB, the Llŷn
Service Manager noted that more information would be presented in terms of
setting up such a project for the AONB at upcoming meetings. RESOLVED to accept the
information. |
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THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT FUND PDF 261 KB To consider the report of the Llŷn AONB Projects Officer. Additional documents: Minutes: Submitted - the report of the Llŷn
AONB Projects Officer detailing the position of the Sustainable Development
Fund. It was noted that £55,000 was in the Fund at the beginning of the 2016/17
financial year and that all funds had been distributed. Attention was drawn to
the appendix that provided a summary of the projects that had received a
contribution from the Fund. It was reported that £55,000 was in the Fund for
2017-18 and members were encouraged to promote the Fund. The Officer responded to
questions/observations by members in relation to specific projects. The Chairman expressed
his gratitude for the work. RESOLVED to accept the information. |
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LOCAL MEMBERS AND THE JOINT-ADVISORY COMMITTEE PDF 297 KB To consider the report of the Llŷn AONB Service Manager. Minutes: Submitted – the report
of the Llŷn AONB Service Manager, explaining the
implications and the process of changing the constitution of the Consultative
Joint Committee in terms of the numbers of Local Members who could be members
of the Joint Committee at any given time in accordance with the decision of the
Joint Committee in its meeting on 24 June 2015. It was explained that the existing constitution
stated that the number of members on the Joint Committee at any one time was
five with members changing places following local elections. Attention was
drawn to the fact that, at the time the decision was made, the boundaries of
wards within the area would be changed and that fewer Local Members would
represent the wards within the AONB (in part or fully). However, no changes
were made to the wards and so the number of members representing wards within
the AONB (partly or fully) was 11. An observation was made
that, if all Local Members were on the Joint Committee the membership of the
Joint Committee would increase from 27 to 33 with a substantial majority being
members of Gwynedd Council. It was highlighted that there was already a seat
for representatives from every Community Council within the AONB. During the ensuing
discussion, the following
main points were noted: ·
As the electoral boundaries would not change that
it should be up to Local Members to decide amongst themselves who should be
members of the Joint Committee. ·
That a representative from the Campaign to Protect
Rural Wales had sent observations noting that he was of the opinion that the
number of Local Members on the Joint Committee should remain at five, as 11
Members would change the balance too much in terms of representation from the
Council. He also suggested that members could be changed once a year in order
to achieve a gradual change. ·
One option would be to
hold a presentation form Local Members about the AONB before they fill in a form
stating their reasons for wanting to be members of the Joint Committee and
leave the decision to the Joint Committee as to which members should serve on
the Joint Committee. ·
Disagree with having 11 Local Members on the Joint
Committee as there needed to be a cross-section/balance of membership and the
decision should not be left to local members as opinions could differ. ·
Consideration should be given to distributing the
seats of local members in accordance with the political balance of the Council. ·
Community Councils
needed to be pressured into sending representatives to meetings of the Joint
Committee. It was proposed and seconded that the number of Local Members should remain at five and that a recommendation be made to the Cabinet / Cabinet Member - Planning and Regulatory that the constitution of the Joint Committee should be amended to note that seats are distributed among Local Members in accordance with the Council's political balance arrangements and to remove the phrase "Gwynedd Council Members ... view the full minutes text for item 7. |
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AONB MANAGEMENT PLAN PDF 310 KB To consider the report of the Llŷn AONB Service Manager. Additional documents:
Minutes: Submitted – the report of the Llŷn
AONB Service Manager providing an update on the work of updating and reviewing
the AONB Management Plan. Members were guided through four draft chapters of Part
2 of the management plan, 'Clean Environment and Tranquility',
'Habitats and Wildlife', 'Work, Produce and Skills' and 'People and
Communities' which was appended to the report. Attention was drawn to
the fact that these were the final chapters of the draft Plan to be considered.
It was reported that the next step would be to create an action plan to
coincide with the policies and bring all materials together to create a
complete revised Management Plan in draft form. Subsequently, a public enquiry
would be held for at least six weeks before the Joint Committee reconvenes with
details of the responses and recommendations received. Members were given the opportunity to make
observations. The following
main points were noted:- Habitats and Wildlife ·
Page 31 - Neptune
Campaign should be referred to under the heading 'Marine species'. ·
Page 32 - not happy that CO2 emissions
are referred to under the heading 'Climate Change', climate change can be noted
but responsibility should not be placed on human activity. Of the opinion that
the sun was a big factor in climate change. ·
That the wording of policy BP5 was weaker than that
noted on page 32. Also, it was noted in the final paragraph on page 32
'...creating renewable energy on a suitable scale...';
what is meant by suitable scale should be clearly stated in the policies. Work, Produce and skills ·
That some of the figures included in the chapter
were misleading as it would not be possible to obtain such detailed analysis
from STEAM figures. The Abersoch and Llŷn Tourism Partnerships Representative stated that
the figures should be discussed with Steven Jones (Senior Tourism Services
Officer) and that he would also be willing to assist. He added that it was
difficult to obtain concrete figures for the AONB. People and Communities ·
Page 55 - consideration
should be given to noting, under the chapter of 'Holiday Homes and House
Prices', the need to look at the reasons why so many houses are for sale in
some specific areas of the AONB. ·
Page 56 - Fuel Poverty - direct link
between the tax on carbon and the fact that the United Kingdom had to import
fuel as new coal fired power stations were no longer allowed, policy had led to
fuel poverty among many people. ·
With regard to the order of chapters, consideration
should be given to putting this chapter at the beginning of the plan, in order
to give the chapter greater emphasis. ·
That communities were ageing and the need to
look at the way in which individuals could be supported to stay in their
communities. Even though this was not unique to the AONB, consideration should
be given to making reference to the matter. The Llŷn AONB Service Manger stated that observations had ... view the full minutes text for item 8. |