Hillthorn Industrial Business Park environmental impact assessment

Challenge

Legal & General, in partnership with Sunderland City Council (SCC), is developing an industrial business park at Hillthorn Farm in Wellington. The scheme includes:

• Ten industrial units providing around 600,000 sqft of floorspace
• Soft landscaping areas to provide a high quality setting for the buildings, incorporating planting and ecological features
• Sustainable buildings, using design techniques and technologies that reduce energy consumption

The project supports the strategic objectives of SCC by developing the site for employment use. The site was formerly occupied by Hillthorn Farm before it was cleared for redevelopment.

With the exception of COVID-secure site work, all design iteration and planning preparation works were required to be completed remotely due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Solution

We were appointed to support Lichfields planning consultancy with Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) scoping, assessment and reporting for the first phase of the Proposed Development. Subsequently we also completed standalone risk assessments as required for the second phase.

Given its proximity to residential receptors and location in a wider industrial area, consideration of air quality, noise impacts and flood risk was key within the wider EIA. Greenhouse gas emissions assessment was also undertaken, and a construction environmental management plan produced.

Impact

Planning applications for both phases of the development were submitted to SCC in March 2021. Planning permission was subsequently secured and construction is well underway.