Minerals and waste planning seeks to manage minerals extraction resources and guides the provision of waste management facilities. It involves creating planning policies, deciding on planning applications, monitoring, liaison meetings and enforcement.
Minerals and waste planning applications
For a chance to comment on minerals and waste development proposals or check out the latest planning applications, these are available on Central Bedfordshire Council's minerals and waste planning webpages.
To submit a minerals or waste application, please visit Central Bedfordshire’s minerals and waste planning applications webpage.
Please send any planning applications, queries or complaints concerning minerals or waste matters to: MWApplications@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.
Existing Minerals and Waste Local Plans
The Minerals and Waste Local Plan: Strategic Sites and Policies (adopted in 2014) sets out the vision, objectives and strategy to guide the provision of minerals and waste across the whole of Bedfordshire up to 2028.
This document also identifies strategic sites where mineral extraction and various types of waste management facilities (e.g. recycling, energy recovery and non-hazardous landfill) can be developed. It also replaces most of the policies in the Bedfordshire and Luton Minerals and Waste Local Plan 2005, although two policies (policy W17: land raising and policy W22: safeguarding existing sites) have been saved and are specifically applicable to Bedford.
A separate Minerals and Waste Policies Map illustrates all the proposals and policies contained within these documents.
There is also associated technical guidance to help implement the policies set out in these plans:
- Managing Waste in New Developments Supplementary Planning Document (adopted in 2006).
- Mineral Safeguarding Areas and Resource Assessments Technical Advice Note (adopted in 2016).
- Technical Guidance: Waste Audits for new Developments (adopted in 2021).
- Technical Guidance: Waste and Recycling in New Developments (adopted in 2021).
Monitoring reports that assess the effectiveness of adopted policies and the progress of associated plans are also available.
All these documents can be viewed from Central Bedfordshire Council's website using the links above.
Emerging Minerals and Waste Local Plan 2050
Central Bedfordshire Council is leading on the preparation of a new Minerals and Waste Local Plan which will provide a single, comprehensive framework to guide the provision of minerals and waste management facilities across Bedfordshire over the period to 2050.
Once adopted, it will replace the Minerals and Waste Local Plan: Strategic Sites and Policies (adopted in 2014) and relevant saved policies from the Bedfordshire and Luton Minerals and Waste Local Plan (adopted in 2005).
When the public consultation stages commence, we will notify people and organisations who are on our contact lists. If you would like to be notified, please send an email to planning.policy@bedford.gov.uk
For any general enquiries regarding the process, please email mwplans@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.
The emerging plan will align to the principles of consultation and engagement set out in our Statement of Community Involvement.