Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors L Deighton and F Petersen.

Members are requested to declare the existence and nature of any disclosable pecuniary interests and/or other interests, not already on their register of interests, in any item on the agenda and withdraw from the meeting at the appropriate time.

There were no Declarations of Interest.

To note the notes of the Informal Environment Scrutiny Committee held on 17 July 2023.

RESOLVED – That the Notes of the informal Environment Scrutiny Committee held on 17 July 2023 were agreed.

To receive an overview of the Climate Change Strategy.

(Assistant Director of Regeneration and Programmes)

With the agreement of the Chair, the order of business on the agenda was revised so that this and the following item could be taken at the start of the meeting.

The Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes gave Members a presentation on the current position with the Climate Change Strategy. Committee heard how the Strategy aims to create a District which balances economic prosperity with environmental sustainability, improving the lives of our people and our environment today and in the future. These would be achieve by focusing on:

• REDUCE - consumables, energy, travel, waste

• REUSE - renewable energy, materials

products, equipment

• RECYCLE - water, waste, by-products

• RETHINK - Doing somethings differently.

Members were reminded that the aims of the Strategy were represented in the key Council Plan priority of ‘A great place that cares for the environment’. Achieving this priority would involve:

•       The Climate Change Strategy

•       Local Plan Review

•       Waste Management Strategy

•       Grounds Maintenance Strategy

•       Biodiversity (BNG) Net Gain Policy/Plan

•       Green Infrastructure Strategy

•       Fly Tipping Policy

Members heard some of the successes regarding the priority, such as the majority of the Council’s electricity now coming through renewable sources, and a number of programmes being completed like the Local Area Delivery (LAD), Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) and Low Carbon Challenge Fund releasing monies to businesses for the Clay Cross Town Deal.

Committee discussed the data in the presentation. As part of this, some Members asked why it was for 2018 rather than for more recent years. The Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes explained that officers were reliant on external data from SCATTER (a local authority emissions measurement and modelling tool), and this was the most up-to-date available.

Committee also discussed heat pumps being installed into houses by 2023, and asked if solar panels could be installed in some of them instead. The Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes explained that any changes to installations would be down to the flexibility of funding schemes, and because in many cases they were restrictive, this would stop them from being possible at the moment.

Members enquired if community collaboration could be utilised to help install energy units. Committee was informed that this would be difficult to undertake because every community had its own circumstances.

RESOLVED – That the Committee noted the presentation.

That the public be excluded from the meeting during the discussion of the following item of business to avoid the disclosure to them of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 3 & 4, Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006). 

RESOLVED – That the public be excluded from the meeting during the discussion of the following item of business to avoid the disclosure to them of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 3 & 4, Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006).

Briefing by the Assistant Director Regeneration and Programmes

                                                                                           (Paragraphs 3 and 4)

The Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes gave Members presentations summarising two Derbyshire County Council documents: the Draft Tree & Woodland Strategy and the Community Forest Proposals.

Members referred to the map in the presentation of the proposed Community Forest area, and asked how many trees this area would include. The Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes agreed to investigate the number.

The results of the investigation by the Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes are attached as an appendix to these minutes.

RESOLVED – That the Committee noted the presentations.

Presentation and discussion with the Director of Property Services and Development, Rykneld Homes Limited.

The Committee agreed to go into public session at this point.

The Director of Property Services & Development (Rykneld Homes) gave an update on Energy Efficient Home work undertaken by Rykneld Homes to 9 new bungalows at Pine View in Danesmoor.

Members were informed that a range of energy-efficient technology had now been provided to the properties, including extra-wide cavity walls, solar panels and charging points for electric vehicles.

In addition, Rykneld Homes were delivering a number of retrofit programmes of work on existing Council owned homes.

The Director of Property Services & Development (Rykneld Homes) referred to some of the earlier discussions about other energy sources, such as the installation of solar panels. He explained that installing different heating methods (for example Air Source Heat Pumps) in some properties would be challenging due to the nature of the works, and may not be cost effective in all cases.

Some Members enquired about the lessons that had been learnt from this work. The Director of Property Services & Development (Rykneld Homes) emphasised the importance of investment into communication with customers.

The Director of Property Services & Development (Rykneld Homes) agreed to attend future Committee meetings to explain and discuss with the Committee the actions taken to achieve Energy Efficient Homes.

RESOLVED – That the Committee noted the update.

To consider the Forward Plan of forthcoming Cabinet Decisions:

https://democracy.ne-derbyshire.gov.uk/mgListPlanItems.aspx?PlanId=205&RP=1137

The Governance Manager presented the Forward Plan of Executive Decisions to the Committee.

The Committee was informed that future updates on the Forward Plan would be provided in a digest style, to identify Cabinet decisions that they could scrutinise further, and how scrutiny of them could contribute to achieving the Council Plan objectives.

RESOLVED – That the Committee noted the update.

To consider future items for the Committee’s Work Programme.

Governance Scrutiny Support

Committee discussed the work programme for its next meeting.

The Governance Manager presented a list of possible items for the next meeting agenda. Members discussed these and agreed that they be included on the agenda for the 13 November 2023 meeting.

RESOLVED - That the Committee agreed to include the suggested items in its Work Programme for the next meeting.

To consider any other matter which the Chair of the Committee is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency.

None.

The next meeting of the Environment Scrutiny Committee is scheduled to take place on 13 November 2023 at 3.30 pm.

3.30pm Monday 13 November 2023

Environment Scrutiny Committee

APPENDIX to the MINUTES of THE meeting held on Monday, 11 SEPTEMBER 2023

The Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes gave Members presentations summarising two Derbyshire County Council documents: the Draft Tree & Woodland Strategy and the Community Forest Proposals.

Members referred to the map in the presentation of the proposed Community Forest area, and asked how many trees this area would include. The Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes agreed to investigate the number.

Update from the Assistant Director – Regeneration and Programmes:

“Following a question at Environment Scrutiny, I have been trying to find out how may trees there are in the planned Community Forest area. Unfortunately, there does not seem to be any metric of current trees, with the focus instead on measuring our addition to the tree coverage through the aim to ‘Facilitate the planting of up to 300,000 trees within the Community Forest by March 2025’ in the first phase of activity, which will contribute to ‘Facilitating the planting of up to 1,000,000 trees in Derbyshire by 2030.’

“In more general terms, the Community Forest area is estimated to have a current canopy and woodland cover of 12.5% and the target is to increase this cover to 14.25%, as a contribution to the national increase target of from 14.5% to 16.5% by 2050.”