[Members] Leader's Briefing; OxCam Arc; River Cam, water crisis, natural capital; Cambs CC Climate Change Consultation; 104-112 HIlls Rd and The Flying Pig

[Wendy Blythe]

Dear all,

*Update 11 December, 2019*

*Invitation to Council Leader's Briefing "Cambridge 2020 and Beyond" *

*Friday 17 January 2020, 6.00  – 7.30pm RSVP by 10 January*

A reminder that if you want to attend the re scheduled briefing you
need to RSVP
to Kathy.Brown at cambridge.gov.uk

*Oxford Cambridge Arc *

With polling day tomorrow a number of the questions you raised earlier with
the Director of Greater Cambridge Shared Planning have featured as hustings
topics and been the focus of recent events, reports and consultations. For
an update on how politicians along the Oxford Cambridge Arc view the
Expressway and a million homes see the latest news update, 9 Dec from

https://www.noexpressway.org/

* River Cam water crisis and natural capital *

The UK Infrastructure Transitions Research Consortium (ITRC), a
collaboration of seven universities including Cambridge University is
mapping ‘existing high value natural capital assets for the Oxford
Cambridge Arc as well as potential future strategic networks of green
Infrastructure, to inform decisions before sites  are allocated for
development.



https://www.itrc.org.uk/consultation-dissemination-event-november-2019/



Researchers are working with Natural Cambridgeshire and the Environment
Agency on a local natural capital plan for ‘doubling local nature’.



They are also modelling water supply for the Arc. This does not include the
water supplied from Cambridge Water’s chalk aquifers.  Simon Hawkins Area
Director for East Anglia has written to the Exec Councillor for Planning
Katie Thornburrow to say that new reservoirs are unlikely in the next ten
years and there is no easy fix to the River Cam water crisis and the chalk
stream issues of the wider catcnment.


The River Cam is a major natural capital asset listed in the Cambridge
Local Plan.  Section 27 of the Water Act 2003 allows revocation of
abstraction licences only in cases where ‘’serious damage’’ is considered.
No action will be taken in relation to permanent licences until 1 January
2028 in order to allow Defra’s catchment based approach to abstraction to
establish. The CamEO catchment is run by Anglian Water see
http://fecra.org.uk/river-cam/



At a recent Oxbridge Arc event sponsored by Bidwells, Pinsent and LDA
Design, Professor Dieter Helm Chair of the Natural Capital Committee, made
a strong case for building nature and ecosystem services into land use,
forestry and agricultural decisions. He stressed the importance of long
term risk assessment in ensuring net environmental gain, in perpetuity,
despite development.



A developers group led by Bidwells is calling for development corporations
to be set up for the Oxford Cambridge arc with special planning and
compulsory purchase powers. The group have launched a “*Radical
Regeneration Manifesto*” . There is also a government consultation on
setting up development corporations. See links below.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RllbtxIMxL4&feature=emb_title .



https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/developers-lobby-for-fast-track-planning-in-oxford-cambridge-arc

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/development-corporation-reform-technical-consultation



*Cambridgeshire County Council’s new Climate Change and Environment
Strategy consultation*

Online consultation from 20 December 2019 to 31 January 2020
https://consultcambs.uk.engagementhq.com/climate-strategy.

They are keen to get feedback. If  you would like a member of their team to
come and discuss the strategy with your RA please let us know.

*The Flying Pig and 104-112 Hills Road *

https://www.104-112hillsroad.co.uk/

Some of you have expressed concerns about Pace Investments plans for *The
Flying Pig* and about the eight/nine storeys or so along the length of the
site.

There are concerns that if this goes ahead (which since the developer
already has initial planning consent from some years back, it may well do)
it reinforces the precedent for the rest of Cambridge.

The website of Formation Architects based in London
https://formationarchitects.co.uk/projects/ features what looks like an
earlier scheme for the surrounding plots round Botanic House and plans for
the North Cambridge Station area as well as for the remaining plots for the
Cambridge central station area. If you look at the Cambridge North drawing,
you will see a circular tower drawn in the north western corner. There are
about twelve floors, The rest are about 6 - 8 storeys.

We will be posting an update about the North East Area Action Plan.  Three
scenarios are proposed for the Milton sewage site, two of them include
plans for eleven to thirteen storeys.

Best wishes,

Wendy




Wendy Blythe
Chair, FeCRA

www.fecra.org.uk
www.facebook.com/CambridgeRAs
www.twitter.com/fecra2
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